How to Adapt Classics: MARTIN EDEN
“When you make a picture, you must not respect the novel.”
- Alejandro Jodorowsky in Jodorowsky’s Dune
One of the best movies that I saw last year was Pietro Marcello’s Martin Eden based on the classic of the same name by Jack London. It was an Italian movie from start to finish. If you do not know that the movie is based on a classic written almost 115 yrs ago by an American, you will never realize that it has any hint of American-ness in it. Pietro Marcello, doesn’t do as Alejandro says, he respects the novel, and he respects its source material so much that it ceases to be Jack London’s anymore. It is entirely mind-boggling phenomenon to understand for anyone who wants to make movies. All the time we have heard this, almost a cliché, that the book was better than the movie. Marcello’s Martin Eden breaks that cliché. I love Jack London’s work but this time the movie Martin Eden is better than Martin Eden the book.
White Fang was the first jack London book that I read, and then I read the Call of the Wild, and then I began reading his short stories. I was aware about Martin Eden but I read it way later. But when I watched Martin Eden, I was not at all looking at Jack London’s work but the auteur Pietro Marcello. Set in the Post-war Italy, taking inspiration from the neo-realism of the late 50s and early 60s of the Italian Cinema, Pietro weaves the story with seek for passion in his characters and their effort to maintain that passion among the rise of capitalism post war. This movie is strong in its portrayal of Italy. I don’t know if the movie is more true to the source material or more true to the Italian identity – and this is a compliment of highest merit.
As Luca Marinelli’s Martin struggles to find meaning of his life through his writings, Italy struggles to fight for its working class as the capitalism rises and communism is on the decline. Martin himself is not a devout communist until he is influenced by the times and his own trials and tribulations. He has seen the world from a different lens. He grew up an orphan and the woman he loved pushed him to be civil but later he is disillusioned by her behavior which is a by-product of her upbringing. As much as she loves him, she can’t rise above her upbringing and likewise, as much as he loves her, he can’t see past his upbringing. Both are well crafted three dimensional characters with the conflict arising due to their perspectives of understanding what the world is according to them. But Martin is not really a victim of his times. He is as self-destructive as it gets when one gets obsessed in pursuit of his/her ideals. The only voice of love in Martin’s life is Denise Sardisco’s Margherita. She is one such character which is driven by pure love and devotion towards Martin, almost in a manner parallel to how Martin Eden is devoted to his writing. From her first presence on screen, in bright red dress it becomes clear what she embodies and what she will embody in Martin’s life. She embodies love that Martin needs but perhaps not the one that Martin desires. The complex themes of the movie are presented in simple narratives which allows us to feel the struggle of Martin, and even feel pity towards him at the end of his career. Martin, himself is a character which demands our respect. He has brought himself up with sheer hard-work and will. His hard-work and will to write is what makes him the writer he is, yet he often fails to realize that the people he is fighting for in his life, may not have the same will and courage. And it is his failing to realize this leads to his slow deterioration.
Jack London’s novel Martin Eden too is a commentary on rejection of socialism and relies heavy on individualism. Though Pietro borrows the ideas of novel’s Martin heavily he magically still allows the movie’s Martin to have a personality of his own, which is vastly more tragic than the one in the book. This movie highlights how to interpret a text in a completely different cultural setting whilst keeping intact the context of the text. Stylistically too the film makes some bold choices. Use of grainy visuals to signify the bygone era emphasizes the themes and brings about the character of Martin. We need more of such brave work which is unfazed by the challenges of our world in perpetual conflict. Pietro’s Martin Eden not only presents us how the dilemma of an era of past is still relevant today but he also gives us a glimpse into the inner workings of a self-made Artist.
