Books Turned Into Movies: Pillars of the Earth on Starz

You may have remembered my unbridled enthusiasm when I heard that that Ken Follett's Pillars of the Earth was being turned into an eight hour miniseries for Starz starting, among others, Donald Sutherland and Ian McShane. The series is set to debut in the next couple of days but early reports of the series' quality have been less than glowing.

Mo Ryan of the Chicago Tribune's "The Watcher" certainly didn't mince her words when she wrote that the series had "made Ian McShane (temporarily) uninteresting." Before reading too much into her critique of the series it is important to note that Ryan doesn't sound like much of a fan of the novel, a novel that has been a critical and popular success for more than twenty years. She writes that the characters are sometimes wooden, that readers may find that the book contains more than enough information about the building of a cathedral in the 13th century but concedes that the book "gets the job done". This last bit is the nicest thing she says about both the book and the movie.

Ryan writes: "If you read "The Pillars of the Earth," don't expect a masterpiece, but you will get a reasonably decent yarn and you'll learn how and why these towering monuments to faith came to be built. If you watch the miniseries, you'll see precious raw materials wasted and shoddy construction everywhere you look. The fact that good scenes and character moments from the book are poorly executed or changed beyond recognition in the miniseries just adds insult to injury."

Golden Globe winner Ian McShane as Waleran Bigod.

Of the cast Ryan writres: "The cast looks positively stranded, almost off-balance, as if they were never allowed a chance to get their bearings and dig into their characterizations." The biggest crime, according the Ryan is the fact that Ian McShane as the devious Waleran Bigod. It is this critique that leaves me the most fearful of the quality of the series. McShane is magic in a bottle and if he's been rendered ineffective the series' hopes for success may be short-lived.

To be completely fair, Ryan's is hardly alone in her feelings about the Pillars of the Earth series. Entertainment Weekly, among others, has commented that the series is perhaps too dense and fails to tie plots together.

My hope is that if you've read the book and are a fan that there will be some redeeming qualities to be found. I enjoyed the book (although I found the sequel-esque World Without End to have followed the formula of the first novel far too closely) I have seen the sets and interviews with the actors who have touted the authenticity of the research and work that went into creating medieval England. As a fan of the novel I'll be tuning in this week looking for authenticity and any entertainment I can get - it has to be better than a night of America's Got Talent, right?

Related Links:

Loaded Questions: Pillars of the Earth Starts Filming! 
Loaded Questions: Our Interview with Author Ken Follett for the release of World Without End. 

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Pillars of the Earth Television Series Starts Filming

I will have to apologize for the informality of this post but I have some very exciting news to share! According to the web page of acclaimed author Ken Follett his best-selling novel Pillars of the Earth is currently being filmed in Hungary and Austria as part of an eight-hour limited series! This may not be new news to some of you but it is to me so you'll have to bear with me. The news was even sweeter when I read that Ian McShane (Deadwood and the somewhat enjoyable but quickly cancelled Kings on NBC) will play the dastardly Waleran Bygod.

Sergio Mimica-Gezzan, who has helmed episodes of “Heroes” and “Saving Grace,” and served as Steven Spielberg’s first assistant director on “Saving Private Ryan” and “Schindler’s List,” is directing the series from a script by John Pielmeier (”Hitler: The Rise of Evil”), who also stars in the production.

As some of you may remember, I conducted an interview with author Ken Follett a few years ago before the release of World Without End, the sequel of sorts to Pillars of the Earth. We talked about Pillars of the Earth, fact that it had just been selected as an Oprah Book Club pick and the success that the novel continued to have over twenty years after its release. Click here to read my entire interview with best-selling author Ken Follett.

The cast, according to IMDB.com, is as follows:

Ian McShane as Waleran Bygod

Rufus Sewell as Tom Builder

Matthew Macfadyen as Prior Philip

Donald Sutherland as Earl Bartholomew

Eddie Redmayne as Jack Jackson

Hayley Atwell as Aliena

Natalia Wörner as Ellen

Robert Bathurst as Percy Hamleigh

Liam Garrigan as Alfred

David Oakes as William Hamleigh

Tony Curran as King Stephen of England

Sarah Parish as Regan Hamleigh

Skye Bennett as Martha

Götz Otto as Walter

Anatole Taubman as Remigius

Jody Halse as Johnny Eightpence

Kate Dickie as Agnes

Sidney Johnston as Little Brother Jonathan

David Bark-Jones as Francis

Sam Claflin as Richard

The series has yet to be picked up in the UK or the US but I have a feeling that we'll have news soon enough about how and where it will air.

