From the Written Word to the Television Screen

Last summer, CBS decided to run a thirteen episode television series based upon Stephen King's book, Under the Dome. In both the book and the t.v. series, the small town of Chester's Mill, Maine finds itself trapped under an invisible dome. Iraq veteran Dale Barbara and several other townspeople find themselves at odds with the ambitious and murderous Big Jim Rennie and his son. There seems to be a secret lurking around every corner and under every rock. The television show is about the characters and how they react to being trapped under this mysterious dome and how they interact with one another. Everyone must learn to survive, scrounge supplies, and keep everything from falling apart.

The key cast members--Dale "Barbie" Barbara, Julia Shumway, and others--try to figure out what the dome is, who built it, and why was Chester's Mill chosen to be covered? The first season and the book can be found here at the library. The second season of the television series just aired on CBS.

This summer, ABC aired the television series Resurrection. This story is based on the book The Returned by Jason Mott. Both the DVD of the first season of Resurrection and The Returned can be checked out at the library. A mysterious young boy wakes up in a rice patty in China. It turns out that the boy is from Arcadia, Missouri and he died over thirty years ago. He is reunited with his parents who are--understandably--bewildered, scared, and overjoyed. The little boy is just the first, soon, others return. As they do, the people of Arcadia are thrown into chaos. Is this really the miracle that some think, or is there a more sinister purpose to the return of dead loved ones? A local doctor teams with an ICE agent and they try to discover what is going on and why, but they run into trouble when word gets out that the dead have come back.The first season of this series only has eight episodes and the ending leaves you wanting more.

While I have not read the two books mentioned here, they have definitely gone onto my "Must Read" list. When the producers, writers, directors, and actors do a superb job of staying close to the source material and do some spectacular storytelling, you can appreciate the synthesis of literature and film-making.