Stiles as Plath: Too Much to Hope?
Once, years ago, I heard a critic (now lost to time and memory) questioning the wisdom of casting Gwyneth Paltrow as Sylvia Plath. Paltrow, he said, wasn’t exactly a bad choice, but she wasn’t the best choice, either. There was something about rage, about finding an actor who could embody the spark of angry madness that drove Plath to her tragic ending. And this I remember: this critic said there was simply one actor in all of Hollywood who could make a convincing Sylvia Plath, and that actor was Julia Stiles.
Well, fast-forward five years, and this guy’s got his wish, kind of. Stiles’s next project is an adaptation of Plath’s semi-to-mostly-autobiographical novel, The Bell Jar, about a Smith College student who undergoes a mental breakdown while interning at a Manhattan fashion magazine. Despite her rather bland presence in the Bourne Whatever movies, Stiles is a pretty good choice–she’s smart and she’s a reasonably good actor, and odds are she’s actually read The Bell Jar at some point, or at least heard of it. Thumbs up from CHHQ.
It’s hard to tell exactly what’s going on with the movie itself—IMDB lists a 2008 release date, but there’s no other cast listed, and I’m fairly certain Esther Greenwood isn’t the only character we’re going to meet (or, at least, I hope not). And, not to be a Debbie Downer, or anything, but writer Tristine Skyler’s filmography frankly doesn’t inspire much confidence. But hey, everybody’s gotta have a breaking-in story, right? It’s not like I’ve written any published episodes of Law and Order: Trial by Jury. So maybe I should just shut my stupid mouth now. What I’m trying to say is: dark-horse writer, no cast except for Stiles…but let’s keep up hope, shall we?
Or am I overstepping my bounds? Does hoping go against the Plath way? We can at least look on with expectation, or something. Prove us wrong, Bell Jar. We dare you.
Sylvia Plath, The Bell Jar, Julia Stiles, Gwyneth Paltrow, Esther Greenwood, Tristine Skyler
Leave a Reply