MASARYK UNIVERSITY BRNO
Faculty of Education
Department of English Language and Literature
VERONICA GUERIN (Film and Reality Compared)
B. A. Thesis
Brno 2009
Author: Supervisor:
Michal Mikulec Aaron Marc Collier, B.A.
Keywords
Adaptation, analysis, comparison, crime, drugs, Dublin, film characters, history, Veronica Guerin
Klíčová slova
Adaptace, analýza, drogy, Dublin, filmové postavy, historie, srovnávání, Veronica Guerinová, zločin
2
Declaration:
I declare that I have written this bachelor thesis myself and used only the sources listed in the bibliography section.
Prohlášení:
Prohlašuji, že jsem bakalářskou práci napsal sám a použil jsem jen prameny uvedené v seznamu literatury.
Brno 2 April 2009 Michal Mikulec
3
Acknowledgments
I would like to express my thanks to my supervisor Aaron Mark Collier for his guidance and professional advice on writing the thesis.
Poděkování
Děkuji svému vedoucímu Aaronu Marku Collierovi za jeho trpělivou pomoc a cenné připomínky při psaní této bakalářské práce.
4 Content
Introduction ...... 6
PART I (The Facts)
1 Heroin ...... 8 2 Situation in Dublin ...... 9 2.1 Introduction of Drugs in Dublin ...... 9 2.2 Local Drug Dealers ...... 10 3 Veronica Guerin ...... 12 3.1 A Path of Veronica Guerin ...... 12 3.2 A Chase for Drug Dealers ...... 14 4 A Theory of Film Adaptation ...... 21 4.1 Models of Adaptation ...... 23
PART II (Film & Reality Comparison)
1 Veronica Guerin – Film Details ...... 26 2 Analysis of the Film Veronica Guerin ...... 28 3 Findings ...... 51 3.1 Main Theme ………………………………………………………………….51 3.2 Characters ……………………………………………………………...... 51 3.3 Point of View ………………………………………………………………..54 3.4 Narrative ……………………………………………………………………..55 3.5 Settings ………………………………………………………………………..55
Conclusion ……………………………………………………………………………………….57
Summary ...... 60
Resumé ……………………………………………………………………………………………62
Bibliography …………………………………………………………………………………...64
5 Introduction
Our history has given us a number of extraordinary persons, who have had a power to make colossal achievements. Most of them have been men, whose strength, firmness, and determination made them great warriors, leaders and saviours of their people. Nevertheless, once in a while, between those great men appeared exceptional women, whose power surpassed other men, and who became unforgettable for their brave acts, ambitions and achievements in the “male’s world”. One of those women was Veronica Guerin, an Irish investigative reporter who risked her life while investigating Dublin’s criminal underworld in an effort to stop local drug dealers who were selling drugs to young people. Her name is not as much known as others, yet she was very famous already during her life, and after her violent death she became a legend not only in Ireland but also in the whole world of journalism. The thesis will be devided into theoretical and practical part. The theoretical part will deal mainly with a career of Veronica Guerin, especially with the last two years of her life, during which she was investigating the drug problem in Dublin. The thesis will provide a closer look into lesser known affairs connected to drugs in Dublin in mid 90’s of the 20 th century, and a reader will find causes, which made Veronica Guerin proceed regardless of a danger and threats from criminals, and also the consequences, which happened thanks to her during and after her life. The situation in Dublin was very dangerous at the time and her appearing against the criminals and the whole system was very brave and inspiring. A short part of the theoretical part will deal with a theory of film adaptation and a relationship between literature and film. The theory and analytic techniques from the theoretical part will help us during an analysis of a film about Veronica Guerin in the
6 practical part, even though the film is not based on a book but on a research of the filmmakers. The film Veronica Guerin (2003), directed by Joel Schumacher, with Cate Blanchett in a lead role will be deeply analyzed and the character of Veronica Guerin in the film will be compared to the real personality of Veronica Guerin. The main aim of this thesis is to find accuracies and differences in the portrayal of the life of Veronica Guerin in various scenes of the film, and evaluate an effort of the filmmakers who made this film. The thesis will be also focused on supporting characters, especially Veronica’s greatest antagonist, John Gilligan, and the last section of the practical part will evaluate in general the concrete elements of the film, such as the main theme, a point of view, a narrative and settings.
7 Part I
1 Heroin
a molecule of heroin
The use of drugs is connected to a human race from its origins. People used drugs during rituals and in medicine for instance as painkillers. The most widespread drug was opium, which was later used to create morphine by a German chemist, whose name was F. W. Serturner, in 1804. After Alexander Woodin’s invention of syringe in 1843, the use of morphine rapidly increased. In 1874, another chemist, C. R. Alderwright, produced a compound of morphine and acetic anhydride, which was in 1878 named heroin by Heinrich Dresser, who used this drug to cure pneumonia and other diseases. However, an uncontrollable distribution of narcotics became a serious global problem, and for that reason an agreement about medical use only of narcotics was approved in the Hague Convention in 1912. In 1914, the United States passed the Act which allowed the sale of narcotics only for medical doctors, and this Act became an example for Britain which passed a similar Act in 1920. Despite of the effort to prevent the addictive drugs from an excessive consumption, the number of the addicts was increasing, together with the number of crimes commited by the addicts, and for that reason special treatment institutions for addicts needed to be established. (*10)1
1 10 - “Methadone: What’s the Story?” Nicdtf. 2003. 8 April 2009
8 2 Situation in Dublin
2.1 Introduction of Drugs in Dublin
The origins of the heroin problem in Dublin date back to late 1960s, when the heroin was introduced and many people became addicted upon it. The increasing number of the addicts was caused by local crime lords who supplied the drugs on a large scale, and the addicts then caused the growth of unemployment and criminality. In 1980’s, a new virus (HIV) started to spread worldwide among the addicts who shared syringes, and new programmes and formations were established, such as Concerned Parents Against Drugs, which marched the streets of Dublin protesting against the drug business and addressing the known drug dealers, who they wanted to stop by putting empty children’s coffins in front of their houses. However, these marches were very small and ineffective. (*10)1 In 1990’s, the situation in Dublin became desperate. The drugs were dealing and injected in public, and the rise of the addicts was faster than ever. People were losing their jobs, and for that reason the masses of people migrated to the Great Britain or the United States hoping to find new jobs. In 1994, the number of people who injected heroin exceeded the number of 15,000, whereas among those people were even children as young as 14. The kids gathered in empty flats called “the squat” and injected drugs there. Very few old people lived in those flats, and they were often robbed by those kids of their money and valuable objects, so that the kids could buy drugs. The neighbourhood was literally covered by hypodermic needles and little children were commonly seen playing with them on the streets. Everybody knew local drug
1 10 - “Methadone: What’s the Story?” Nicdtf. 2003. 8 April 2009
9 dealers and about their crimes, but nobody could touch them. They earned a huge amount of money, so the local police, also known as “the Garda”, was powerless against them. The Irish law was full of excessive liberalism and eventually on the criminal’s side. The imperfect Irish law was created after Ireland gained its independence from the Great Britain, and the Irish wanted to make their own laws in order not to be under the influence of the Great Britain. After Irish Republican Army (IRA) joined the drug trafficking, crime was out of control and the situation in Ireland became desperate. (*10; *13; *14; *15)1
2.2 Local Drug Dealers
Among the most powerful drug dealers in Dublin belonged John Gilligan, a brutal, cold and violent drug lord who smuggled cigarettes and laundered his money in Amsterdam’s casinos. Everytime he just bought chips in the casinos, but instead of playing, he later changed the chips for clean money. When he was caught in the act, he was taken prisoner, but soon he left the prison and starter to build his horse ranch and his criminal empire. Journalists nicknamed him Factory John, because the strict Irish libel law did not allow them to name the criminals by their real names, and for that reason they identified them by pseudonyms. Another well known criminal was Martin Cahill, also known as the General, who was a brutal murderer and a thief. Cahill punished hard anybody who had betrayed him. He burnt the traitor’s face by flaming iron, nailed him to the floor or skinned his legs while the traitor was still alive. He was said to have affairs with his wife’s sisters and also had children with them. However, he became very
1 10 - “Methadone: What’s the Story?” Nicdtf. 2003. 8 April 2009
10 popular among the poor people of Dublin, because he donated them with the money which he had been stealing during the greatest robberies of gold and diamonds. Among the criminals, Veronica Guerin found her main informer, whose name was John Traynor, alias the Coach, who ran several brothels and became a key member of many gangs, because he laundered their money. Traynor enjoyed being seen with a famous journalist, and in return he provided Veronica with valuable information of the criminal underworld, which she published in her articles. Traynor was also stealing electronic in order to sell it further, and he ran a used car trade as a cover. Other known criminals were Gerry Hutch, nicknamed the Monk, a thief involved in many robberies, who lived a life of an upper middle class, Brian Meehan, also known as the Tosses for his indecent behaviour, Paul Ward, nicknamed the Hippo, and Martin Foley, alias the Viper. (*13; *14; *15)1
1 13 - Audiocommentary by a director Joel Schumacher, DVD 14 - Audiocommentary by a screenwriter Carol Doyle, DVD 15 - Audiocommentary by a screenwriter Mary A. Donoghue, DVD
11 3 Veronica Guerin
(1958 1996)
An Irish journalist Veronica Guerin had an important role in the late history of Ireland, and her courage made her a heroine not only in her country, but in the whole world of journalism. Veronica Guerin was a reporter who wrote about Dublin’s drug barons, investigated their dangerous underworld, and struggled for their arrests. She risked her life to make Dublin a better and safer place for people and their children who were taking drugs and dying of diseases associated with them.
