Authorship and Adaptation
Authorship and Adaptation
This chapter examines Ken Russell's The Devils (1973) in terms of authorship and adaptation. The Devils is often viewed, quite understandably, as being pure Ken Russell, but the influence of the two acknowledged sources on his screenplay should not be overlooked. A common view is that much of the historical information in the film was gleaned from Aldous Huxley's 1952 book The Devils of Loudun, and the dialogue was influenced by (or lifted from) John Whiting's 1961 play The Devils. Both of the film's credited sources allow for interesting correlations with Russell's film, but what is often passed over is that Whiting's play was based on Huxley's book—therefore the film is based on both a book and a play that was based on that same book, meaning Russell adapts Huxley both directly and indirectly. With this in mind, a straightforward bifurcation of The Devils' screenplay is not really possible.
Keywords: Ken Russell, The Devils, authorship, adaptation, Aldous Huxley, John Whiting
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