Here’s a piece on the HBO film from Mother Jones that talks about the filmmakers’ investments in the novel and in revising it. And here’s a piece that talks about the tabloid infrastructure that the novel critiques, including a look at the real-life case that, in part, inspired Bigger’s character.
We’ll talk about this in class, but Wright clearly draws from the blockbuster King Kong, released in 1933, seven years prior to Native Son, in the end of Part II. “Kill that black ape!” resonates strongly with this scene, as does the theme of the savage, animalistic “perpetrator” and the defenseless white woman, surrounded by plenty of white guys armed to the teeth:
Here’s the trailer for the film Bigger and the aptly named Jack watch in Part I:
https://archive.org/details/TraderHornTrailer
Lots to talk about here; I’ll let the trailer speak for itself and we can unpack it in class!
