"Nick Cave claims that at least four different production companies have tried to turn his frequently hilarious, always disturbing, sex-filled novel The Death of Bunny Munro into a film or TV show in the 16 years since its release. The problem? No one would play the character! he says, sitting, impeccably suited as always, in a room at London's Corinthia Hotel. As it turns out, the material was just waiting for the right actor. Step up Matt Smith to play the titular sex-addicted travelling makeup salesman."
"It's not surprising that it ended up being Smith. Since his Doctor Who days, he has tended to pick roles that trend slightly twisted and the role of Bunny, who in Cave's book is depicted as a borderline animalistic misogynist who sweats pure ethanol, fits the bill entirely. I think it's important to tell stories that feel challenging and difficult and polarising, and I thought this would be all of those things, Smith says animatedly, clad in head-to-toe black in contrast with Bunny's rakish suit. But actually, at its heart, it's about a father and son, and it's really beautiful."
"First published in 2009 after initially being written as a film script for Australian director John Hillcoat The Death of Bunny Munro follows a sex-obsessed salesman who, after driving his wife to suicide through his constant infidelity, kidnaps his bookish son (played brilliantly by Rafael Mathe) when social services attempt to take him away, and brings him on a surreal road trip around Sussex."
"The book is defined by Bunny's shocking inner monologue and seemingly amoral view of the world; the Sky adaptation, directed by Isabella Eklof and written by Pete Jackson, presents a slightly toned-down take. A lot of the sex is conveyed through sound and dialogue; some moments from the book, such as Bunny's rape of a woman who is under the influence of heroin a scene for which Cave was nominated for the Bad Sex award are implied rather than depicted in lurid detail."
Nick Cave's The Death of Bunny Munro centers on Bunny, a sex-addicted travelling makeup salesman whose infidelity drives his wife to suicide and who then kidnaps his bookish son as social services intervene. The narrative is driven by Bunny's shocking inner monologue and amoral perspective, producing darkly comic and disturbing moments. Multiple production attempts failed over 16 years until Matt Smith assumed the role. The Sky adaptation, directed by Isabella Eklof and written by Pete Jackson, moderates explicit content by implying sexual violence through sound and dialogue while foregrounding the father–son dynamic.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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