Jasmine - Prompt Two: The Motion Picture

Jasmine, presented by Jake Kind, in association with Warmer Brothers and 19^th Century Wolf, with the following main cast: 

(Not in order of appearance) 

Jasmine                                                                                                                                 Freida Pinto 

Prakash Vijh                                                                                                                         Sanjay Gupta 

Half Face                                                                                                                           Jack Nicholson 

Lillian Gordon                                                                                                                        Betty White 

Wylie                                                                                                                                  Sarah Paulson 

Duff                                                                                                                              Vivienne Jolie-Pitt 

Karin                                                                                                                                    Mireille Enos 

Bud Ripplemayer                                                                                                                      Alan Ruck 

With the appropriate director, one who is commandingly liberal, but sensitive when it comes to time, space, and violence, I see the movie adaptation as being a success.  In the motion picture, the juxtaposition of the present, forceful dullness of Iowa and the past, passionate, raw intensity of certain landscapes in India, expose the emotionally evocative lives, as drawn in the novel Jasmine.  Throw into that mix, the violence and horror of what occurred in fluorescent Miami, and the complexity of the relationships and “concrete jungle” that is New York City, an array of contrasting, vibrant visuals is obtained.  The novel is a piece of poetic prose, giving it the independence and authority that art captures and dominates.  Poetry can explosively yet subtly bring forth and expose our senses.  A movie can capture this.  The movie would have the capability of illuminating and sending forth shockwaves of sensory intimacy that would create feelings both on and in the viewer.  The cries of Jasmine, the sightings of the mud huts – these and more of the intricate language and settings that breed in the novel, would eloquently, impressionistically, and dramatically let the viewer feel and capture the true meaning of the book.  The movie would succeed. 

                          - J. A. Kind