They said “On The Road” was unfilmable but Walter Salles succeeded, and at next weeks’ Cannes Film Festival we’ll discover if James Franco has been successful with another ‘unadaptable’ novel, William Faulkner’s “As I Lay Dying“. For now, today’s newly released trailer, via Yahoo, suggests that Franco will definitely be offering us a taste of the Southern Gothic for which Faulker was famous for – and has upped my anticipation for an adaptation of a book I couldn’t finish.
Franco has directed, produced, scripted, and cast himself, in this American classic which follows the trials of the Bundren family as they attempt to bury their matriarch in the town of Jefferson. It sounds simple enough but the major challenge for Franco, as both director and screenwriter, comes where Faulkner uses fifteen different points of view over the course of the novel.
Joining Franco though is a cast of rising stars including Danny McBride in a dramatic role unlike his usual comedic characters, and Logan Marshall-Green, so we’re hopeful that this proves to be a hit for audiences at Cannes before a wider release date is set.
Check out the trailer below.