3.1 A Path of Veronica Guerin
Veronica Guerin was born to Christopher Guerin, a holder of an accountant firm, and Bernadette Guerin, a housewife, in Dublin on July 5, 1959. She had two brothers and two sisters, and from her childhood Veronica fancied sport and longed for victory. First she played basketball and she recieved a prize for European
12 basketballer of the year, and later she played soccer and became a top scorer. Soccer remained her hobby until the end of her life. She was a great fan of Manchester United soccer club, and she played soccer occasionally, especially when she was upset. Veronica attended the Catholic school in Dublin and after a graduation she decided to study accounting at Trinity College. After her studies, Veronica formed her own company that was dealing with public relations. (*9; *12; *14)1 Veronica married Graham Turley, an owner of a construction company, in 1985 and five years later their son Cathal was born. Graham was a guiet and kind man, who always supported her and let Veronica live her own life without pushing her. He regularly cooked meal for the family, because Veronica was usually coming home late. Veronica was very close to her mother Bernadette, but in general the whole family, including Veronica’s siblings, hanged together and met very often. Subsequently, Veronica started to be interested in journalism, and she first worked for the Sunday Business Post since 1990, and later for the Sunday Tribune since 1993. She became very famous for her articles, especially for an article about a bishop Casey, who made young woman pregnant and under church cover escaped to South America. To get an interview, Veronica bought a flight ticket, followed him and waited for an interview on his doorstep. For that reason her unique method of interrogation was called the doorstepping. Veronica was generous, charming, and energetic woman who liked adrenaline and fully living. But she was also a manipulative person, capable of managing anything she wanted, and getting information from anybody. When she was absorbed by her work, she drank as much as 10 cups of coffee and smoked 2 packets of cigarettes a day, and
1 9 - “Biography: Veronica Guerin.” Answers. 2009. 8 April 2009
13 then she was able to work for 20 hours a day. Veronica’s persistence impressed Ireland’s top selling newspaper, the Sunday Independent, for which she published her first story in 1994. She started to write stories about crimes, because other journalists did not want to write about that, and in addiction to that, Veronica was new among Sunday Independence staff, that is why she could not choose subjects which she wanted, but she had to take what was left. Nevertheless, Veronica was becoming increasingly interested in crime stories, and wrote articles about Dublin’s criminal underworld, gangs and a serious heroin problem. (*6, *9; *12; *13; *14; *15)1
3.2 A Chase for Drug Dealers
Veronica started her investigation in 1994, when the number of people who injected heroine exceeded the number of 15,000, and among those people were even children as young as 14. At first, Veronica only meant to write stories about the crimes, but then she was gradually dragged into the world of the criminals and decided to take the risk and go after them. Veronica did not work in the office, but she prefered working alone from her home, car and on her phone. She visited the poorest parts of Dublin, where the streets were literally covered with injection needles, and little children were playing with them. Here, in empty flats called the “squat”, Veronica interviewed kids who were injecting drugs, and she witnessed the shocking conditions in which these kids were spending their free time. At this moment she realized the
1 6 - O’REILLY, Emily. Veronica Guerin: The Life and Death of a Crime Reporter. London: Vintage, 1998. 190 p. 9 - “Biography: Veronica Guerin.” Answers. 2009. 8 April 2009
14 seriousness of the problem and tried to find out where did the drugs come from, where did the kids take money for the drugs, and who was responsible for that all, in other words who was in charge of the drug business. (*6; *13; *14)1 Veronica found her informers among policemen, detectives, politics, and even among the criminals. They all felt comfortable in her company and many times they told her more than they meant. Veronica was not only fearless, but at the same time reckless, when she invited her informers, especially the criminals, to her house and when she took her son to meetings with them. She rarely went out with other journalists who hated her because she became very famous for her stories despite the fact that she never studied journalism. She had closer relationship with her contacts than with her colleagues. After an assassination of Martin Cahill, who was shot in a head by a man on a motorcycle, there was a huge funeral and there Veronica met her criminal informer, John Traynor, who gave her false information about Gerry Hutch (the Monk), being a head of a drug trade and being behind the murder. Veronica wanted to make an interview with Hutch, but he planned a robbery and a presence of Veronica could make him difficulty. Therefore he told Veronica to come to a pub near the airport in a certain day and hour, and while she was waiting for him, he accomplished the £300.000 robbery. Veronica found it out later and since then she suspected him even more. (*6; *13, *15)2
1 6 - O’REILLY, Emily. Veronica Guerin: The Life and Death of a Crime Reporter. London: Vintage, 1998. 190 p. 13 - Audiocommentary by a director Joel Schumacher, DVD 14 - Audiocommentary by a screenwriter Carol Doyle, DVD
2 6 - O’REILLY, Emily. Veronica Guerin: The Life and Death of a Crime Reporter. London: Vintage, 1998. 190 p. 13 - Audiocommentary by a director Joel Schumacher, DVD 15 - Audiocommentary by a screenwriter Mary A. Donoghue, DVD
15 During her investigation, Veronica experienced a number of minor threats, but the first serious one happened in October 1994, when a bullet broke the window of her workroom, and ended in the bookcase, while Veronica and her husband were playing with their son. The shooter was never identified and no arrests were made. Her family was worried about her and tried to stop her, because her stories made herself and her family targets of the criminals. But Veronica resisted their persuasion and never stepped back. According to her, it was just a threat, because she was in that room a short moment before the shooting, and nothing happened. Veronica then continued her investigation and with help of her police informers, she learnt about John Gilligan (Factory John) and she also found out that Traynor was in touch with him, so she decided to go after Gilligan. (*6; *13; *15)1 The second serious threat came in January 1995, shortly after she published an article, in which she implicitly indicated Gerry Hutch as a suspect of the biggest robbery in a history of Ireland. Veronica was late for a Christmas party and she was just about to leave her house, when a gunman, masked with a helmet, forced his way into her house, and tried to shoot her in a head. Luckily for Veronica, the gangs used old weapons which they usually hid in Jewish cemetery, and the gun got stuck and did not fire, but when the man lowered the gun, a shot was fired and the bullet hit Veronica in her leg. The man then ran away, and even though he left his footprints, a jacket and the gun behind, the man was never identified and arrested. Veronica was then taken to hospital and during her stay there, other journalists had to write about her, which they hated. Some of them even claimed that she had shot herself to arouse public notice. Veronica’s injury was very lucky. If the bullet hit the artery, she would bleed to death, and if the bullet hit the bone, she would be crippled. Veronica never take it
1 Vide ante.
16 seriously, and she wanted to leave the hospital as soon as possible. She wrote letters for the criminals with a question “Were you responsible for shooting me?” and when she felt better, her husband picked her from the hospital and she asked him to take her to the homes of the dealers. She wanted everybody to know that she was going after the dealers, and she used this excellent move to show that she was not afraid and rather than writing another story about them, she decided to point at them directly. The more she went after them, the more she was becoming famous. She was invited into many TV and radio shows, and she intended to use the media to promote her pursuit. For a short time, Veronica was given a 24 hour police protection, but she declined it because her criminal informers were afraid to talk nearby the police. (*8; *13; *14; *15)1 On September 13, 1995, Veronica eventually decided to pay a visit to John Gilligan on his horse farm and ask him about his property and his suspicious income (another case of the doorstepping). She got into his property incidentally, because she entered it through its back gate which was open, not through the reception. Gilligan hated her so much that when he met her, she could just say “I’m Veronica Guerin, I’m a writer for Sunday Independence...” and he started to beat her, pushed her back to her car, ripped her clothes to see whether she was wearing a wire, and banned her from his property. Veronica was shocked and absolutely unprepared for this, and left Gilligan’s ranch for home to see her mother. Even though her mother asked her to consider the risk and stop, Veronica did not want to stop her investigation, because she knew that she was now very close to reveal the truth.
1 8 - WOODHULL, Nancy. Journalists in Peril: Media Studies Series. New Jersey: Transaction Publishers, 1998. 178 p. 13 - Audiocommentary by a director Joel Schumacher, DVD 14 - Audiocommentary by a screenwriter Carol Doyle, DVD 15 - Audiocommentary by a screenwriter Mary A. Donoghue, DVD
17 But, in order to protect her family, she decided to sue Gilligan, and the following day she went to the redaction where her injuries were photographed as evidence for the court. During the photographing, Veronica recieved a phone call from Gilligan, who threatened her that if she did not quit, he would kidnap her son and rape him, and then shoot her. Gilligan knew that if he was convicted of an assault on Veronica, he would go to prison for six months and then his men would leave him, and his empire would be destroyed. So Gilligan sent Traynor to Veronica with an offer of a large amout of money in exchange for not suing him, but Veronica rejected the offer. Coincidelntally, Traynor’s mistress, whose name was Molly, told Veronica that Traynor was also behind the shooting at her, and now Veronica was really sick about the criminals, and she just wanted to finish this and then write about something else. (*13; *14; *15)1 In December 1995, Veronica was awarded by Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) with International Press Freedom Award in New York City, US. Here, Veronica used the opportunity and delivered a speech on the difficult situation for journalists in Ireland: (Woodhull, 108) 2
“In Life – Standing Up for Reporter” by Veronica Guerin
“It is very unusual to hear that an Irish reporter has been shot or intimidated. Unfortunately, because of the ever rising crime problems in Ireland, a number of reporters, not just me, have been subjected to death threats and to intimidation on a daily basis. So, for my colleagues in other newspapers and in the broadcast media, I’m grateful that the CPJ have decided to honour an Irish and
1 13 - Audiocommentary by a director Joel Schumacher, DVD 14 - Audiocommentary by a screenwriter Carol Doyle, DVD 15 - Audiocommentary by a screenwriter Mary A. Donoghue, DVD
2 8 - WOODHULL, Nancy. Journalists in Peril: Media Studies Series. New Jersey: Transaction Publishers, 1998. 178 p.
