RT Article
T1 Reanimating Saint Paul: From the Literary to the Cinematographic Stage
JF Biblical interpretation
VO 27
IS 4/5
SP 533
OP 548
A1 Copier, Laura
LA English
YR 2019
UL https://ixtheo.de/Record/1683562445
AB In several of his writings on the relation between film and language, Pasolini discusses the possibility of a moment in which a screenplay can be considered an autonomous object, "a work complete and finished in itself." In the first part of this essay, I will reflect on the concept of the screenplay in a larger context and more specifically, Pasolini's writings on the ontological status of the screenplay as a "structure that wants to be another structure." The case of Saint Paul is thought-provoking, precisely because this original screenplay was never turned into an actual film. Despite this, Pasolini argues that the screenplay invites - or perhaps even forces - its reader to imagine, to visualize, the film it describes. Pasolini's ideas on the function of language as a means to conjure up images are central to this act of visualization. In the second part of this essay, I will attempt an act of visualization. This endeavor to visualize Saint Paul as a possible film is hinged upon a careful reading of the screenplay. I analyze the opening and closing sequences outlined in the screenplay to visualize the possible filmic expression of its protagonist Paul.
K1 Pasolini
K1 Adaptation
K1 Film
K1 screenplay
K1 Semiotics
DO 10.1163/15685152-02745P05