Based on a true story as adaptation

1. +

2. + Allusion
Directly alludes to many different cultural contexts.
 Story that you don’t know within a story that you do know
 2 overlapping structures/stories
 Interview of subject: “You understand that I will be editing this conversation just in
case I don't say exactly what I mean?”
 White House tour
 Flashbacks: Mostly told through music & visceral emotion.
 Song Camelot
 Jackie controls all stories
 POV always with her
 How does this open up the story?

3. +
Allusion
Directly alludes to many different cultural
contexts.
 Sources of adaptation
 White House tour
 Theodore H. White’s Life
magazine interview with the
widow at Hyannis Port,
Massachusetts.

4. +
 Personate: to assume the character or appearance of
 Impersonation: to represent in personal or bodily form
 There is a greater expectation of “personation” when it comes
to adaptation
 An actor is expected to BE the source of adaptation
 Or subjected to great criticism for the knowing audience
 Or the subject of confusion for the unknowing audience

5. + Celebration
Heavy reluctance to change the exact words or
sentiment of the source.
 “Natalie Portman is Jackie”
 How much does physical
resemblance matter?
 Why/how does it make it more
believable?
 What sort of film does it set up?
 Think authenticity

6. +
Analogy
These are often 'inspired by' or 'based
on' adaptations.
 What aspects of truth matters when adapting a real life person?
 Turning myths into sights & sounds
 Mimicking Jackie's ranging vocals was pivotal for Portman
 “Conquering Kennedy's vocals was the key to the rest of the film.”
 How has YouTube changed how we assess a “based on”
performance?

7. +
What role do the sound(s) of the film have in
creating an internal dialogue for Jackie?
 Think diagetic & non-diagetic sounds
 Score: Mica Levi composed the film's accompanying score
 Also did UNDER THE SKIN
 How does the score juxtapose the talking heads — & Jackie being
told what to do?
 How does the score reference Jackie’s fragmented and traumatised
mind?

8. +
Secondary
Adaptations which are part of broader
cycles generally fit this model.
 Divine, Jaclyn Smith, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Roma Downey, Jill
Hennessy, Joanne Whalley, Kat Steffens, Jacqueline Bisset, Jeanne
Tripplehorn, Parker Posey, Blair Brown, Katie Holmes, Victoria
Beckham, Ginnifer Goodwin, and Minka Kelly

9. + Deconstruciton A text that directly asks questions
about its own adaptation process.
 Pastiche – stories within stories
 Playing someone who is performing
 Performing a performance of a performance
 Portman as Jackie
 Mannered
 Stagey
 Controlled
 Not meant to be naturalistic
 Do you find this alienating?
 Not alienating – alienated
 Portman performs the alien environment that she is in

10. +
Final thought
 How does the film dramatize aspects of history?
 Funeral procession
 Assassination
 White house tour
 Interview
 Who controls the POV? What role does the music play?
 What is the exposition? How the film rely on the “knowing
audience”?
 How does the film show what the character are thinking? (ie.
Character expression, POV, music etc.)