A fleeting glimpse of the trailer for In Secret, the movie version of the French novel Th�r�se Raquin bears witness to just how difficult it will be to do justice to Emile Zola's chilling tale of selfishness and emotional greed.The movie, due to be released in the US on February 21, stars Elizabeth Olsen as Th�r�se Raquin and Jessica Lange as her aunt and mother-in-law, Madame Raquin. Tom Felton is Camille, Th�r�se's cousin and husband, while Oscar Isaac is Laurent, Camille's friend.At the heart of the novel Th�r�se Raquin is spoiled and sickly Camille, who is little more than a living puppet for his controlling mother. Madame Raquin uses her son's physical weaknesses to establish her own warped sense of power. Madame Raquin is incapable of any kind act, so when she takes in her brother's daughter, Th�r�se, for her own selfish reasons, readers soon realise the girl will be tainted by the dysfunctional relationship that defines mother and son.
While Th�r�se Raquin is a fascinating study of dysfunction, it is also a mesmerising example of literary voice. Zola's belief in naturalism, inspired by principles of natural science, especially Darwin's view of nature, allowed Zola to view his characters in a nonjudgmental manner. Life boils down to survival of the fittest. Life is what happens to you accidentally, it seems.The characters in Zola's novel are amoral and this creates unbelievable tension and sometimes even confusion for readers who are used to a protagonist and an antagonist in novels. It is much easier to accept in a novel than a movie, which must show emotions and establish some sense of emotional investment for viewers. What is a movie without emotions?In the movie trailer, Madame Raquin seems to be a far cry from the literary version of the character. She is a bundle of emotion in the trailer and she likes to cast blame. In the book, she keeps her emotions in check. They simply don't surface and that's how Zola deals with his view of naturalism as it relates to Madame Raquin.
While Camille allows his illness and his mother to define him, Laurent gives his ego free rein, never thinking of how his own selfish needs affect the lives of others. Th�r�se is like a ball bouncing among characters, or perhaps it is better to describe her as a chameleon who takes on the appearance of those who are closest to her for the moment.The trailer already betrays Hollywood's unfaithfulness to the book, but that might not necessarily mean that the movie will butcher the book. It is possible that it will capture the flood of emotions that flow unchecked when readers face those cold, calculating and cunning characters. In a strange way, the movie then would reflect the readers' feelings rather than the writer's, and that would be a moving experiment.
Join the SAS Book Club group on Facebook to discuss Th�r�se Raquin. You can find the novel free to read online at http://ow.ly/tm0OP or you can download it free on Kindle.
Discussion Questions
Sunday Arts Section (SAS) Book Club discussion questions
1. Is life is a series of accidents that people cope with or do people create the paths that affect their lives?
2. Does Th�r�se Raquin inspire you to read other novels of this nature or does one novel in this voice suffice?
3. How would Zola's novel be different if Zola had abandoned his great experiment in naturalism?