IFTN talks to John Boyne the author of the novel ‘The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas’ to discuss the success of the film adaptation of his book, how he has been finding the publicity circuit and his sentiments ahead of the film's US release on 7 November.
Having sold over 3,500,000 million books worldwide (one million which were sold in Spain alone) and beating the box-office opening weekend for other award-winning literary adaptations such as 'The Kite Runner' and 'The Pianist', John Boyne’s stature has certainly been propelled into the limelight.
As with the premieres in Dublin and London, where fans lined the red carpet, Boyne, director Mark Herman (Little Voice) and cast members David Thewlis (The Omen) and Vera Farmiga (The Departed) were greeted by thousands of fans at the San Sebastian Film Festival where the film itself received a standing ovation.
’The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas’ tells the story of a friendship between two boys living on either side of a fence at a concentration camp during the Second World War. It is John’s sixth published book and one which has won numerous accolades including 2 Irish Book Awards, the Bisto Book of the Year and is once again at #1 on the Irish Book Charts and No. 1 in the UK children’s book charts.
Ahead of it release in the US on 7 November, IFTN chats with John on his involvement in the screenwriting of the film, his thoughts on the big screen adaptation and why the book has been such a big hit in Spain among other countries.
John, how did the film adaptation of the book come about?
In late 2005 the book was still in proof form and wasn’t coming out till 2006. I share an agency Mark Herman, the director of the movie, so he had an advance copy. He read it and was interested in adapting it. At the same time David Heyman, the producer, had also read an advanced copy. They both invited me to meet with them separately and we talked about what they wanted to do and their vision for adapting the novel. Then ultimately Mark bought the rights and then went away, wrote the screen play and brought that to David. Between them they went to Miramax Films.
Did you have much involvement in the scriptwriting of the film?
I spoke to Mark quite a bit in advance about the characters and the scenes. He wrote it himself but sent me quite a few drafts to read and I would send back my notes; you know things I thought were working well and things I had questions about. I visited the sets several times and yes I felt very involved all the way through. I felt David and Mark respected the role of the novelist and wanted to keep me involved.
Did you spend much time on set in Budpest?
I went for the second week of shooting and got to know the cast and crew. I then went to Australia for a month on a book tour and when I came back I went to back on set and spent the closing weeks there. It was very exciting although I didn’t have a job to do as such, I just hung out and watched it all taking place in front of me.
Are there any major differences between the book and the film?
I think the main difference would be the book is very much the story of a boy and the film is very much the story of a family. Mark expanded the story a little bit in particularly with the parents - to have the mother and father’s perspective which I think is fair enough really. I think if you just translated it literally onto the screen, there are things in the book that wouldn’t necessarily work on screen and there are things in the screen that wouldn’t work in the book. I think they compliment each other in a way, they tell the same story but in a slightly different perspective.
What do you think is the actual appeal of the book (and film) for children and adults?
I think firstly it is almost three years since it came out and the distinction between children and adult books – I am less interested in as I don’t feel it is either. I feel it’s just a book. I think the reason that so many people have come to it is that they really genuinely care about the two boys at the centre of the story. I think because the novel ends in such an unexpected and shocking way, people just want someone else to read it so they can talk about it. I think it is that kind of word-of-mouth thing where people get to the end and give the book to someone else or buy a copy for someone else.
With thousands of fans showing up in at the premieres, how have you been finding the publicity circuit for the film?
I think the fact is that this didn’t happen with my first book. I have been publishing for eight years but this is the book that brought me into a larger readership and the kind of attention that has come with it. I think I am more able to handle it. I just view it as the job that I do. I go out and publicise the book and then I go home. I don’t really let it take over all my life.
Have you been talking to fans of the book and their opinions on the film adaptation?
Yes, in alot of the travelling we have been doing recently, there have been events in book shops where myself, the cast and director talked to readers and I think people have different perspectives on it. There are people who think the book is better than the movie or that the movie is better than the book. You know there are so many terrible adaptations of books but I think the general response is that this is a good one.
Given that one million copies of the book have been sold in Spain, is there a particular reason that it has struck a chord there?
I honestly do not know! It has sold 3,500,000 around the world and a third of them seem to be in Spain. It has become a bit of a phenomenon there and the publishers there do feel that there are some countries where it performed particularly well and in those countries that did not have a specific relationship with the Holocaust such as Australia, Ireland and Spain where the book has really exceeded expectations. Now I don’t know if that is the reason or not but in some countries it’s been successful like that and in others it hasn’t been had the same level of success as that.
The film is going to open in the States in 7 November. How do you feel about that?
It’s exciting because the three countries where it is showing so far it has been hugely successful and well received by critics. Myself, Mark, and the actors are off to the States next Wednesday, for two and half weeks of press and screenings in eight cities. You know it’s exciting and I really hope that American audiences embrace it and that it brings them back to the book I suppose. It will be a different perspective but I think because we are going with the success in Europe already it’s going to help it.
Are you interested in future script writing or do you prefer to stay in the literature realm?
I think I am going to stay with novels. I would quite like to have this experience again where someone wanted to make a film from one of my books but it doesn’t appeal to me to spend my time writing screen plays. I really just want to write novels to be honest.
Have you another novel in the pipeline?
The next novel is coming out next May and it’s called ‘The House of Special Purpose’. It is a love story, half of which is set in the Russian Revolution and half of which is set in the sixty years that follow it. It is quite a kind of an epic and historical love story. Something different!
