0373. GREAT CINEMA ADAPTATIONS: LOLITA

In Session 1 of this two-part film adaptation of Lolita, author-actor-filmmaker Peter Josyph explores what was daring about director Stanley Kubrick’s choice to adapt this controversial masterpiece by Vladimir Nabokov, a novel first rejected by five American publishers before being accepted by Olympia Press in Paris, which had also published Henry Miller’s Tropic of Cancer. The owner of Olympia narrowly thought of both books as forms of soft-pornography. Although Nabokov said “I don’t give a damn for public morals, in America or elsewhere,” the novel has been defended, praised, and taught as high art with a wide range of interpretations, including the view that Nabokov meant it as a study in tyranny. In addition to two film adaptations, Lolita has been adapted into a musical, five plays, three operas, and a ballet.

In Sesson 2 we will take an in-depth look at how Kubrick’s film brilliantly differs from Nabokov’s Oscar-nominated screenplay (which never really made it to the screen). The professor will also note the inspired contributions of James Mason, Sue Lyon, Shelley Winters, and Peter Sellers, whose comedic talents earned him special license to improvise in several crucial scenes.

The first session of this course will be a one-hour introduction in preparation for your viewing of the film on your own prior to the second class. The second session, after you’ve watched the film, will be a 1 ½ hour dive into the various facets of production, plot, cinematography, and more. All films in this series are streamable on Amazon Prime as well as on several other streaming services. Library DVDs are also obtainable by interlibrary loan.

1:00-2:00 p.m. / 1:00-2:30 p.m. 2 Sessions
March 28 / April 4 Fee: $50