18 European journalist. Unfortunately, in Ireland, journalists have to face the threat of posible imprisonment, and I welcome this opportunity to highlight the appalling case of a colleague of mine who works in the Irish Independent. She is facing a possible jail sentence [for alleged breach of the Official Secrets Act] because she published a document which was widely circulated within the police force in Ireland about the suspects of bank robbery. We write under ridiculously restrictive laws in Ireland. It’s a wonderful country, great place to visit, but, unfortunately for journalists, the most difficult thing we have to work within are our restrictive libel laws. It’s difficult for publishers because they are the people who have to pay massive amounts of money on a daily basis in courts. These are the issues that I feel that I have to highlight here. It’s not the fact that journalists may be shot, but the legitimate restrictions that we work within...” (*8)1
After her return to Ireland, Veronica went to the court, where she expected a conviction of John Gilligan. Luckily for Gilligan, the Judge delayed the hearing and Gilligan could plan his final stroke against Veronica. Meanwhile, Veronica took a bugging device and arranged a meeting with Traynor in a restaurant. She told him that she knew about him being behind the shooting at her, and that she was going to write about his money laundering and all his criminal activities. Traynor was annoyed with her, and even though she attracted him, he told Gilligan where he might have found her the following day. (*13; *14; *15)2
1 8 - WOODHULL, Nancy. Journalists in Peril: Media Studies Series. New Jersey: Transaction Publishers, 1998. 178 p.
2 13 - Audiocommentary by a director Joel Schumacher, DVD 14 - Audiocommentary by a screenwriter Carol Doyle, DVD 15 - Audiocommentary by a screenwriter Mary A. Donoghue, DVD
19 On June, 26, 1996, Veronica was defending herself on a speeding charge in Naas Courthouse, where she almost lost her driving licence. She was pleased with the verdict, because she could continue in her investigation. However, Veronica was followed by the gangsters since she left the Courthouse. Gilligan was now in Amsterdam with his mistress to get himself alibi. When Veronica stopped her car on the Naas Road and waited for a change of the traffic lights, two men on a motorcycle stopped next to her car, one of them broke the car’s window and fired six bullets to her. At the moment of her death, Veronica was calling one of her police contact who heard the shooting. The gangsters then ran away, and threw the motorcycle and the weapon into the canall. Nobody believed that anything like that might have happened. After Veronica’s murder, which was the first murder of journalist in the history of Ireland, there were convulsions in the streets of Dublin, and the marches of the Concerned Parents Against Drugs became massive. During the week, the parliament changed the Constitution and many laws, including the Libel law, and they established a special agency called Criminal Assets Bureau, which investigated the origin of the criminal’s money and conficated their property which came from illegal activities. Gilligan’s men, Brian Meehan and Paul Ward, were found responsible for the murder of Veronica Guerin, and they were taken imprisonment. John Traynor escaped to Portugal, where he was hiding for many years and John Gilligan escaped to England, but soon he was escorted back to Ireland, his property, including the horse ranch, was confiscated, and he was sentenced 28 years imprisonment for drug trafficking. Veronica died at the age of 37, only 2 days before she was to visit a conference in London under the name “Dying to Tell a Story”, and on her grave, there is an inscription saying “Be Not Afraid”. (*13; *14)1
1 13 - Audiocommentary by a director Joel Schumacher, DVD 14 - Audiocommentary by a screenwriter Carol Doyle, DVD
20 4 A Theory of Film Adaptation
Adaptation is a method of using one work as a basis or inspiration for another work. It can be used within the same medium or different ones (novels, songs, stage plays, operas, ballets, musicals, radio plays, graphic novels, films, video games, web sides, comics and motion comics, etc.). In the adaptation, the audience can recognize other work, so they can compare different forms and make their own judgement about the adaptation. We will focus on the relationship between literature and film, and this theory will help us to compare the real life of Veronica Guerin to the film Veronica Guerin. Literature went through a long history, during which it was able to develope, but film has a very short history, and as a younger medium, it had to gain its own respect. For that reason, at the beginning of the film history, the filmmakers used prestigious novels and authors for their adaptations, but later making films became mostly a business. The advantage of the film is its use of pictures, movement and sound, while the books must focus mainly on a text. With the questions of adaptation deals Linda Hutcheon in her book A theory of Adaptation. Hutcheon answers the following questions: What is the nature and quality of adaptation? Who are the adapters? How are the adaptations recieved by the audience? And why are adaptations actually produced? Hutcheon explains that the crucial element of adaptation is the story which remains much about the same. For instance William Shakespeare collected short stories and transfered them into his stage plays to make them available for more people. John Harrington supports Hutcheon’s theory and shows another example in a play of George Bernard Shaw, Pygmalion (1912) . This play became a theme for a musical My Fair Lady (1964) , which plot and characters are very close to
21 the original play, but later the play became an inspiration for a romantic comedy Pretty Woman (1990) , which plot and characters are very different from the original. But the main theme remains more or less the same in both adaptations. People who help to create film adaptation are called adapters. Among them belong not only directors, screenwriters and performers, but also others who are involved in making the film adaptation, such as cinematographers, composers, editors, costume designers, producers, etc. (*3; *4)1 Hutcheon also explains that adaptation refers not only to a product, but also to a process of making it and its perception. For instance novels and short stories tell stories; films and stage plays show stories; and videogames allow audience to interact and/or become one of the characters. There are several reasons why film adaptations are produced. People may have personal or political motives, but a huge number of film adaptations are produced for a financial reason, because films are made in a market environment. For that reason filmmakers use best selling books and authors for the adaptations, because a huge number of readers is a guarantee of a success of the film. They recycle old version (remakes), tell a story from different points of view, transfer the story to a different time, compress or expand the story in order to make it more popular for viewers. But the adaptation work both directions. Film adaptations not only attract readers, but many people decide to read books after seeing a film adaptation, so both media can profit from each other. (*4)2
1 3 - HARRINGTON, John. Film and/as Literature. Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall, 1977. 364 p. 4 - HUTCHEON, Linda. A Theory of Adaptation. London, U.K.: Routledge, 2006. 256 p.
2 Vide ante.
22 4.1 Modes of Adaptation
There are several models of adaptation, but non of them can cover the complexity of the relationship between literature and film. One of the models presents Geoffrey Wagner, who classifies adaptations into three modes. The first mode is Transposition , during which is the original text transferred without any changes or interventions. The second mode is Commentary , which alters the original text with a specific intention of a director, but the resulting adaptation keeps the main elements and concept of the original work. The third mode of adaptation is Analogy , which diversion from the original text is so large that the result becomes a completely new work. (*7)1 Andrew Dudley established other modes of adaptation, which is sectioned into three types. The first mode is Borrowing , which uses a reputation of an original work (Shakespeare and others) and its main ideas and themes. The second mode is Intersecting , in which a director holds the original text (remakes). And the third mode of adaptation is Transformation , during which adaptations keep the main theme and characters of its original form. (*2)2 A fidelity of adaptation shows to what extend differ adaptations from the originals. It can be presented by individual elements of a film, and with this theory deals Timothy Corrigan, who analyses the relationship between literature and film deeply via its elements and on account of conformity of the elements he shows how closely is adaptation to the original. He studies the main theme (the good, the evil, love) which remains in most cases the same in the film adaptation, a complexity of characters (protagonist and antagonist), who are changing and developing within the story and
1 7 - WAGNER, Geoffrey. The Novel and the Cinema. Rutherford, N.J.: Fairleigh Dickinson University Press, 1975. 394 p.
2 2 - DUDLEY, Andrew. Concepts in Film Theory. Oxford University Press, 1984. 256 p.
23 their physical and psychic features are presented by performers. In some cases the original work involves too large number of characters that filmmakers need to reduce their number and choose only the most important characters for the film adaptation. The analyzed film in the practical part is based on actual events, so we will try to find out which characters filmmakers chose for the film and why. Another surveyed elements are a point of view (first person, third person), a narrative (chronologic, retrospective), and settings (realistic, symbolic, historic). His method of analysis of a film through its basic elements will be a model in a practical part of this thesis. (*1)1 A special category, standind beyond standard adaptations, covers films based on true stories, which have no author or publisher. With this category of films deals Thomas M. Leitch who explains that this kind of film can never be considered as an actual record of a historic event, but only as an altered version of actuality with indefinite number of scenes presenting actual events and characters. Some of the characters (sometimes all of them) can be changed or renamed, others can be ommited or added in order to make the film more understandable or interesting, because the real life itself is usually not as interesting as our imagination. In some cases, we can see a prologue at the beginning of a film, which introduces the story and establishes main historic facts of the story. Other way how can be explained the happening in a film is a use of voice over, when a narrator tells the audience important facts. Among the instruments which make a film as credible as possible belong a plot, set decorating, costumes, and especially the performers who carry the features of the characters and present it to the audience by their dialogues, face plays and gestures. (*5)2
1 1 - CORRIGAN, Timothy. Film and literature: An Introduction and Reader. Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall, 1998. 374 p. 2 5 - LEITCH, Thomas. Film Adaptation and its Discontents: From Gone With The Wind To The Passion Of The Christ. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 2007. 354 p.
