After two gritty films — “Down to the Bone” about a mother battling a drug addiction and this year’s “Winter’s Bone” following a young woman navigating the tricky moral terrain of her not-quite-lawful family — writer/director Debra Granik is ready to get real paid. Or at least deliver the film that won’t leave you with a hollowed out feeling in the pit of your stomach.
The eagle-eyed Vulture noticed an interesting tidbit buried in a recent LA Times article about the current crop of plucky characters for women. Buried deep within the article it’s revealed that Granik, along with her producing partner and “Winter’s Bone” co-writer Anne Rosellini are working on a film treatment for one of children’s literature’s most individual and rascally heroines, “Pippi Longstocking.”
The series of three books (and some picture books) by Astrid Lindgren are beloved around the world, tracking the tale of the titular red haired girl who lives in a house dubbed “Villa Villekulla” (which inspired the name of the female artist driven indie rock label Villa Villakula) with her monkey and horse. She has superhuman strength, and abhors adults and authority; in short it’s easy to see why kids grew to love Pippi and her adventures.
The character has made its way to the big and small screen numerous times but mostly in international productions. No word yet who is behind the current incarnation but it’s probably safe to assume that someone thinks it will make a great franchise. And frankly, it’s pretty inspired to get Debra Granik to give a treatment a whirl. Of course, no word on if this is something she might direct and it’s probably way too early in the game for those decisions to be made. But still, an intriguing nugget from a director who seems to have some bigger opportunities on the horizon and that’s something we can get behind.
In case Pippi wasn’t part of your childhood, here’s a synopsis of the book from Amazon:
Pippi is an irrepressible, irreverent, and irrefutably delightful girl who lives alone (with a monkey) in her wacky house, Villa Villekulla. When she’s not dancing with the burglars who were just trying to rob her house, she’s attempting to learn the “pluttification” tables at school; fighting Adolf, the strongest man in the world at the circus; or playing tag with police officers. Pippi’s high-spirited, good-natured hijinks cause as much trouble as fun, but a more generous child you won’t find anywhere.