Screen Adaptations: Great Expectations A close study of the relationship between text and film

by McFarlane, Brian

• ISBN13: 9780713679090
• ISBN10: 0713679093
• eBook ISBN(s): 9781408149010
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2008-04-30
• Publisher: Bloomsbury Methuen Drama
• More Book Details

Summary

This is a close study of the relationship between the text and film versions of Great Expectations. Literature and film studies students will find plenty of material to support their courses and essay writing on how the film versions provide different readings of the original text. Focusing on David Lean's film of Great Expectations, the book discusses the literary work in its historical context, its key themes and dominant readings, how it has been adapted for screen, and how adaptations have changed our reading of the original text. There are numerous excerpts from the literary text, screenplays, and shooting scripts, with suggestions for comparison. The book also features quotations from authors, screenwriters, directors, critics, and others linked with the chosen film and text.

Author Biography

Brian McFarlane is Honorary Associate Professor at Monash University, Australia. He is a distinguished figure in literature and film whose books include The Encyclopedia of British Film and An Autobiography of British Cinema, The Cinema of Britain and Ireland, and Novel to Film.

Table of Contents

Literary contexts
An enduringly popular novel	p. 3
From text to screen
Adaptations and extrapolations across the media	p. 41
Great Expectations on television	p. 63
Great Expectations (1934): a Hollywood studio romance	p. 83
Great Expectations (1975): a musical sans songs	p. 95
Great Expectations (1998): from estuary to gulf, to Manhattan and back	p. 111
Great Expectations (1946): something like a classic	p. 127
The afterlife of Lean's film
A film of its time - and for other times	p. 163
Bibliography	p. 175
Index	p. 181
Table of Contents provided by Blackwell. All Rights Reserved.