24 PART II Film & Reality Comparison
Real Veronica Guerin Cate Blanchett as Veronica Guerin
25 1 Veronica Guerin – Film Details
Alternate Title: Chasing the Dragon: The Veronica Guerin Story Director: Joel Schumacher Writers: Carol Doyle, Mary Agnes Donoghue Runtime: 98 minutes Country: USA, Ireland, UK Language: English Company: Touchstone Pictures, Jerry Bruckheimer Films Release Date: 8 July 2003 (Ireland) Genre: Biography, Crime, Drama, Thriller
Cast: Cate Blanchett – Veronica Guerin Gerald McSorley – John Giligan (Factory John) Ciarán Hinds – John Traynor (Coach) Brenda Fricker – Bernie Guerin (Mother) Don Wycherley – Chris Mulligan (Policeman) Barry Barnes – Graham Turley (Husband) Simon O’Driscoll – Cathal Turley (Son) Garett Keogh – Tony Gregory (MP) Paudge Behan – Brian Meehan (Tosser) Alan Devine – Gerry Hutch (Monk) Gerry O’Brien – Martin Cahill (General)
Producer: Jerry Bruckheimer Music: Harry Gregson Williams Cinematography: Brendan Galvin
All the information above was taken from http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0312549/. (*11)
26 In 2003, a big budget Hollywood producer Jerry Bruckheimer (Pirates of the Carribean, The Rock) and a director Joel Schumacher (A Time to Kill, Tigerland) worked together to present a life of Irish reporter Veronica Guerin, whom they wanted to honour for her bravery and extraordinary effort to change the unbearable situation in Dublin in mid 90’s and also point out a danger of journalist’s work. The filmmakers casted Academy Award Winners Cate Blanchett, who is playing the lead character, and Brenda Fricker for a role of her mother, and the role of John Gilligan, the main antagonist, was offered to Academy Award nominee Gerald McSorley. The film gained several nominations and wins in Golden Globes, Empire Awards IFTA Awards and many others. (*11)1 The film is based on a true story of the life of Veronica Guerin. It starts on a day of her assassination on 26 June 1996, and then it returns two years backward into a time when Veronica Guerin was already working as a journalist for The Sunday Independent and started investigating a drug problem in Dublin and wrote about it. Her investigation pulled her into a dangerous criminal underworld and she faced various threats, which never stopped her. She was trying to find out who was the man on the top of the gangster’s hierarchy and finally, with help of her informers, her investigation brought her to John Gilligan, a dangerous and arrogant criminal who was capable of anything to protect himself and his property. Progressively, Veronica is being more and more motivated by the necessity and importance of the case, which absorbs her even more into her work. Veronica’s firmness and fearlessness eventually force John Gilligan to plan her assassination.
1 11 - “Veronica Guerin.” IMDb. 2009. 8 April 2009
27 2 Analysis of the Film Veronica Guerin (2003)
This chapter will describe the scenes, which shows the characteristics of Veronica Guerin. A number of dialogues will be included which will help us to analyze these scenes and decide how close are the happenings in them to the reality.
Scene I – At Naas Courthouse
This scene takes place on a day of Veronica’s assassination. She is now at Naas Courthouse, where she is defending herself in an effort not to lose her driving licence. Veronica is fined with almost 1200 parking tickets and 2 speeding tickets, which unfolds Veronica’s liking for adrenaline and her busy life, and also shows that she was not a saint person, but an ordinary human being. Veronica is trying to convince the Judge to keep her the driving licence.
Veronica: “I deserve to lose this case, Judge. That’s fair enough, you know. But if I can’t drive, I can’t do my job. I’m a journalist, you see, with the Sunday Independence.” Judge: “We all know who you are, Miss Guerin. That does not grant you immunity.”
Veronica was very famous at that time and her articles were very popular. Even the Judge in this scene has a newspaper with her article on his table. During her defending, we can notice how she is using her talent to influence people and make things work for her. A good listener can also notice a perfect Dublin accent. Cate Blanchett, who plays Veronica Guerin, researched the features of the real Veronica Guerin and presented it greatly in this film.
28 Scene II – The Death of Veronica Guerin
At the beginning of this scene, we can see several photographs of Veronica Guerin and her family, showing also Veronica playing soccer, which expresses the greatest hobby of hers. Then, she is cheerfully driving her red Opel Calibra, the same car that she was driving in real, and making phone calls to her mother, husband and a policeman, flourishing about the judgement which was only to pay £100 fine. According to a screenwriter, Carol Doyle, Veronica had several informers among policemen and detectives, but in the film there is only one fictional policeman, whom they named Chris Mulligan, and he impersonates all the informers. I agree with her argument that this step was logical, because the number of the characters would be increased extensively after including all her informers. In a few shots, the audience meets Veronica’s husband at work, which shows him truly as an owner of a construction company. Despite of the fact that her driving licence was nearly forfeited, Veronica is speeding again, which shows Veronica’s incorrigibility and love for adrenaline. Then, while she is staying on a crossroad, two men on a motorcycle stop next to her car, and one of them breaks the car’s window and the screen goes darker. Seing the film for the first time and not knowing the story of Veronica Guerin makes a viewer uncertain what just happened. Did she survived it or not? But we already know that this was the last moment of Veronica’s life and we can see how quickly and unexpectedly the assassination happened. The plot then takes us two years back and retrospectively shows Veronica’s chase for the criminals from the beginning. Showing the death of Veronica at the beginning of the film help us to perceive the story and the characters more carefully, because we can notice how and why the story eventually leads to this moment.
29 Scene III – The Squat
Veronica is now at the beginning of her investigation, and she is going to visit the squat, empty flats where children come together and take drugs. She is walking thru the horrible surrounding littered with needles and young children playing with them. From her expression and slowdown of her walking, we can see an unpleasant surprise and worries about the children. The film was taking in real locations of Dublin and Joel Schumacher, the director of the film, adds that they created the settings from the actual photographs in order to make the film as authentic as possible. Veronica is interviewing teenagers, asking them about their age, the drugs, and how do they get the money for the drugs. On her way out, Veronica meets criminals, who were recently in prison, now driving Mercedes, which annoys her, and this was in real another impulse which made Veronica write about it. After Veronica leaves the squat, Martin Cahill (the General) with his gang is coming to the scene, showing authentically the brutality of Cahill and his hate for traitors. We can hear crying for help and at the end of this brutal scene, there is a shot on the traitor’s body which is skinned from its knees down.
Scene IV – At Home
At the beginning of this scene, Veronica is arriving speedily home, because she is late for a lunch, which was in real also quite regular happening. We learn from this scene that the lunch was made by her husband, and that the immediate family is present and they spend time together, exactly as in real. Veronica is wearing a T shirt of Manchester United soccer club, which truly shows her as a fan of this club and generally her enthusiasm for soccer, which is
30 even more presented early when she runs out and starts playing it with children. Later in the night, she is kissing her son goodnight, which shows Veronica at this moment yet as a careful mother, and then she is talking to her husband about the things which she saw in the squat early the day and which she wants to write about. We can see Veronica’s concern for the children and feeling of responsibility to write about it and change it, because nobody else cares.
Veronica: “What a state, you know, on the street, there were needles everywhere. Right where the kids were playing.” Graham: “Jesus!” Veronica: “No, you should have seen these wankers, standing there with their new Mercedes.” […] “Nobody’s writing about it. Nobody cares. Somebody needs to get after these bastards. They’re making megabucks. That’s what I should be writing about.”
Scene V John Traynor
In this scene, Veronica is visiting John Traynor, her criminal informer, in his used car shop. Traynor is closing the shop and leaving, and Veronica is joining him, because she needs some information from him. During the following conversation, we might notice how is Veronica flirting and playing with Traynor and how she is insolent to him at the same time. Veronica’s self confidence, firmness and determination are expressed by her posture and certainty in her voice. Her ability to manipulate with people was Veronica’s prominent feature. We also learn that she knows that the shop is only a cover for his illegal activities and that he runs brothels not far from here.
31
Veronica: “You’re closing up early.” Traynor: “One of the benefits of being self employed.” Veronica: “You’re amazing, John. No, really, you’re a model of a profitability. How to succeed in business without any customers.” (laughing) Traynor: “I do well enough.” Veronica: “Yeah, well… There must be a few bob in those brothels there on Rathgar road. What they worth now, John?” Traynor: “You’re a dangerous little bitch, ain’t you?” Veronica: “Ah, well. Do my best. Buy us a drink? It’s a benefit of being self employed, John.”
Scene VI – At Martin Cahill’s
This scene presents Veronica’s unique method of gaining information, and that is the doorstepping. Veronica is approaching a front door of Cahill’s house, where she sees a woman sitting on the steps. The beginning of this scene changes a point of view from the third person to the first person, and we can see it through the eyes of Veronica. An effect of shaking camera, portraying somebody’s steps, is often used in documentaries in order to make the view more realistic. Veronica is trying to interview the woman, but she is going inside the house and closing the door. But this can not discourage Veronica from trying to get her interview. Her boldness in presented in this scene when she is going around the house, where she sees Cahill’s wife, and Veronica is immediately asking her about the drugs and why did her husband nail the man the other day. After not getting any information from her, Veronica is looking through the window and sees Martin Cahill and his wife’s sisters. Veronica’s tendency to get the information that she needs is multiplied when she is blackmailing Cahill with printing an article
32 about a rumour that he has kids with his wife’s sisters, if he does not tell her the names of the kids who sell drugs for him.
Scene VII – John Gilligan
This scene shows John Gilligan, the greatest antagonist to Veronica, reading Veronica’s article about John Traynor, which adverts to the fact that Traynor was an informer of hers. When Traynor comes to Gilligan’s horse ranch, Gilligan is asking him about Veronica and what did he say to her. His concern about her is obvious in the following warning.
Gilligan: “You know why I’m successful, Johnny? I live a guiet life. Nobody knows what I’m doing, and that’s very good for business. […] Remember this. If that bitch ever mentions my name, you’ll pay.”
Later in this scene, Gilligan is talking to Traynor about his debt to Martin Cahill, which he does not want to pay back. Instead of paying the money, he decides to send his men to kill Cahill and his gang. In Gilligan’s behaviour, we can see how brutal and arrogant he is and that he is capable of anything. The way Cahill is murdered in this scene is identical to the scene at the beginning of the film, in which Veronica was murdered. Those, who were not sure what exactly happened after the man broke the car’s window, might now assume that she was killed the same way as Cahill.
Scene VIII – Press Conference
In this scene, a chief of the police is announcing that IRA claims responsibility for the murder of Cahill, which really happened, but Veronica thinks that the murder was drug related.
33 Veronica shows her persuasion, straightness and also her insolence in the following reaction on the police statement.
Veronica: “Cahill’s family has stated that the General – and I quote – was not killed by the IRA, he was killed because someone saw how much money he was making and wanted to take over. Now, in your opinion, could the murder be drug related?” Chief of Police: “You can’t believe everything you hear, Miss Guerin.” Veronica: “Well, neither can you.”
