You don't need to know much about the film world to realise that book adaptations are bigger business than ever.
JK Rowling ensured a generation of children were introduced to reading, and the phenomenal success of Stephenie Meyer's vampire saga Twilight looks set to continue with the release of the third in the series, Eclipse, later this year.
But it isn't just writers' work that ends up on the silver screen. Everyone from Shakespeare to Hunter S Thompson has been brought to life by modern Hollywood. The latest addition Christopher Plummer's masterful performance as the Russian writer Leo Tolstoy in The Last Station, for which he was nominated for a Best Supporting Actor Oscar. So just what is it about writers and writing that is so fascinating to filmmakers?
Unsurprisingly, the most common way for authors to make an appearance on screen is in the straightforward life story, frequently based on a biography or autobiography. Iris, for example, tells the moving story of the author and philosopher Iris Murdoch, as seen by her husband John Bayley, based on his own memoir Elegy for Iris.
While the film is not a clear, linear portrayal of her life, it covers two prominent periods of it: the younger Murdoch's (Kate Winslet) blossoming relationship with Bayley, and the beginnings of her passion for writing; and her later years, where the ageing author (Judi Dench) battles against the onset of Alzheimer's disease. It takes the viewer on a very personal journey with Murdoch, discovering not only her works but also the person behind the pages.
Like Iris, films most often concentrate on the darker sides of writers' lives. Many filmmakers have explored the addictions, or demons, that haunt creative minds. In a classic example, the ill-fated poet Sylvia Plath was played by Gwyneth Paltrow in 2003's Sylvia. Condemned by Plath's daughter, the film focuses on her marriage to Ted Hughes, as well as the increasing state of depression and insecurity that followed her until her suicide in 1963. This type of film appeals to the many people who feel a personal connection, not just with an author's work, but with their struggle to produce it.
Other films explore the connection between reader and author more directly. The Hours, for example, shows Nicole Kidman's Virginia Woolf battling her own issues with depression while writing Mrs Dalloway, but also portrays two other women in different eras whose lives are touched by the book.
Of course, unlike biographers or documentarians, filmmakers can, and frequently do, leave reality behind. Two famous examples aptly demonstrate how cinema can "buy the ticket and take the ride" with some of history's most fertile imaginations, and explore not just their lives but their ideas and their legacies.
Terry Gilliam directed a live-action version of Hunter S Thompson's Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, with Johnny Depp as the film's protagonist, Raoul Duke. The film is part adaptation, part biopic, just as the book is (Duke is widely acknowledged as Thompson's alter-ego, and the events are based on two trips to Nevada in the early Seventies). The viewer takes the trip with Thompson, where all his experiences are brought to vivid life via Gilliam's monstrous effects.
A slightly more refined example of this is Finding Neverland, where again we find Depp, but this time as the Scottish playwright JM Barrie. The film explores the imaginary adventures he has with the children of his friend Sylvia Llewelyn Davies, bringing them to life on screen and showing how they provided the inspiration for his greatest work, Peter Pan.
The other sort of film that audiences gravitate towards is perhaps best summed up by the tagline of the film Shakespeare in Love: "Love is the inspiration." It certainly has been for several films about writers, where a relationship or affair is offered as the inspiration for the most beloved writing of our time. Jon Madden's Shakespeare in Love is an almost entirely fictional account of the Bard (played by Joseph Fiennes) overcoming a severe bout of writer's block by falling in love with Viola (Gwyneth Paltrow), who is appearing in the first production of his new play Romeo and Juliet. It is also suggested at the end of the film that the relationship inspired The Tempest. The film immerses the audience in the world of Shakespeare, with dialogue and visual references to his plays, and some characters within the film are based on real people, but its relationship with reality does not go much further.
We are also transported to another world in the 2007 film Becoming Jane, which focuses on the young Jane Austen and her love for a lawyer named Thomas Lefroy. Despite a complete lack of historical accuracy (there is little to suggest Austen and Lefroy's relationship went any further than written correspondences, with the film's producers admitting this was not a biopic in the strictest of terms). The film sparked a rush of interest in Austen's personal life and it became evident that many of Austen's fans wanted to believe that her novels were more than simply the work of a creative mind.
Of course, there is one further, slightly more cynical, reason why films about authors are such a draw for writers and directors. Portraying a creative genius can imbue a film with borrowed intellectual heft and gravitas. Whether it is to unearth a dark past, take a psychedelic ride with the author himself or learn about who inspired your favourite romance writer, these films are often met with a shower of awards and praise. The Last Station earned two Oscar nominations. This continues the legacy of Shakespeare in Love, a film that gained such momentum with audiences that not even Steven Spielberg's Saving Private Ryan could beat it to the 1999 Oscar for Best Picture.
There are more stories to tell. Philip Kaufman (director of Quills and Henry & June, the story of Henry Miller) is planning a film about Ernest Hemingway, telling the story of the love affair that inspired one of his most famous works, For Whom the Bell Tolls. It appears as though the future brings even more legends from literary past, to delight the cinema crowds of the present.
Electric scooters: some rules to remember
- Riders must be 14-years-old or over
- Wear a protective helmet
- Park the electric scooter in designated parking lots (if any)
- Do not leave electric scooter in locations that obstruct traffic or pedestrians
- Solo riders only, no passengers allowed
- Do not drive outside designated lanes
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
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Key figures in the life of the fort
Sheikh Dhiyab bin Isa (ruled 1761-1793) Built Qasr Al Hosn as a watchtower to guard over the only freshwater well on Abu Dhabi island.
Sheikh Shakhbut bin Dhiyab (ruled 1793-1816) Expanded the tower into a small fort and transferred his ruling place of residence from Liwa Oasis to the fort on the island.
Sheikh Tahnoon bin Shakhbut (ruled 1818-1833) Expanded Qasr Al Hosn further as Abu Dhabi grew from a small village of palm huts to a town of more than 5,000 inhabitants.
Sheikh Khalifa bin Shakhbut (ruled 1833-1845) Repaired and fortified the fort.
Sheikh Saeed bin Tahnoon (ruled 1845-1855) Turned Qasr Al Hosn into a strong two-storied structure.
Sheikh Zayed bin Khalifa (ruled 1855-1909) Expanded Qasr Al Hosn further to reflect the emirate's increasing prominence.
Sheikh Shakhbut bin Sultan (ruled 1928-1966) Renovated and enlarged Qasr Al Hosn, adding a decorative arch and two new villas.
Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan (ruled 1966-2004) Moved the royal residence to Al Manhal palace and kept his diwan at Qasr Al Hosn.
Sources: Jayanti Maitra, www.adach.ae
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
MEYDAN CARD
6.30pm Al Maktoum Challenge Round-1 Group One (PA) US$65,000 (Dirt) 1,600m
7.05pm Handicap (TB) $175,000 (Turf) 1,200m
7.40pm UAE 2000 Guineas Trial Conditions (TB) $100,000 (D) 1,600m
8.15pm Singspiel Stakes Group Two (TB) $250,000 (T) 1,800m
8.50pm Handicap (TB) $135,000 (T) 1,600m
9.25pm Al Maktoum Challenge Round-1 Group Two (TB) $350,000 (D) 1,600m
10pm Dubai Trophy Conditions (TB) $100,000 (T) 1,200m
10.35pm Handicap (TB) $135,000 (T) 1,600m
The National selections:
6.30pm AF Alwajel
7.05pm Ekhtiyaar
7.40pm First View
8.15pm Benbatl
8.50pm Zakouski
9.25pm: Kimbear
10pm: Chasing Dreams
10.35pm: Good Fortune
Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
