Julia Jackman talks adapting a graphic novel for ‘100 Nights of Hero’

L-R Maika Monroe and Emma Corin in Nights of Hero Photo provided by Independent Film Company s Bonus Track Julia Jackman s directorial debut is a teen romance rooted in the types of romantic movie tropes we re all familiar with But if Bonus Track is a little tropey it s also undeniably sweet forefronting a queer relationship and handling that tenuous connection with care Jackman s latest film Nights of Hero also features a queer romance but in an circumstances far removed from the familiar halls of high school Based on the graphic novel The One Hundred Nights of Hero by Isabel Greenberg the film takes place in a historical-adjacent world that feels just a tick or two off from our own The costumes and the production design are outlandish and fantastical The evil machinations of the patriarchy feel unfortunately all too recognizable The lately married Cherry Maika Monroe has one job to have children That s a little hard though when her husband Jerome Amir El-Masry refuses to touch her preferring to carouse around with his friends One day Jerome announces he is leaving for nights and Cherry is left to fend for herself with only her beloved maid Hero Emma Corin and the seductively untrustworthy Manfred Nicholas Galitzine for company Unbeknownst to Cherry Jerome has made a bet with Manfred If Manfred can manage to get Cherry into bed with him during one of those nights he gets Jerome s castle and everything in it When Jackman originally read Greenberg s novel she was struck by the a great number of multitudes the story contained She discovered it as playful as it was angry and as familiar as it was distant Its absurdity and humor kept her immersed in the world Greenberg created despite its darkness I was really struck by the fact that it felt quite relevant to our world but I didn t realize how much I d been craving something that also felt like it was transporting you away from the world she announced And travel you it does One of the calling cards for Nights of Hero is its production design and costuming led by Sofia Sacomani and Susie Coulthard respectively It s got the feel of a period piece but with more elaborate flair abstract rather than rooted in any sort of historical era The costumes and the hats especially which Jackman mentioned come directly from the graphic novel feel representative of every character s role For Cherry in particular it s almost as if she shifts slightly depending on which hat she dons that day The hats felt so much a part of the roles that people were expected to play Jackman declared There was something so camp and theatrical about these hats They were a real gateway for me into specific flamboyant silliness in the costumes rather than traditional Known for horror films like Longlegs and It Follows Cherry is an compelling role for Monroe to take on But Jackman requested her for exactly that reason While Nights of Hero is billed as a fantasy romance for Cherry the particulars of the plot feel more like a thriller If she doesn t have a child her life is over If she gives into Manfred s wiles her life is over If she embarks on a new romantic journey with Hero her life is still over She s living in a very heightened version of what we experience as young women and teenagers Jackman revealed I remember very vividly feeling like I was in a minefield Don t be a tease but don t lead people on but don t be easy There was this feeling that there was promising ruin around every corner LONDON ENGLAND OCTOBER Director Julia Jackman poses for a portrait session at the Afternoon Filmmaker Teas during the th BFI London Film Festival at the Sea Containers London on October in London England Photo by Shane Anthony Sinclair Getty Images for BFI Jackman thought that Monroe would be able to also lend humanity to a woman in Cherry s impossible situation playing the horror of it but infusing the character with a sense of humor and warmth at the same time That sense of calm comes out in Monroe s performance mainly when Cherry is around Hero Despite all of Cherry s apparent naivety she is aware of the delicate nature of her situation But when Cherry and Hero are alone together the tension leaks from Cherry s features as if she can eventually be herself She s not an idiot Jackman announced She is a smart woman who just hasn t been encouraged to be in touch with herself at all One of the core themes of Nights of Hero lies in the literal power of storytelling In a world where women must bear children but are not taught to read or write passing down stories to one another becomes a way of maintaining power Those stories necessarily evolve as time passes on molding to fit the world they now exist in That s not so different from Jackman s experience writing the script The first draft was very true to Greenberg s novel But when Jackman revisited it later on she had thought a little harder about what she considered the heart of the story was and what core tenets she desired to preserve while still recognizing that the story would be materializing in a different time and a different medium a film in as opposed to a graphic novel in There s an angry and sincere message at the end In the graphic novel it struck me that Isabel was funny and playful and absurd and then it gives way to certain sort of grief and anger that I think a lot of people feel but especially I think women can identify with Jackman commented We all have our own sources of disappointment and anger at the way that we are treated or the boxes that we re put in as well as the joys In addition to that tone and specific feminine anger the love story was the preponderance critical thing While Nights of Hero does feature an attraction between Cherry and Manfred the real romance develops between Cherry and Hero Seeing a love story like that where two people are really an oasis for each other I think especially in a queer love story where you re able to be a source of calm and relaxation even when there s the tension of desire and yearning I really requested to hold onto that Jackman disclosed Nicholas Galitzine and Maika Monroe in Nights of Hero Photo courtesy of Matthew Towers There s a throughline of attraction in Nights of Hero that Jackman disclosed is a little bit different from Greenberg s novel According to Jackman Manfred is a little more disgusting in the book which admittedly is a bit tough to achieve when you cast Galitzine in the role Jackman reported that Galitzine was in the middle of training for his role as He-Man in the upcoming Masters of the Universe film around the time of shooting which resulted in more changes I incorporated it into Manfred s character Jackman declared I had him doing intense push-ups alone in his room and getting that animal physicality and intensity to him The fluidity of attraction is ever present in Nights of Hero a little bit of flirting coming into the equation no matter which two people are involved in the conversation Despite this being a very patriarchal world where relationships must be between cishet men and women when Manfred and Jerome first make their bet over Cherry you almost feel as though they re about to seal it with a kiss Jackman commented the inspiration for that quality came from observing the interactions between men in more seemingly macho cultures She brought up bar civilization in Italy as an example full of very handsome men who are ostensibly womanizers but seem to love each other more than the women they re getting with I think in repressed worlds people are often very frustrated Jackman noted And I think attraction is more fluid than people would like to admit sometimes The post Julia Jackman talks adapting a graphic novel for Nights of Hero appeared first on Rough Draft Atlanta