Adaptation as In-depth Dialogue. The Cortázar–Antonioni Case Reconsidered

Abstract

This paper analyses a borderline case of adaptation and its potential implications for adaptation studies at large: Antonioni’s cinematographic reading and rendering of a short story by Julio Cortázar, Las babas del diablo (1959), as presented in his 1966 film, Blow-Up. We argue that adaptation in this case operates on a ‘deep’ level, that of the ramified web of connected texts, a level where fundamental questions are raised about mimesis, particularly concerning the fragile condition and ephemeral existence into which a story inevitably projects its imaginary characters. Close reading further allows for establishing that Antonioni hermeneutically meets Cortázar’s short story in the well-orchestrated impression of substantiality dissolving into its opposite. An interpretive link is also presented with the tradition of Latin-American fiction developed in the wake of Borges’ metafictional writings, specifically concerning bidirectional influence, as illustrated in ‘Pierre Menard, autor del Quijote’. Along the way, critical attention is given to current notions in adaptation theory and hermeneutics, including the interaction between both fields.