Don’t get so excited just yet. For all those eyebrows the above headline may raise, one ought to remember that, late in his career, Brian De Palma has struggled to maintain both proper financing for and a sufficient interest in projects thrown his way, the failure to hit both notes leaving in its wake a number of titles we, likely, will never see from him. (Toyer? The Key Man? The Untouchables: Capone Rising? The Boston Stranglers?) That being said… Lord, is this ever-adamant fan hoping to see what’s currently coming together.
Amidst updates that his Al Pacino-led, Joe Paterno-centered Happy Valley will soon begin production, ScreenDaily report that De Palma is also gearing up a loosely interpreted spin on the classic text Thérèse Raquin. The project, backed by Saïd Ben Saïd — and, better yet, with Emily Mortimer expected to headline — may not act as an adaptation, but a comment, being the story of “a film director and two actors shooting a movie version of [Émile] Zola’s novel and finding that it reflects experiences in their own lives.” So, that’s Irma Vep à la mode? In that case, we’re on board.
No indication can be found as to when De Palma might roll cameras on the project, sadly, though it can at least be hoped that alleged forward momentum on Happy Valley — something which, for as terrific as Thérèse Raquin sounds, perhaps stands as a greater item of curiosity — means the money-supplied filmmaker can, finally, get back to some sort of consistent work schedule. Please, let this be the case.
What do you think of De Palma and Mortimer tackling Zola like so?