Communicating vessels. <i>Il deserto dei Tartari</i>: literature and film

Abstract

André Breton's discourse regarding "communicating vessels" provides a deeper and more complex basis for reflection on what eventuates from the movement from the novel into the cinema and vice versa. It is precisely the reverse movement of meaning which is often forgotten in discussions of adaptations. Could it not be that our a film reshapes our understanding of the novel? In discussing his film of Il deserto dei Tartari, Zurlini emphasises the metaphysical nature of its images. He emphasises pictorial analogies because the medium of film is precisely about bringing out of the film its literary dimension. This is not to say that it is a simple process of words turned into pictures.