So -- what do you think? Are you as excited as I am at the prospect of an eight-hour Pillars of the Earth series? Do you think the casting has been done well? (If not please do offer your own suggestions...) Do comment!

If you'd like a refresher on some of the characters here is a link to a handy family tree of the key characters in Pillars of the Earth from Follett's site.

Loaded Questions: "World Without End" author Ken Follet

Eighteen years ago Ken Follett wrote a 1,000 page novel based the building of a great cathedral in 12th century Europe, The Pillars of Earth . It was a change of pace from the thrillers that he had written in the past. After the The Pillars of Earth Follett Ken went back to writing the mystery and thrillers that he had previously been known for. Over the years, though, his book based in medieval England continued to sell and grow via word of mouth. It became so popular that people were constantly asking for more. As of a little more than two weeks ago, Ken Follett's sizeable book that could has become an Oprah Book Club selection.

Ironically enough, Oprah's selection came just weeks after Ken had responded to the many requests of his readers to provide a sequel to The Pillars of the Earth, and so we have World Without End. The place is the same, the town of Kingsbridge, but two centuries have passed. The beautiful Gothic Cathedral built in the first book has become a place solely for the elite and wealthy. World Without End has been receiving praise from fans and reviewers alike. I am happy to present, Loaded Questions with Ken Follett.

World Without End by KEN FOLLETT
Oct. 2007, 1024 pages, $35.00



Kelly Hewitt: World Without End takes readers back to the same setting that you wrote about in The Pillars of the Earth but two hundred years later making it, in many ways, a sequel. Some of your readers have noted that World Without End can also be approached as an independent stand-alone novel. Do you think that's the case? What familiar settings, characters, and themes can fans of the first book look to find in the second book?

Ken Follett: World Without End is set in Kingsbridge, the fictional town that is the focus of The Pillars of the Earth. Readers will recognise the cathedral, of course, and the monastery next to it, plus the main streets and the river. The neighbouring town of Shiring may be familiar, and the Earl's seat, Earlscastle. However this story takes place 200 years later, so none of the characters are the same. Nevertheless they are the descendants of characters in Pillars, and sometimes retain inherited characteristics that readers with good memories may recall.

Kelly: It has just been announced that Oprah Winfrey has chosen The Pillars of the Earth as her next book club selection. It is a major success and a tribute to the continued increase in the popularity of this book. What does if feel like to find out that Oprah has selected your book?

Ken: I'm thrilled that The Pillars of the Earth has been selected for Oprah's Book Club. Oprah is a unique cultural leader who has a special place in the hearts of people all over the world, and I have enormous respect for what she has achieved. Her endorsement will bring my work to the attention of her many millions of fans, and for that I am very grateful.

Kelly: You have written some very strong female characters in World Without End. I read another interview in which you said that women largely paid lip service to men in the medieval period and still served in merchant, religious and leadership roles. This English historian in me thought, "Exactly!" How much time have you dedicated to the study of history in the 14th century? Is there a particular piece of history that appeals more to you?

Ken: I have been an amateur enthusiast of medieval history for about 30 years. What interests me most is the building of the great cathedrals--although that interest has led me to study many other aspects of medieval life including, as you note, the role of women.


Kelly: You have written historical novels but have written even more successful thrillers. How does the process of writing the historical novels vs. thrillers differ? Do you intend to return to writing thrillers after having written World Without End?

Ken: A thriller is like a snapshot of a group of a characters taken at a moment in their lives when they are in great danger. A novel like World Without End tells the entire life story of each major character, from childhood to old age. The main difference is that there is so much more that has to be invented!

Kelly: Was there any nervousness on your behalf when it came to World Without End being touted as the biggest sequel of the year?

Ken: I was nervous about writing WWE, because of readers' high expectations. By the time it was published, it had been read and enjoyed by enough people to calm my fears.

Kelly: Is there another historical era or a particular historical character that you could ever see yourself writing another novel about?

Ken: I'm sure I will return to the Second World War. It is still the war we look back on as the great battle of good and evil. There are thousands more stories of real-life heroism to inspire writers such as I.

Kelly: Your two big novels Pillars of the Earth and World Without End are called "epics" do you think that's an accurate way of describing them?

Ken: "Epic" is a word I would take as a compliment!