Apple Inc
AAPL
$142.99
(-0.9%)
Alphabet Inc - Class C
GOOG
$99.01
(-0.86%)
Alphabet Inc - Class A
GOOGL
$97.97
(-0.88%)
Amazon.com Inc.
AMZN
$101.95
(-1.17%)
Microsoft Corporation
MSFT
$246.97
(-0.34%)
Meta Platforms Inc - Class A
FB
$196.64
(+0.51%)
Berkshire Hathaway Inc. - Class B
BRK.B
$310.25
(-0.41%)
Alibaba Group Holding Ltd - ADR
BABA
$111.08
(+0.8%)
JPMorgan Chase & Co.
JPM
$140.24
(+0.2%)
Johnson & Johnson
JNJ
$164.26
(+0.51%)
Bank Of America Corp.
BAC
$35.91
(+1.2%)
Exxon Mobil Corp.
XOM
$115.43
(-0.5%)
Wells Fargo & Co.
WFC
$47.26
(+0.82%)
Visa Inc - Class A
V
$228.74
(-0.64%)
Walmart Inc
WMT
$143.81
(-0.04%)
Shell Plc - ADR
RDS.B
$51.06
(0%)
Shell Plc - ADR (Representing Ordinary Shares - Class A)
RDS.A
$51.04
(0%)
Intel Corp.
INTC
$28.35
(+0.3%)
AT&T, Inc.
T
$20.37
(0%)
Unitedhealth Group Inc
UNH
$499.26
(+0.01%)
Cisco Systems, Inc.
CSCO
$48.10
(-1.17%)
PetroChina Co. Ltd. - ADR
PTR
$43.88
(0%)
Novartis AG - ADR
NVS
$87.68
(-3.24%)
Pfizer Inc.
PFE
$43.75
(-0.94%)
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing - ADR
TSM
$93.19
(+0.5%)
No Result
View All Result
The Voice of All
  • Login
  • Home
  • Trend
  • News
    • United Stated
    • Asia
      • Japan
      • Pakistan
      • China
      • India
      • Singapore
    • Europe
      • France
      • Germany
      • Spain
      • United Kingdom
    • Canada
    • Middle East
    • Africa
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Economy
  • Culture
  • Health
  • Lifestyle
  • Sports
  • Tech
  • Videos
  • Travel
  • Blogs
Subscribe
  • Home
  • Trend
  • News
    • United Stated
    • Asia
      • Japan
      • Pakistan
      • China
      • India
      • Singapore
    • Europe
      • France
      • Germany
      • Spain
      • United Kingdom
    • Canada
    • Middle East
    • Africa
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Economy
  • Culture
  • Health
  • Lifestyle
  • Sports
  • Tech
  • Videos
  • Travel
  • Blogs
Subscribe
The Voice of All
No Result
View All Result
Home Culture

How Stephen Sondheim’s Work Did (and Didn’t) Translate to the Screen

April 2, 2022
in Culture
0 0
A A
0
VIEWS
FacebookTwitterLinkedIn

What is it that makes it so difficult to adapt Sondheim to the screen? There aren’t, with very few exceptions, great screen interpretations of his work that aren’t filmed theater productions.

He gives you something that you think you understand. Even with “Into the Woods” (the 2014 film), it’s like, “Oh, it’s a deconstruction of fairy tales.” But that’s really not enough to go on. There’s something really profound going on there about sadness and loneliness that is probably really hard to square with the genre trappings. They’re tricky because he’s always doing two things at once. And when you make a film, filmmakers often focus on the spectacle, not realizing that the spectacle has to be elided. That’s really hard to do in film.

I was thinking today about which Sondheim works I wish there were movies of. I never want “Sunday in the Park With George” to be a movie, just by virtue of what it is, how it’s produced, what it’s about. What it’s doing feels so New York stage, it would be so strange.

Could you talk about Sondheim and Madonna’s cinematic work in “Dick Tracy”?

