The last time the Coen brothers adapted a work by a Pulitzer Prize-winning author, the results spoke for themselves in No Country for Old Men. This time, the siblings are mining similar territory via Michael Chabon's recent novel The Yiddish Policeman's Union.
The book takes place in an alternate reality where the government plans on turning the Jewish settlement Sitka, Alaska over to Alaskan natives. Since this was Chabon's take on older pulp murder mysteries, the focus of the work is on the noir-esque search for someone who killed a chess prodigy who may in fact be the messiah. The feature will be produced by the Coens and Paul Rudin, who worked on the first film version of Chabon's work in Wonder Boys.
Chabon seems like a perfect match for the Coens, given both of their loves for bringing artistic interpretations of "trash" genres. The Coens also have a predilection for exploring various cultures, though this will be the first time for them to really take on their own Jewish heritage.
The film is still a ways off at this point, as the Coens' Burn After Reading will be out later this year, and the brothers are currently prepping for A Serious Man.
Related links:
Paste: No Country for Old Men
Paste: Coens announce a pair of films
MichaelChabon.com
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