The Franz Kafka book David Lynch found impossible to adapt
David Lynch is undoubtedly one of the greatest filmmakers living today. The man behind masterpieces such as Eraserhead and Mulholland Drive is considered to be the most influential surrealist in film history. His uncompromising artistic vision has impressed cinephiles worldwide, who have resonated with his remarkable perception of the world.
Throughout his career, Lynch has worked on original ideas as well as adaptations. While most of his original work has been critically acclaimed, Lynch has occasionally struggled with adaptations – especially his rendition of Frank Herbert’s seminal sci-fi novel Dune. It is safe to say that Lynch is at his strongest when he is working on his own material.
However, there was one writer whose works intrigued Lynch so much that he explored the possibility of making a film adaptation of his most well-known story. That writer was none other than Franz Kafka, one of the greatest authors of the last century. While talking about him, Lynch once declared: “The one artist that I feel could be my brother is Franz Kafka.”
It’s no surprise that Lynch feels such a close bond with Kafka. Their artistic sensibilities are eerily similar, featuring convoluted narrative labyrinths in which characters are confronted by the absurdity of their own existence. However, Lynch has his own interpretation of the universe’s absurdity while no one has successfully replicated Kafka’s observations.
If you’re familiar with Kafka’s work, it would almost seem obvious that an adaptation of The Trial should be directed by none other than Lynch. Other filmmakers, including Orson Welles, as well as the directorial duo of Jean-Marie Straub and Danièle Huillet, have attempted to capture Kafka’s vision, but they haven’t achieved perfection.
The iconic story that Lynch wanted to adapt for the big screen was Metamorphosis. Kafka’s allegorical horror tale revolves around a travelling salesman who wakes up one day to find himself transformed into a giant insect. The director told an audience in Rome: “Once I finished writing the script for a feature film adaptation, I realised that Kafka’s beauty is in his words.”
Kafka’s story is a classic exploration of existential dread told through the story of a man who is slowly discarded by the people he loves because societal forces beyond his power have castrated him. Lynch added: “That story is so full of words that, when I was finished writing, I realised it was better on paper than it could ever be on film.”
