A new film adaptation of Traumnovelle, the novella that inspired Stanley Kubrick‘s Eyes Wide Shut, is set to be released worldwide.
New Zealand distribution company Black Mandala has acquired the rights to the English-language adaptation of Arthur Schnitzler’s 1926 novella. Florian Frerichs (The Last Supper) directs the German-produced film.
The neo-noir thriller stars Nikolai Kinski, son of legendary German actor Klaus Kinski, and Laurine Price in the lead roles, with a supporting cast including Detlev Buck, Nora Islei, Bruno Eyron and Sharon Kovacs.
As per the synopsis, the film follows Jakob, “a doctor, husband and intellectual in Berlin whose life changes when he embarks on a night-time journey through the city. After encounters in Berlin’s erotic underground and a mysterious masked opera ball, he must confront questions about love and longing in a world of illusion and twilight.”
The film has launched in German theatres on 60 screens, with a reported budget over €1 million (£837,000.00). With Black Mandala now acquiring the rights, the movie is set to be released worldwide as one of the distributor’s leading titles of the year.
“Traumnovelle is a genre mix of comedy, eroticism, horror and thriller. The sexually charged neo-noir thriller captivates the audience with a world full of dreams and fantasies, but also encourages critical reflection on moral abysses,” said Frerichs in a statement (via Variety).
“We want the audience to be enriched by the experience. Our film should entertain them visually, intellectually and dramatically. We want them to leave with the feeling of being part of something very special,” he added.
Last year, Nicole Kidman said that she was cast in Kubrick’s Eyes Wide Shut because of her “provocative nature”.
The 1999 psychological drama – which itself was inspired by Traumnovelle – was Kubrick’s last film, coming to the silver screen just a few months after his death. Starring Kidman opposite her then-husband Tom Cruise, the film told the story of the fallout of Kidman’s character Alice revealing to her husband (Cruise) that she had contemplated having an affair the year before.