Book to Film: Chuck Palahniuck

19-11-2008 16:45

Chuck Palahniuck has become one of Hollywood's most popular authors as Choke becomes the second of his novels to make it to the big screen in what really has been the year of the book adaptation.

The American writer shot to fame in 1999 when director David Fincher adapted his popular novel Fight Club, a process which took several years to get off the ground and complete.

Bringing together Brad Pitt and Edward Norton in an explosive partnership the film follows as automobile company employee who finds his only comfort in feigning terminal illnesses and attending disease support groups.

However, while returning from a business trip, he meets a more intriguing character--the subversive Tyler Durden (Brad Pitt). They become fast friends, bonding over a mutual disgust for corporate consumer-culture hypocrisy.

Eventually, the two start Fight Club, which convenes in a bar basement where angry men get to vent their frustrations in brutal, bare-knuckle bouts. Fight Club soon becomes the men's only real priority; when the club starts a cross-country expansion, things start getting really crazy.

When the film premiered at the Venice International Film Festival it received mixed reviews and was fiercely debated by the critics. Despite grossing just over $100 million and opening at number one at the US box office it was not considered a hit.

But it was one of the most controversial and most talked about movies of 1999 and was considered a milestone for visual style in cinema establishing a cult following when it was released on DVD.