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  • WEDNESDAY APRIL 25 2007 6:00 PM

Julia Stiles Wishes She Was Sylvia Plath

Submitted by erin_broadley

Edited by erin_broadley



Anyone who saw the flick 10 Things I Hate About You (1999) will remember the snarky character played by a caustic Julia Stiles who dragged teenage feminism to a new low. Stiles overly-bittered an otherwise cheeky, teen-angst comedy and turned it into a vehicle for her character's cutting comments about all of mankind. Oh yeah, and her character was obsessed with writer Sylvia Plath because, of course, all cranky teen girls are, right?

Apparently Stiles still isn't over her fixation and has signed on to play the star role in an upcoming film adaptation of Plath's semi-autobiographical 1963 novel The Bell Jar. Except this time around, rather than adhere to the book's somber tone about a depressed woman (Esther Greenwood) who attempts suicide several times before being subject to horrific electroshock therapy, this version of the novel is being touted as the "happy version," whatever that means.

Plum Pictures exec Celine Rattray had this to say about the film and Stiles' character:

"Esther Greenwood has a strong outlook on life, and we're really looking to bring out the humor in the character. We don't want to do a depressing descent into the world of suicide."


It must have been that strong outlook on life that led Sylvia Plath to commit suicide by sticking her head in a gas oven after The Bell Jar was finally published. The film is slated to hit the big screen in 2008.

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Comments
Shal

Shal

Los Angeles, CA
October 2002

APR 25, 2007 06:09 PM

"Happy version" of The Bell Jar??!?

There are no words for this.

surreal

apesamongus

apesamongus

Atlanta, GA
July 2002

APR 25, 2007 06:13 PM

Shalome said:
"Happy version" of The Bell Jar??!?


Yea, WTF.

otaku

otaku

USA
January 2004

APR 25, 2007 06:14 PM

Shalome said:
"Happy version" of The Bell Jar??!?

There are no words for this.

surreal



How about "contradiction in terms"?

mamet

mamet

Charleston, SC
March 2005

APR 25, 2007 06:18 PM

Oh my. The Bell Jar is probably my favorite book, and I do believe I'll be skipping this. shocked

CherishChain

CherishChain

Houston, TX
October 2006

APR 25, 2007 06:18 PM

This movie makes me want to put my head in an oven.

Margot_Dent

Margot_Dent

Los Angeles, CA
February 2004

APR 25, 2007 06:19 PM

mamet said:
Oh my. The Bell Jar is probably my favorite book, and I do believe I'll be skipping this. shocked



plus one.

Allisonation

allisonation

Fayetteville, AR
April 2007

APR 25, 2007 06:20 PM

I don't think Sylvia Plath did much for feminism in the first place, and I think that, for the most part, The Bell Jar is crap. Self-indulgent, vapid crap.

But the role could hardly have fallen into a less-talented lap. I've never seen Stiles demonstrate anything resembling talent. Nonetheless, I'll get hammered and go see it just to crack vicious, irreverent jokes throughout.

Love the photo attached to this article.

Alzy

Alzy

New York, NY
January 2006

APR 25, 2007 06:20 PM

awww frown and i love Julie Stiles too... Bad move for her.

Saraphine

Saraphine

SUICIDEGIRL

Pennsylvania, USA

APR 25, 2007 06:22 PM

allisonation said:
I don't think Sylvia Plath did much for feminism in the first place, and I think that, for the most part, The Bell Jar is crap. Self-indulgent, vapid crap.

But the role could hardly have fallen into a less-talented lap. I've never seen Stiles demonstrate anything resembling talent. Nonetheless, I'll get hammered and go see it just to crack vicious, irreverent jokes throughout.

Love the photo attached to this article.



smile This made me laugh heartily.

undershaker

undershaker

Milwaukee, WI
November 2004

APR 25, 2007 06:23 PM

This movie will be the awesome if it's ending mirrors The Blair Witch Project in its unsteadiness & ambiguity. (Granted, we know that SP offed herself, but somehow, Flight 93 pulled off a less than completed denouement (which made it that much more powerful).)

Allisonation

allisonation

Fayetteville, AR
April 2007

APR 25, 2007 06:31 PM

Saraphine said:

allisonation said:
I don't think Sylvia Plath did much for feminism in the first place, and I think that, for the most part, The Bell Jar is crap. Self-indulgent, vapid crap.

But the role could hardly have fallen into a less-talented lap. I've never seen Stiles demonstrate anything resembling talent. Nonetheless, I'll get hammered and go see it just to crack vicious, irreverent jokes throughout.

Love the photo attached to this article.



smile This made me laugh heartily.



Good. Does that mean you'll hold my feet up when someone crucifies me for shitting on the precious Plath?

cupcakeOdoom

cupcakeOdoom

Baldwin, NY
March 2006

APR 25, 2007 06:32 PM

i'm not afraid to admit i'll watch 10 things i hate about you whenever it's on... but seriously, what's so bad about "a depressing descent into the world of suicide" anyway?

by the way, i love the picture for this.

Morgan

Morgan

SUICIDEGIRL

Illinois, USA

APR 25, 2007 06:32 PM

Okay, what the hell? How on earth will they make this a happy version?

I'm guessing that no matter how they do it, the end result is going to make me want to hurt someone. And I don't mean myself.

PatrickY

PatrickY

Vancouver, WA
December 2003

APR 25, 2007 06:33 PM

erin_broadley said:
It must have been that strong outlook on life that led Sylvia Plath to commit suicide by sticking her head in a gas oven after The Bell Jar was finally published.



Maybe she got a glimpse of the future of her work. Precognition is a bitch.

Christ, this film is a bad idea. Reminds me of an editorial I read in which the author rewrote several depressing works to have a "Hollywood" ending. The one that I still remember was One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, which ended with McMurphy and the Chief driving off into the sunset after madcap hijinks.

Phoenixgirl

Phoenixgirl

I'm lost
May 2006

APR 25, 2007 06:33 PM

They are gonna make a movie?...Oh jeez.... whatever

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