Needles, haystacks and French cooking

If I had to describe this blog in one word, it would be unfilmable, so I'm not surprised Field Notes wasn't the first blog to be made into a movie. Nor am I particularly surprised that Julie Powell's The Julie/Julia Project would be the lucky one, not because I knew and loved it before it was adapted -- like much of the world, I'd never heard of it -- but because why not? It's engagingly written and it has a good hook: Julie Powell sets out to cook all 536 recipes in Mastering the art of French Cooking in 365 days (one might call that a gimmick, but one doesn't stick with a mere gimmick for a year solid, come rain or shine). Interleave the story of Powell writing the blog and getting published with Child's story of getting her own book published, throw in a more than capable ensemble cast, and you've got yourself a nice little movie.

Still, why that particular blog? Loads of other blogs have made it to print and plenty depict more dramatic events and colorful characters. Some, if memory serves, were even created with the express purpose of producing a screenplay. One explanation leaps out: A good dose of sheer dumb luck.

That's not a criticism. It's just the lay of the land. There are a huge number of blogs out there. There are a lot of good blogs out there, many, many more than could be put into print by a major publisher, much less filmed. Connecting any particular one up with a major studio is asking to find a particular needle in a very large haystack full of other needles. Just go with me on the image, OK? Getting some blog filmed is easier: It's asking to pick any needle out of a haystack full of ... well something like that.

Yes, I did watch (a good portion of) Julie and Julia. What can I say, given my previous selections? I was told there were car chases involved.