Sunday, March 16, 2008

Corey Redekop's "Shelf Monkey," the movie

Now showing at My Book, The Movie: Shelf Monkey by Corey Redekop.

In October 2007, Corey Redekop applied the Page 99 Test to his novel, Shelf Monkey.

Now he's shared some thoughts on a film adaptation of the novel. His entry opens:
Shelf Monkey is about obsession and the perils inherent in becoming too emotionally attached to any one point of view. Any cast member would have to have that certain mania which accompanies that extreme viewpoint of everything I believe in is right, and everything you believe in is wrong.

The lead character Thomas at one point opines on who should portray him in the eventual movie, laying out Jake Gyllenhaal and Ewan McGregor as his favored candidates. Nice try, but Thomas as a personality does not have that kind of Hollywood heft, and should not get played by a personality that would overwhelm the character (although Ewan would be a good choice in any event). He’s kind of a sarcastic milquetoast, and Paul Rudd would be a fine choice, if possibly a little too old (sorry Paul). In a few years, Michael Cera would be absolutely perfect. And seriously, how good is Cera anyway? I can’t get enough of the guy. Also, he’s Canadian, and as Shelf Monkey is a shaggy little Canadian novel, it would be nice to get an actor with that je ne c’est quoi sensibility. Or Topher Grace. [read on]
Read more about the novel and author at the Shelf Monkey blog and listen to podcasts of two excerpts.

The Page 99 Test: Shelf Monkey.

My Book, The Movie: Shelf Monkey.

--Marshal Zeringue