After the conference, Veronica is speaking to Chris Mulligan, and she is criticizing the police for not doing anything, on what Mulligan takes a parking ticket from the windscreen of Veronica’s car with a return “Let’s sort out the petty criminals first.”, which shows Veronica’s incorrigibility.
Scene IX – The Funeral of Martin Cahill
At the funeral, we can see tens of people mourning for Cahill, which is, however, the first big difference between the film and the reality. At the real funeral, there were hundreds of people because Martin Cahill was very known and popular personality among the poor in Dublin. Veronica is again talking to Mulligan and they both look at present criminals and guessing who might be behind Cahill’s murder, which shows that Veronica never stopped working on the case. They are also talking about Gerry Hutch (the Monk) in the following dialogue.
Mulligan: “Look at Gerry Hutch there, all tearful. Or should I say the Monk?”
34 Veronica: “He’s not bad looking, for a monk.” Mulligan: “The thing about monks, though, is they’re celibate.” Veronica: “Supposedly.”
Here is Veronica referring to Hutch’s good looks and implicitly also to her former case of a bishop who made young woman pregnant and then escaped to South America. Veronica then recieves a phone call from Traynor, who is claiming that Hutch is behind the hit on Cahill. He is deliberately lying to her in order to protect Gilligan, his boss.
Scene X – False Article
After the funeral, Veronica is going to pay a visit to Gerry Hutch, whom she now suspects of the drug trade and the hit on Cahill. She is provoking him and telling him about what she heard.
Veronica: “I always like to go shopping after a funeral.” Hutch: “What are you doing here?” Veronica: “It’s looking bad for you. People say you ordered the hit on Cahill.” Hutch: “People can say what they like. I was out of the country at the time.”
In spite of Hutch’s claim, Veronica writes an article about him as a primary suspect, which provokes Tony Gregory, a member of parliament, who is visiting the newsroom of Sundance Independence and complaining about the article. Schumacher exlains that Gregory lived near the horrible neighbourhood and that he was one of a few who tried to change the situation in Dublin, but he did not like Veronica’s reckless method.
35 Veronica is later talking to the head of the newspaper, arguing that her source has never been wrong and that she did not name Hutch in her article. But we can see that she is starting to doubt of the information from Traynor.
Scene XI – The Club of Journalists
In this scene, Veronica and her colleagues are passing by a pub where journalists meet and discuss their issues. This scene refers to the real Veronica who did not want to go in the pub full of other journalists, because she knew that they did not like her and that they said about her that she had no journalistic experience, and that her sources were unreliable, and that is exactly what is Veronica saying to her colleagues in this scene. Her colleagues then enter the pub while Veronica is walking on and she sees a man watching a soccer match on TV. This scene shows Veronica’s ability to start a conversation with anybody and it also shows her as an expert at soccer when she is telling to the man about the career of Eric Cantona and that she actually met him, and the man is impressed by her knowledge. Suddenly, there is a breaking news on TV about a great robbery in Dublin, and the man is sure that the Monk did that. This is a moment when Veronica realizes, as mentioned in the theoretical part, that Hutch (the Monk) tricked her, when he told Veronica that he would meet her in a pub near the airport and while she was waiting for him, he did the robbery. Veronica is immediately asking the man a question:
Veronica: “Where would you hide three million quid?” The man: “How could you find any fun in hiding three million quid? Wouldn’t you be out of the town spending it like a mad thing, would you?” Veronica: “Yeah. That’s exactly right. Good night. Thanks.”
36 Scene XII – The First Serious Threat
At the beginning of this scene, despite the fact that it is already late at night, Veronica is sitting behind the table and working on the case. This truly shows that Veronica is becoming more and more wrapped up in her work, but when her son comes to her, Veronica stops working and she is embracing him and carrying him to bed, where she wants to read him a story, which shows how much she loves her son. All of a sudden, a shot is heard from her workroom and everybody is shocked. Veronica shows her fear through the facial expression and her worries about her son when she embosoms him and holds him closely. A hole in the workroom’s window suggests that a bullet was shot from outside.
Scene XIII – A Birthday Party
In this scene, the audience is invited to a birthday party of Cathal, the son of Veronica. Veronica is decorating a cake in a form of a soccer field, inclusive of the players, which once again shows her enthusiasm for a soccer and also a lead role in the family. Veronica’s brother, called Jimmy, is talking to her about the threat and how it affects the whole family.
Jimmy: “Ronnie. We’re all nervous. Ma’s nevous, I’m nervous. Even Graham. He just won’t say anything about it.”
In the last sentence, Jimmy refers to her husband who always supports her and never urges her to stop, even though he wishes her to. Veronica is arguing Jimmy with the former threats which she was experiencing during the previous bishop’s case, and she is also adding that the shooter made sure that she was not in the room at the time, so he meant only to scare her, not to hurt her. She is
37 completely carefree and reckless and she does not take the threat seriously. From the following shot it is evident how deeply is Veronica wrapped up in the investigation, when her son is showing her a new skateboard which he got as a present from Veronica and her husband, on what she completely forgot at the moment.
Cathal: “Ma, look!” Veronica: “Cathal, that’s great! Who gave you that?” Cathal: “You and dad.” Veronica: “....Yeah.”
At the end of this scene, there is a series of wonderful shots of Veronica and her mother. We can see worriless Veronica sitting on the grass and playing with a toy, while her worried mother is sitting on a bench and watching her. No word is needed to be spoken during these shots, because the emotions and apprehension for Veronica are evident in her mother’s eyes and decent face play.
Scene XIV – Late Night Work
At the beginning of this scene, Veronica’s husband is installing an alarm system, while Veronica is still working on the Monk’s case. From his gesture, it is obvious that her husband is concerned that she is working even so late, so he is telling her to go to bed. However, after Veronica asks him for a minute, he is upset and he is leaving the room. Veronica is promptly using her slyness and she is turning the radio on loud enough to make him come back and then she is trying to make him dance with her. In a while, their son is coming to the workroom and they all dance together. This scene is another example of Veronica’s ability of influencing people around her and making things work for her.
38 Scene XV – John Gilligan on Stage
Veronica is again talking to Mulligan, her police informer, because she needs his help. We can see how is Veronica pushing him to get her some reliable information on Gerry Hutch. The police investigation in real did not support Veronica’s theory that Hutch was in drug business, but it lead to John Gilligan, another criminal who was a little while ago released from prison, where he was taken for laundering £300.000 in Amsterdam’s casinos. These facts are presented by Mulligan to Veronica, and when she sees a photograph of Gilligan and Traynor together in the casino, she asks for the photograph and goes straight to Traynor to learn more about their relationship. Traynor denies knowing Gilligan even after seeing the photograph, and when Veronica leaves, he is calling Gilligan to inform him that Veronica’s investigation is leading her to him. In this scene, we learn more about Gilligan’s character. A moment before he recieves the phone call from Traynor, Gilligan is bragging about his property in front of his upper class guests. Traynor is then telling him about the photograph and that Veronica was asking about Gilligan’s activities. Gilligan is telling Traynor once again that if she mentions his name, he will pay. Gilligan then smashes the phone and curses like mad in the presence of his guests, which shows his impulsive and obscene character.
Scene XVI – The Second Serious Threat
In this scene, Veronica is late for a Christmas party, which happens often because of her hard working. But this time she is going to dearly pay for it. When she opens the door, a man with a helmet pushes her so strong that she falls on the floor, and he aims a weapon at her. The scene shows accurately the way it all
39 happened. The man is trying to shoot her in a head, however, his gun gets stuck and no shot is fired, but when he lowers it, the shot is fired to her leg and he runs away. Weeping Veronica then reaches for her mobile and calls for help.
Scene XVII – At Hospital
This scene shows precisely Veronica’s light minded dealing with a serious situation. Even though she is in danger and she was very close to death, she is complaining about a television, because she can not find any sports channel, but on all channels, there are only news about her incident. She is still thinking of her investigation, while her colleagues are trying to persuade her to stop and write about something else. When her husband enters the room, Veronica is immediately asking about their son. She is told that he is in safe with her mother, but in a short while she is asking again, which shows how unconcentrated she is at this moment. While Veronica is reading a newspaper, she is talking about Christmas Eve television programme, however, the real Christmas party happened in January, so this is another difference between the film and reality. Veronica is told by her husband that the bullet missed the artery and the bone, which saved her life, and we can see how worrying he is about her, especially when he sees that she is trying to act like nothing happened. But in the acting of Veronica it is obvious that she is unsure and confused, and when her husband is asking her whether she is going to stop, she is just holding her head, but she is not answering the question.
Scene XVIII – Letters for Criminals
At the beginning of this scene, incorrigible Veronica is leaving her house on crutches with letters for criminals in her hand, and
40 she wants to go by car. Her husband is taking her car keys to stop her. Here is another example of a dominance of Veronica over her husband and her ability to get anything she wants.
Veronica: “I know what I’m doing, Graham. They shot me cos I’m on the right track.” Graham: “Give me the keys, please.” (He takes it from her.) “Thank you.” Veronica: “Would you give me the keys?” Graham: “No. Look at the state of you.” Veronica: “Do you think I want to do this, do you? I don’t want to do it. I have to do it.” Graham: “Veronica, you’re a journalist. You write. You let the Gards look after this.” Veronica: “Oh, Graham, come off it. The Gards can’t do anything about it. They’ll get away with it. They always do.”
Not getting the keys from Graham does not stop Veronica, and she is trying to call a cab. Graham wants to be near her when she is so weakened, so he is taking her phone and going with her.
Graham: “Come on. Get in.” Veronica: “Who’s driving, then?” Graham: “You can’t drive with two good legs. How do you think I’m gonna let you drive with one?” Veronica: “Oh, that’s low, that is. You drive like an old granny.”
