Confessions of a Dangerous Mind - Star Brown

Released (2002)

"Confessions of A Dangerous Mind" is a film directed by George Clooney adapted from Chuck Barris’ book of the same title by screen writer/director Charlie Kaufman. The film was Clooney's first directorial effort. Being a fan of book first and the film second I can see how taking a cult favorite such as "Confessions of A Dangerous Mind" and turning it into a film can be a tricky process. The first thing that came to mind while watching the film was how Kaufman and Clooney went for a more depressive tone to the film. I enjoyed this, but found it rather odd since the book itself is one of the greatest gags ever played. The book is a work of comedy, the entire story is told with such a sarcastic tone that it sucks the reader right in. It’s unreal to the point of questioning, "is he serious?" that keeps the drawn interest at its peak. The difference between the two is that while reading the book you just want Barris to say "i was joking.” While viewing the film you don't care about that, you believe it and you want Barris to make right with his life. Clooney and Kaufman did justice to Barris' work, even though fans of the book can find complaint. It's often hard to adapt a beloved book to film because fans of the book have already created a vision of the film in their minds and often what is presented to them on the screen is not as good as what was presented to them in their mind. "Confessions of A Dangerous Mind" as a film almost creates a willingness in the viewer to go out and find out more about Chuck Barris and to actually pick up the book. That in itself could be a good meter on how well the adaptation succeeded.