MZD answers a question about the houseofleaves forums

Mark Z. Danielewski answers a question asked at the Booksmith reading about how he reacts to the houseofleaves.com forums when he's sitting at home reading them.

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News & Politics

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• Houseofleaves.com

[Flig5]

Do you really want this book as a movie? I don't wanna sound like one of those pretentious fucks here, but a movie would destroy this book. It could be that I generally don't like movie adaptations, but this one would just be...bad. Would they include Johnny's story? Or just the Navidson Record? If they make it the Navidson Record, how would they deal with the 10 minutes of darkness, or however long it was, towards the end? And what about the Whalestoe Letters? Face it, a movie would kill it.

[scramblythoughts]

o hes on the edge alright, but he definately knows when hes too far out there. HoL took every reader right to the edge, showed them the bottomless abyss and took them rght back, well most. Danielewski is by far the best modern writer out there.

[juliew625]

let me tell you why a movie shouldnt be made and i dont mean it to sound pretentious having said that i know it will anyway but oh well heres why because the moronic fucks out there who wouldnt pick up this book to save their lives but will watch any ol movie dont deserve to have and freely spout out their opinion on this work in any medium!! in other words this book ir truly NOT for everyone. please respond or thumbs up if you agree.

[JustnKyle]

@everybody When it comes to transforming a book/novel into a movie, it's just another way of transforming one medium of art into another. One is no better or worse than the other. The people who say that this should never be made into a movie are usually the same people who are jaded in thinking that movies just don't compare to books. ITS ALL ABOUT PRESENTATION! Yes I agree that if Hollywood did make a movie it would have had to of be done right...but with filmmakers out there like Danny Boyle

[alinn71]

nice..

[MetalTimesInfinity]

@Flig5 I agree with you, but I would love to see someone with a budget make a true-to-form version of the Navidson Record as a standalone (sort of like a visual-medium suppliment to the book).

[jsuglia]

It seems appropriate that everyone is discussing THE HOUSE OF LEAVES in relation to the internet and cinema. The best medium for HOUSE OF LEAVES would be a Web forum or a film. After all, it is nothing more than a picture-book to begin with.

---Dr. Joseph Suglia, The Greatest Author in the World

[MegalonsRevenge]

@Flig5 if they made it into a movie, it would have to be hella avant-garde and experimental in order to do the book justice.

[twilightlullaby]

A movie could never do this book justice. This book is the epitome of perfection and absolute insanity... it's for our minds. It's up for our interpretation. The emotions conjured from this book just can't be put on the screen successfully. The claustrophobia. The darkness. The mystery. It's perfect as it is. That's just my opinion.

[gammanull]

If the movie were just the Navidson Record. Done with Hi-8s, and (besides making the house work), a very minimalist production, and a good director, then it could be good. And such a production would certainly add to the dialogue, which alone would make it worth it.

But doing something like The Navidoson Record without going over the top and camping it out is a a bit much to ask from Hollywood.

[gpython03]

wow he reminds me exactly of my english teacher, like when he said the "THOSE FOOOLS" thing, just like him but hes like a genius fresh off of getting his doctrine very funny guy who will keep the class in an ingaging discussion of their eyes were watching god and then go on to rap 2pac. funny thing is i just recommended HoL to him like two days ago

[wickerman71]

To make a movie of HOL has almost sacraligious potential but could still be done. It would have to be made by people who understood and respect concepts and messages of the book and would be extremely challenging. Just my opinion and I understand people who would be sceptical of an adaptation there have been some disasters. I don't agree that it should just contain the Navidson record it has to be the whole story perhaps with Truants story shot differently, maybe Navidson in b&w.