Okay, I was just reading #31,
The Conspiracy (the one where Jake's Grandpa G. dies), and when I got to the transition from chapter 22 to 23, I instantly thought of the perfect visual for it! Let me back up a bit: I've been re-reading the series from the beginning, taking special care to really think hard about what would be adapted to the screen if each book was fully and accurately put to the screen for a TV show. This includes deciding whether in-book narration would be voiced-over by that book's character or shown through imagery.
First, here is the quote from the book to give you context. Tom and Jake are in the attic bedroom of Grandpa G.'s cabin, and Jake was looking through Grandpa G.'s World War II chest. Jake finds old medals, a
silver star and a
purple heart, and Tom finds their grandpa's Nazi dagger that he (probably) retreived from a dead German soldier. Jake gets thinking about soldiers in World War II and how they would be huddled in their foxholes and trenches, and recalls reading about how both the English-speakers (Brits and Americans) and the Germans sang "Silent Night" on Christmas Eve together. Jake suspects that Tom's Yeerk may use the knife on Steve to kill him.
I said, "Sometimes even the good guys do bad things. Doesn't mean there's no difference between good and evil."
"Good and evil," he said with a tired smile. "Strong and weak. That's the reality. Winners and losers."
"The knife, Tom," I said.
He laid it back in the footlocker.
He turned out the light. We crawled into our respective bunks. Our separate foxholes.
(CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE)
I was cold.
Freezing.
Night.
My feet were solid blocks of ice despite the filthy rags I'd wrapped around my torn boots. My fingers were numb, stiffly clutching my M-1 rifle.
I had a clip and a half of ammo. One grenade. If the Germans came it would be over fast.
Right after I read that, I got the perfect mental image of what that would look like on screen, since I had already been picturing things in my mind with a "TV/film" mental filter. I'll write it in screenplay/teleplay form, as best as I can here:
INT. CABIN ATTIC - NIGHT
Tom and Jake are in the cabin's small, dark attic. There is a bed at either end of the attic, with a window for each bed.
Skipping a bit here...
JAKE:
-->Sometimes even the good guys do bad things. Doesn't mean there's no difference between good and evil.
TOM:
-->Good and evil. [smiles tiredly] Strong and weak. That's the reality. Winners and losers.
JAKE:
-->The knife, Tom.
After a brief hesitation, Tom puts the knife back in the footlocker. He turns out the light, and he and Jake crawl into their beds on either side of the attic. Jake's goes to the bed on the left, and Tom goes to the one on the right. WIDE SHOT showing the entire attic and the separation between the two boys. FADE TO:
EXT. COUNTRYSIDE - NIGHT
SUBTITLE: "CHRISTMAS, WORLD WAR II"
There is snow on the ground, with two foxholes/TRENCHES visible on either side of the screen. In Jake's dream, it is World War II and he wears dirty rags around his torn boots. He grips onto his M1 Garand rifle. He looks miserable in the cold. Some COUGHING is heard from offscreen.
JAKE (V.O.):
-->I heard a racking cough from the next foxhole. Matthews. He was from Arkansas. Alabama. One of those places. A southern boy. A kid, one of the last replacements to make it to our unit.
JAKE:
-->[hoarse whisper] Hey, kid. Goose or ham?
MATTHEWS:
-->[coughs] What? [coughs again]
JAKE:
-->Back home, what does your mom cook for Christmas dinner? Goose or ham?
Matthews pauses for a few seconds and then says
MATTHEWS:
-->Ham.
I could go on, and I'd love to, but you get the idea. What do you think of this adaptation idea? Specifically:
The dark attic at night with two beds on either side of the screen fades into a view of a WWII battlefield at night with foxholes on either side of the screen. This is known as a "
Match cut".