However, the location of this scene is changed. In real, Veronica went to visit the criminals straight from the hospital, but a director of the film says that they found this too unbelievable for the audience, although it was a truth, and so they decided to move this scene from the hospital in front of their house. Veronica is then
41 visiting Tommy Mulen, Fatso Mitchell, Brian Meehan, Gerry Hutch, and finally John Traynor and hands them the letters. We can also see a squad car, which shows truly the 24 hour police protection.
Scene XIX – At Tony Gregory’s Office
In this scene, Veronica is paying a visit to Tony Gregory, a member of parliament, in his office. He is wondering how she could get through the security, which shows that Veronica was always able to find a way wherever she wanted to get. She came to him to apologize and ask him for help. They are also talking about the libel law, which complicates the work of all journalists.
Gregory: “You call these guys the Viper, the Monk, the General. You glorify them. They’re not movie stars.” Veronica: “What? With respects, I’ve no option. I mean, I can’t name them. Your libel laws won’t let me. You know, journalists are going to jail for doing their job.”
Veronica is explaining him what she has found out and achieved in the past 18 months. Gregory does not like her method, but Veronica is using her tactic and offering him to use her articles to change the situation, and for an exchange, she is asking him to help her with getting Gilligan, who is her primary suspect now.
Scene XX – Cancelling the Police Protection
This short scene shows Veronica trying to get some information about Gilligan from her criminal informers, but they are unwilling to talk, because they are afraid of the police, who is protecting Veronica from a short distance. She is then coming to the policemen and telling them to leave her and cancel the
42 protection, because she can not work. This is another irresponsible step of Veronica which puts her life even more in jeopardy. We can also notice a little detail of Veronica’s character, and that is her smoking habit. This is, however, the only scene, in which we can see her smoking, even though she was a heavy smoker. Veronica is then searching through the files to find any Gilligan’s illegal assets. She uses Gregory’s acquitance to get an access to unavailable files, and as a former accountant, she is able to find irregularities in his accounting records. In a short shot, we can notice that she is being followed by Gilligan’s men in a van.
Scene XXI – “I am so close.”
This scene takes place at Veronica’s home late at night. Her husband is bringing her a cup of coffee, and in the following conversation, we can see how her work is absorbing her, how is she losing a notion of time, and also worries of her husband.
Veronica: “I’ll help you put Cathal to bed.” Graham: “Hey, he’s been asleep for an hour.” Veronica: “Of course. Don’t you ever just wanna keep him in the house? Not let him out ever?” Graham: “Yeah. But mostly I feel that way about you.” Veronica: “I’ve got him, Graham. I’ve got his name. I’m gonna get this Gilligan bastard. I am so close, you know. I’m this close. Do you trust me? Hmm, right? Don’t worry.” Graham: “Easy for you to say.”
We can also see that despite of his worries, her husband is always trying to stay on her side, support her and help her. It might seem that Veronica is becoming a bad mother who does not care about her son and family, but she feels that she is very close to
43 finish the investigation and get the criminals behind bars, and her work can change a lot and make many people’s lives better. That is why Veronica focuses on the work more than on her family, because she knows that she is doing it for her family, too.
Scene XXII The Third Serious Threat
This is the most shocking scene of the entire film, showing the first face to face meet of Veronica and John Gilligan. At the beginning, Veronica is driving speedily through the countryside and then she stops near a gateaway of Gilligan’s holding. She incidentally manages to drive in Gilligan’s ranch and parks her car near the front door of his house. Once again, we are experiencing Veronica’s unique method, the doorstepping, when she is ringing the bell and knocking the door as long as Gilligan opens it. With a perfect calm Veronica is introducing herself and asking Gilligan about his property and where he gets the money for it. Unexpectedly, Gilligan starts beating her brutally at her face, kicking her and pushing her back to her car, where he is tearing her blouse and asking her if she is wearing a wire. Awfully beaten, Veronica is leaving Gilligan’s property and heading to her mother. In real, Veronica was very seriously beaten exactly the way this brutal scene is showing, but the difference is, that she was not able to ask any question. Gilligan hated Veronica so much that in the moment when she introduced herself at his door, he started beating her, which is another example of his impulsive character.
Scene XXIII – The Phone Call
This scene shows Gilligan’s threating call to Veronica one day after the brutal attack on her. The following conversation is a verbatim copy of the real transcript from a recorder.
44
Veronica: “Yeah?” Gilligan: “This is John Gilligan. If you do one thing on me, if you go to the Gardai or write about me, I’m gonna kidnap your son, and I’m gonna ride him. I’m gonna shoot you. Do you understand what I’m saying to you? I’m gonna fucking kidnap your son and I’m gonna ride him, and then I’m gonna shoot you. I’m gonna fucking kill you.”
We can see how horrible she feels during the phone call and how much she is afraid at this moment. Immediately after the call, she is running to the bathroom because she is sick. Veronica now regrets that she visited Gilligan and she is really scared. When her husband comes to help her, she is asking him to promise no to say anybody that she was afraid, because that is what the criminals want and she does not want to give it to them. Graham swears that he will never say anything and that she was never afraid. However, here is another difference between the film and the reality. In reality, the phone call did not take place at Veronica’s house, but already at the office the previous day, while she was being photographed.
Scene XXIV – The Proposition
This scene takes place in a pub where John Traynor, who was sent by John Gilligan, meets Veronica, who is still in a terrible state after the attack. The same way as in real, Traynor is trying to defend Gilligan and explaining that he only overreacted and that he is sorry for what he did and said. Veronica now realizes the truth that it was Gilligan, who urged Traynor to tell her that Gerry Hutch was behind the murder of Martin Cahill, and she is now sure that Gilligan actually ordered the murder and let the IRA take credit for
45 it. Traynor is still pretending that he does not know anything about it, and he is also warning Veronica while it is still time.
Traynor: “I’m here because he wants this to end before things get any worse.” Veronica: “How can it get any worse?” Traynor: “Things can ALWAYS get worse, Veronica.”
Traynor then offers Veronica a huge amount of money if she does not press charges against Gilligan. However, Veronica is saying him that Gilligan can not buy her off and she is about to leave. This honest act of Veronica shows how much is she devoted to her job and that she wants to finish it at all costs. And here comes another true part, in which Traynor’s mistress is coming to the table and saying Veronica that it was Traynor who sent the man to shoot her. Veronica is then leaving even more disgusted of Traynor, because she can not understand his behaviour and she is very disappointed with him.
Scene XXV– Pressing Charges
Before this actual scene, we can see a few shots on Veronica’s way of dealing with stress. She is kicking a soccer ball in the backyard of her house, which was in reality what she did. The scene starts with Veronica writing the complaint against John Gilligan at police station. Then she is explaining her dealing on TV show, which is among others watched by Gilligan, and she is saying that she does not want the criminals to win and that is why she can not be stopped. Veronica’s speech enrages Gilligan who is cursing on her. Since her stay in hospital, Veronica was more and more using the media to promote her investigation and point out to the gangsters in order to get them into prison.
46 Scene XXVI – Remembrance of Veronica’s Childhood
At the beginning of this scene, Veronica is choosing a suit for the court, and her mother is helping her. Suddenly, her mother finds an old photograph of Veronica wearing a soccer dress and holding a soccer ball. The following dialogue gives us a closer look into Veronica’s childhood and her nature, which has not changed till this moment, and it also helps us to understand better her behaviour.
Mother: “Gosh! Look at you, always trying to be better than the boys. That reminds me, you know, of a day – I don’t know how old you were. You were out on the street playing football and the ball went over the wall into old man Clancy’s. Do you remember him? He was very dangerous man. Very violent. The boys did nothing, but you, bold as brass, you marched up those steps and you just knocked on his door.” Veronica: “Scared the bejasus out of me.” Mother: “You didn’t show it. That’s your thing, isn’t it? You don’t show your fear. You know, Veronica, sometimes it’s wiser to let the crazy old man keep the ball. It is. And sometimes it’s braver to just walk away.” Veronica: “Well, I got the ball back, didn’t I?” Mother: “You know exactly what I mean.”
After this dialogue, Veronica’s mother is disappointedly leaving the room, and Veronica is hanging the head and thinking about her mother’s words. She realizes the danger but it is obvious that nothing can stop her from going after Gilligan, and her life is inevitably drawing to a close.
47 Scene XXVII – The Last Appointment with John Traynor
This scene takes place one day before the murder of Veronica Guerin, which we know after Veronica is saying that she is going to the court because of the speeding charge the following day. Sharing this information with Traynor will eventually disserve her. The dialogue between Traynor and Veronica is accurate, because she was wearing a wire during their meet. The only inaccuracy is that in real, Veronica arranged the meet in a pub, whereas the scene takes place on the beach. Traynor is trying to make Veronica believe that he did not plan the shooting on her, and he hopes that Veronica called him because she changed her mind about Gilligan’s offer. But she is telling him, that she only needs some information for her new story. She is also telling him that she is sure that he is a drug dealer, because his brothels can not earn so much money to cover his cost. Here is a part of the dialogue, showing Veronica’s smart leading of the dialogue to get the kind of information she needs.
Veronica: “Who shot me, John?” Traynor: “You know as well as I do, Veronica.” Veronica: “Yeah. I need to hear it from you.” Traynor: “Gerry Hutch. [...] So why are you asking me all these questions? What’s the story about?” Veronica: “You.” Traynor: “Me?” Veronica: “Yeah. I’m going to say you’re a dealer, and I’ll name you, and I’ll quote you on Hutch.”
Traynor is trying to hinder her from writing about him, because his lies would ruin him, and he is once again recommending her to take Gilligan’s offer, because Gilligan will do anything to stay off the prison. But Veronica is telling him to let her
48 go, because he is being watched by the policemen and photographed by her photographer. The presence of the policemen indicates that Veronica learnt from her mistakes and secured herself, because she knew that Traynor would not like her decision.