For me, as a little gay boy with his Madonna “I’m Breathless” cassette tape in 1990, it was the essential thing. Period. “Dick Tracy,” the gruff lantern-jawed masculine comic book detective, just does not interest me. But I remember those songs. It’s one of those things that’s a queering agent. “Dick Tracy” really feels like a hybrid of a lot of different sensibilities. I like the way that Sondheim and Madonna’s contributions help to negate the uber-masculinity of the text.

And we have to talk about “The Last of Sheila” (1973), which he co-wrote with Anthony Perkins.

That’s a tricky one. It’s interesting that they chose an intricate, whodunit murder mystery plot, because how else would you intelligently funnel this Sondheim complexity and idea of overlapping narratives, characters, themes into a genre film? I think that’s what makes it delightful. With Sondheim you see the gears working without it taking you out of the film. It’s a movie about game playing, in which you’re constantly being asked to size up the people involved. It’s very mechanical in a fun way.

And in a nasty way that I love, too.

One of the game cards in the film reads, “You are a homosexual.” And the way they talk about it is surprisingly casual and sort of progressive. There’s the idea that this is an accusation. But when it’s revealed, there’s a real casualness about it. It’s surprising for “closeted” — at the time — gay men to write.

See It Big: Sondheim runs through May 1 at the Museum of the Moving Image in Astoria, Queens. For more information, go to movingimage.us.

Source: NY Times

ADVERTISEMENT

Related Posts

Culture

Jovan Adepo and Thundercat on Jazz, Superheroes and Ego Death

Culture

Late Night Rates Trump’s New Nickname for Ron DeSantis

Culture

Review: In ‘Only Gold,’ Each Move Is Worth 1,000 Words

Culture

‘My Broken Language’ Review: Piecing Together a Life of Many Dialects

Culture

How Can Standup Succeed in a Fragmented Culture? Nurse Blake Has One Answer

Culture

In This Novel, Teenage Artists Spawn a Deadly Moral Panic

Culture

Jimmy Kimmel Will Return as Oscars Host

Culture

Home for the Holidays, With Long-Festering Issues

Culture

The Woman T.S. Eliot Loved at Arm’s Length and Enshrined in Verse

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Trending

    Latest News

    Here’s how ranked-choice voting works.

    Here’s how ranked-choice voting works.

    Jovan Adepo and Thundercat on Jazz, Superheroes and Ego Death

    You’ve Planned the Holiday Menu. Now Where Will You Put All the Guests?

    The Return of the Jaguar

    The Voice of All

    The Voice of All is an online newspaper for cosmopolitans, global entrepreneurs, management staff, influencers, and other modern leaders and everyday people who care about wider aspects and broader opinions.

    Sections

    • Africa
    • Asia
    • Business
    • Canada
    • China
    • Culture
    • Economy
    • Europe
    • France
    • Germany
    • Health
    • India
    • Japan
    • Lifestyle
    • Middle East
    • Pakistan
    • Politics
    • Singapore
    • Spain
    • Sports
    • Tech
    • Travel
    • United Kingdom
    • United Stated
    • Videos

    THE MOST IMPORTANT FINANCE NEWS AND EVENTS OF THE DAY

    Subscribe to our mailing list to receives daily updates direct to your inbox!

    • About
    • Advertise
    • Privacy Policy
    • Terms
    • Contact

    © 2022 All Rights Reserved - The Voice of All

    No Result
    View All Result
    • Home
    • Trend
    • News
      • United Stated
      • Asia
        • Japan
        • Pakistan
        • China
        • India
        • Singapore
      • Europe
        • France
        • Germany
        • Spain
        • United Kingdom
      • Canada
      • Middle East
      • Africa
    • Politics
    • Business
    • Economy
    • Culture
    • Health
    • Lifestyle
    • Sports
    • Tech
    • Videos
    • Travel
    • Blogs

    © 2022 All Rights Reserved - The Voice of All

    Welcome Back!

    Login to your account below

    Forgotten Password?

    Retrieve your password

    Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

    Log In
    This website uses cookies. By continuing to use this website, you are giving consent to cookies being used. Visit our Privacy and Cookie Policy.