Scene XXVIII – The Murder
This scene takes place on June 26, 1996, and shows the last moments of Veronica Guerin before her death. While the Scene II – The Death of Veronica Guerin focused only on Veronica herself, this scene shows the happening in detail with the extension of the immediate reactions of her colleagues and family. We can see Veronica leaving the Naas Courthouse and making the various phone calls, and then her being followed by gangsters in a van, while other gangsters, sitting on a motorcycle, are waiting for her beyond the town. She is driving on a highway and the gangsters on the motorcycle are closing in. When she stops on a crossroad, the gangsters stop next to her car, one of them breaks the car’s window and shoots six bullets to her. Just like in real, one of her police informers, here presented by Chris Mulligan, can hear the shooting in the phone. People are getting out of their cars and all in shock they’re heading toward the car with now dead body of Veronica Guerin. The following sad shots show the reactions of Veronica’s colleagues and family, who are all shocked by the unexpected incident, and they can not believe what they are hearing. Disappointment, sorrow and misery are apparent in the reactions of Veronica’s nearest family.
Scene XXIX – Consequences of the Murder
In this scene, the narrator apprises us of the events which happened after Veronica’s murder. First we can see anti drug
49 marches, but this time formed by thousands of people, who are dragging the dealers out of their houses. Then there is a shot of a parliament where the politicians are signing a new Constitution, which allows seizing the assets of suspected criminals by the newly formed Criminal Assets Bureau (CAB). Then the narrator specifies the accused criminals and their sentences. In a very short shot, there is John Traynor, who escaped to Portugal, watching the news about the death of Veronica Guerin, and we are familiar with the fact that he is fleeing from the justice, and that also his assets was seized by the CAB. The final shot shows John Gilligan in bonds and the narrator says that he was brought from England and sentenced 28 years imprisonment for drug trafficking.
Scene XXX – The Funeral
This final scene of the film shows truly that the funeral of late Veronica Guerin was visited by hundreds of people, including her family, friends, colleagues and even some politicians and criminals. Among others, a politician Tony Gregory can be seen in the scene, and also Gerry Hutch, the thief whom Veronica suspected of drug dealing. The shot of Veronica’s son kissing the coffin of his mother was inspired by a real photograph of the funeral, says Joel Schumacher, a director of this film. During the end credits we learn that: “Chris Mulligan is a fictional composite character based in part on several different people and certain events in which the character is depicted have been fictionalized for dramatic effect.”
50 3 Findings
In this chapter of the thesis, we will try to summarize the results of the analysis of the film with a help of Corrigan’s theory of adaptation.
3.1 Main Theme
Even though the film is based on actual events, the main theme is easily recognizable. A duel between the good and the evil is one of the most frequent theme used in films, and the film Veronica Guerin is not an exception. The character of Veronica Guerin stands on the side of the good whereas John Gilligan stands on the side of the evil. The filmmakers reliquished Veronica’s childhood and most of her life, and they focused only on the last two years of her life, the years when she was fighting the most dangerous criminals in Dublin only with a pen and a paper, which brought fame to her. This unequal struggle makes the film very dramatic and unique. The most important events are included and accurately presented.
3.2 Characters
In real, Veronica Guerin met naturally countless number of people, so the filmmakers had to reduce the number to about 15 characters, representing those who were the closest to her, who helped her, and the main antagonists. The features of Veronica Guerin are presented in detail, however, while comparing her character in the film to the real Veronica Guerin, it seems that the film character is presented more positively than the real Veronica. We learn from the film that Veronica was not only brave and fearless, but also reckless and incorrigible, but according to Emily
51 O’Reilly, Veronica was even more irresponsible and dangerous for her family. O’Reilly says that Veronica used to take her son on her meetings with her informers, sometimes even with the criminal informers, and exposed him to danger, which is never shown in the film. But the most important features of her character are presented correctly. The filmmakers showed also Veronica’s fancy to adrenaline in the scenes where she is speeding in her red Opel Calibra, the same car which Veronica was driving in real. They did not forget her late arrivals and also such details as her smoking habit, drinking lots of coffees and permanent use of a mobile. We also learn a little about Veronica’s early career and childhood, which is presented in memories of her mother (Scene XXVI Remembrance of Veronica’s Childhood) or during several dialogues in other scenes. Members of Veronica’s family are presented rather superficially. We can see that her mother always supports her, that her husband, an owner of a construction company, is also always on her side and even when he wishes her to stop, and he never forces her to do anything that she does not want to do, that her brother is worried about the family, because he can see the danger which Veronica refuses to accept, and her son who is always happy in the presence of his mother. Veronica’s superior role in the family and during her working is obvious in each scene. Accurately is shown the development of the character of Veronica during the film. At the beginning of her investigation, we can see that she tries to find as much information as possible, but still she deals with the case like with any other case. As time goes on, Veronica is getting more and more absorbed by the investigation and we can see how negatively is this perceived by the members of her family. A representative of the lead role, an Australian actress Cate Blanchett, spoke to Veronica’s family and friends and watched her interviews and listened to her recordings in order to be able to imitate the habits, voice and gestures of real Veronica as closely as
52 possible. Joel Schumacher, a director of the film, adds that Blanchett hired a pronunciation teacher who learnt her Dublin accent, and her great performance redounded to the film’s credit. The most important element is a graded relationship between Veronica and her main antagonist, presented by John Gilligan, who is characterized as a rude, arrogant and brutal criminal capable of anything to protect himself and his property. The characters of Veronica and Gilligan are very different, but they both share one same feature, and that is their unyieldingness. Veronica can not be stopped by anything to get Gilligan, while Gilligan is capable of anything to stop Veronica. This unequal struggle consequently leads to the assassination of Veronica. Characters of other criminals are presented very superficially. We learn only a little about Gerry Hutch, a thief who liked luxury, or Brian Meehan, who was known for his arrogant and improper behaviour, or Martin Cahill, a thief whose brutal practices are shown in the film, but who was also known for his “generosity” when he gave money and stolen valuable objects to the poors, which is, however, never shown in the film. John Traynor, Veronica’s criminal informer, is by contrast presented more complex. We learn that he has a weakness for Veronica and he likes to be seen with her in public places and for exchange he provides her with valuable information from the criminal underworld, which she then uses in her articles. We also learn about his brothels, money laundering and his used cars shop which he uses as a cover for his illegal assets, and mainly about his relationship with John Gilligan. Only a little we learn about other minor characters, such as Tony Gregory, a member of parliament, or the wives of Gilligan or Cahill. The only fictional character in the film is Chris Mulligan, a representative of Veronica’s police informer, who is a mixture of various police informers who in real helped Veronica during her investigation. The reasons for this step is explained at the end of
53 the film. Filmmakers needed to reduce the number of the informers and put him into various situations to make the film more dramatic.
3.3 Point of View
The audience can watch almost all the lenght of the film from the third person point of view, which helps to make a transparent insight into the events in the film, and which shows the filmmakers’ effort to take a portrait of the life of Veronica Guerin and the events in Dublin objectively. At the beginning of the film, the prologue is used to introduce the situation and conditions in Dublin, which helps us to understand it. The point of view changes from the third person to the first person in one scene (Scene VI – At Martin Cahill’s), where we can see the beginning of the scene from Veronica’s point of view. This violation may be used to catch viewer’s eyes and make the scene more dramatic and authentic. The use of the view from somebody’s eyes is often used in documentaries for the authenticity of the shots and the whole documentary. There is another type of point of view, and that is a flashback to Veronica’s childhood. It is not a typical flashback, which usually shows the past, but the childhood of Veronica is introduced by her mother while recollecting and telling a short story to Veronica. The audience learn more about Veronica’s character and especially the fact that her brave and tough character did not change after the years. The use of the remembrance was a purpose move which saved a lot of time of the film, and explained Veronica’s most important features. At the end of the film, another element is used to present new information, and that is the use of a narrator, who tells the consequences of Veronica’s death.
54 3.4 Narrative
The film starts with scenes showing the day of Veronica’s assassination and then the plot returns two years back to the time when she started her investigation of the drug problem in Dublin. This type of narrative is called a retrospective narrative. The filmmakers wanted to show the death of Veronica at the beginning of the film, because their intention was not making a thriller and then shock the audience at the end of the film, but they wanted only to show how did it all came to this tragic end. However, from the scene of her assassination (Scene II – The Death of Veronica Guerin) it might not be obvious whether she actually died or not. So those who misunderstand the end of this scene are finally shocked at the end of the film. The whole life of Veronica Guerin is reduced to the last two years of her life and the number of characters is reduced to about 15 in order to keep focus mainly on the complexity of Veronica’s character and the most important events during the chase for John Gilligan. The fluency of the plot is disturbed only by the remembrance of Veronica’s childhood, which is used to explain her physic features. We can find a difference in a placing of the Christmas party, which happened in January but the film shows it in December, but this change does not influence the course of the plot. The plot itself follows correctly and comprehensibly the happenings of the real life of Veronica Guerin and evident is also the progress in the relationships between Veronica and her family, her informers and also John Gilligan.
3.5 Settings
The story of Veronica Guerin takes place in the city of Dublin, so in order to make the film as authentic as possible, the
55 filmmakers decided to shoot in real locations and they created the scenes from actual photographs from that time. Even the cast and crew are mostly the Irish, which makes the general impression more credible. From the analysis emerged that some scenes were moved from the actual locations to another, such as the Scene XVIII – Letters for Criminals, which changed its location from the hospital to Veronica’s house, or the Scene XXIII – The Phone Call, during which John Gilligan is threatening Veronica with kidnapping her son, and this scene took place in the newsroom, not inside of the house of Veronica, or the Scene XXVII – The Last Appointment with John Traynor, which was moved from its original location in a pub to the beach. But the most important aspect remains, and that is the fact that even the moved scenes take place in Dublin. This picture provides a respect and profundity to the story of Veronica Guerin. In the films like this, the city itself portrays another character of the film and plays an important role in it.
56 Conclusion
In this thesis I wanted to present an extraordinary woman, Veronica Guerin, who fought against a predominance of dangerous criminals in Dublin in mid 90’s. Her bravery and unyieldingness was inspiring and helped to change an unbearable situation in Dublin. The story of Veronica Guerin is a story of a woman of a modern period, who worked as a journalist and through her articles she wanted to point out a drug problem in Dublin and after deeper investigation, she wanted to find the man who was on the top of the crime organisation and get him behind bars. The fact that she never stepped back from them, and the more the criminals threatened her, the more she went after them, made her a heroine not only in Ireland but in the whole world of journalism. Veronica’s power was in her persistence to go for her goal, and never stop. Her goal was such important not only for her career, but also for the whole country, that nothing but death could stop her. Unfortunately, the violent death was eventually what happened to her. On her grave, there is a inscription: “Be Not Afraid”. In the practical part, I tried to analyze a film Veronica Guerin, directed by Joel Schumacher, which portrayals the last two years of the life of Veronica Guerin, during which she was at the top of the career and she was investigating the drug problem in Dublin. My aim was to find out to what extend were the filmmakers successful in portraying the character of Veronica Guerin, and other elements of the film, which help them make the film as authentic as possible. I used Corrigan’s theory of film adaptation, which consists in dividing the film into its elements and during the analysis dealing with each element to make a final conclusion. The main part was focused on the main characters and their relationships and development during the film, but other elements of the film, such as the main theme, point of view, narrative, and settings were also
57 analyzed and compared with the reality. The main theme of the story is a duel between the good and the evil. The good is represented by Veronica Guerin, while the evil is represented by John Gilligan. Their struggle and unyieldingness make the story very tense and dramatic. The number of the characters was reduced to about 15 of those who were the most important in her life or who played important roles during the investigation. A character of Chris Mulligan, a police informer, was created in order to reduce the number of her police sources and make the story more dramatic. The film is narrated retrospectively from the third person’s point of view. Only one scene shows the situation from Veronica’s point of view, in other words from the first person’s point of view, with an effect of shaking camera, which is often used in film documentaries and it provides more realistic illustration of the happenings. The unique atmosphere provides the city of Dublin, which real locations were used while shooting the film. The city itself helps to create more authentic and credible visage and atmosphere of the film. From the analysis and comparing we can conclude that the filmmakers and principal actress made a large research of Veronica’s life to make the film as credible as possible. The audience can notice many details portraying Veronica’s character. We learn about her habits (smoking, late arrivals, liking for adrenaline), also a little about the family members, about her job (that she did not work in the office, but rather from her home, in her car and on her mobile), and also about her unique technique of interrogation, the doorstepping, and the situation in Dublin in mid 90’s with the brutality of local criminals. Even though the film shows only the last two years of the life of Veronica Guerin, the audience also learn several details about her chidhood or the preceeding career during the dialogues. Very accurately are shown the last moments of the life of Veronica Guerin. Two different
58 scenes, one at the beginning and the other at the end of the film show the assassination and the consequences. The analysis of the film also shows the responsibility which the filmmakers held while making the film. They changed only a few details (moving a scene from one place to another, creating or omiting of characters) to make the film more interesting and watchable for the audience, but an absolute majority of the elements show the story authentically. The filmmakers even used the real transcripts and recordings of dialogues between Veronica and her informers or other people. The film explains the story of Veronica Guerin, including its causes and consequences clearly and comprehensibly. The main message of this film is to honour Veronica Guerin and her family.
59 Summary
This bachelor thesis takes a closer look into the life of Veronica Guerin, an Irish investigative reporter who wrote about drug problem in Dublin and its criminal underworld. She was threatened by the gangsters but the only thing which could stop her was an assassination on her by those criminals. The theoretical part also deals with a history and development of a drug problem in Dublin. The main chapter describes a career of Veronica Guerin and her investigation of the drug problem. Veronica was searching for the head of the criminal organisation and after long months of searching, she eventually found him in a person of John Gilligan, a brutal and arrogant criminal who was capable of anything to protect himself and his assets. However, Veronica was also persistent in trying to get Gilligan into prison, but at the end of this unequal struggle of one woman against the whole organization of the criminals, was Veronica Guerin finally murdered. Her death consequently compelled the Government to change the Constitution and establish a special institution called the Criminal Assets Bureau (CAB), which seized the assets of the criminals. The theoretical part also presents different models of adaptation and its use during a comparing of literature and film. For the analysis of the film about Veronica Guerin was used Corrigan’s theory of adaptation. The practical part deals with an analysis of the film Veronica Guerin, directed by Joel Schumacher. Scenes, in which we can see the character of Veronica Guerin, were described and analyzed and then the individual elements of the film, such as the main theme, characters, point of view, narrative and settings were analyzed and compared to the real life of Veronica Guerin and the real events. From the analysis of the film emerged that the filmmakers made a thorough preparation and a perfect study of a history to transfer the life of Veronica Guerin on a big screen. During the
60 shooting of the film, the filmmakers tried to make a perfect picture of the atmosphere and the main characters by making the film in the areas where the real Veronica Guerin lived. Cate Blanchett, the representative of the main character, learnt Dublin accent to make the character as close to the real Veronica Guerin as possible. Guerin’s determination and firmness is perfectly shown in Blanchett’s performance.
61 Resumé
Tato bakalářská práce nahlíží do života Veroniky Guerinové, irské investigativní novinářky, která psala články o drogovém problému v Dublinu a jeho kriminálním podsvětí. Bylo ji vyhrožováno gangstery, ale jediná věc, která ji dokázala zastavit, byla úkladná vražda těmito zločinci. Teoretická část také jedná o historii a vývoji drogového problému v Dublinu. Hlavní část ovšem popisuje kariéru Veroniky Guerinové a její vyšetřování drogového problému. Veronika pátrala po bosovi zločinecké organizace a po dlouhých měsících pátrání jej nakonec objevila v osobě Johna Gilligana, brutálního a arogantního zločince, který byl schopný čehokoliv jen, aby ochránil sebe a svůj majetek. Jenomže Veronika byla taktéž vytrvalá v tom, aby jej dostala za mříže, ale na konci tohoto nerovném boji, ve kterém na jedné straně stála jedna žena proti celé organizaci zločinců, byla Veronika Guerinová nakonec zavražděna. Její smrt následně přinutila vládu změnit ústavu a založit speciální organizaci nazvanou Criminal Assets Bureau (CAB), která měla za úkol vyhledat a zabavit majetek zločinců. Teoretická část také ukazuje modely adaptace a jejich použití při srovnávání literatury s filmem. Pro analýzu filmu o Veronice Guerinové byla užita Corriganova teorie adaptace. Praktická část se zabývá analýzou filmu Veronica Guerin v režii Joela Schumachera. Scény, ve kterých můžeme vidět postavu Veroniky Guerinové, byly popsány a zanalyzovány a poté byly jednotlivé elementy filmu, jako hlavní téma, postavy, úhel pohledu, vyprávění a scéna zanalyzovány a srovnány se skutečným životem Veroniky Guerinové a se skutečnými událostmi. Z analýzy filmu vyplývá, že filmový tvůrci uskutečnili důkladnou přípravu a perfektní nastudování historie k tomu, aby přenesli život Veroniky Guerinové na filmové plátno. Během natáčení filmu se tvůrci pokoušeli vytvořit dokonalý obraz místní
62 atmosféry a hlavních postav tím, že tento film natáčeli v místech, kde žila skutečná Veronika Guerinová. Představitelka hlavní postavy Cate Blanchettová se dokonce naučila dublinský přízvuk, aby ztvárnila tuto postavu co nejvěrněji skutečné Veronice Guerinové. Odhodlání a neústupnost Veroniky Guerinové jsou v hereckém výkonu Cate Blanchettové dokonale ztvárněny.
63 Bibliography:
Book Sources:
1) CORRIGAN, Timothy. Film and literature: An Introduction and Reader . Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice Hall, 1998. 374 p. 2) DUDLEY, Andrew. Concepts in Film Theory . Oxford University Press, 1984. 256 p. 3) HARRINGTON, John. Film and/as Literature . Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice Hall, 1977. 364 p. 4) HUTCHEON, Linda. A Theory of Adaptation . London, U.K.: Routledge, 2006. 256 p. 5) LEITCH, Thomas. Film Adaptation and its Discontents: From Gone With The Wind To The Passion Of The Christ . Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 2007. 354 p. 6) O’REILLY, Emily. Veronica Guerin: The Life and Death of a Crime Reporter . London: Vintage, 1998. 190 p. 7) WAGNER, Geoffrey. The Novel and the Cinema . Rutherford, N.J.: Fairleigh Dickinson University Press, 1975. 394 p. 8) WOODHULL, Nancy. Journalists in Peril: Media Studies Series . New Jersey: Transaction Publishers, 1998. 178 p.
Internet Sources:
9) “Biography: Veronica Guerin.” Answers . 2009. 8 April 2009
64 12) “Veronica Guerin: Production Information.” Movieweb . 2009. 8 April 2009
DVD Source:
Veronica Guerin . Dir. Joel Schumacher. Perf. Cate Blanchett, Gerard McSorley, Ciarán Hinds, Brenda Fricker. 2003. DVD. Touchstone, Jerry Bruckheimer Films, 2004.
13) Audiocommentary by a director Joel Schumacher, DVD 14) Audiocommentary by a screenwriter Carol Doyle, DVD 15) Audiocommentary by a screenwriter Mary A. Donoghue, DVD
Additional Book Sources:
Fuller, Osgood E. Brave Men and Women: Their struggles failures and triumphs. Lititz: BiblioBazaar, 2007. 478 p. Menzel, Marianne. Dcery Eviny: Příběhy slavných žen. Mnichov: International Publishing, 1998. 240 p.
Additional Interner Sources:
Berardinelli, James. “Veronica Guerin.” Reelviews . 2003. 8 Apr 2009
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