One of the more intriguing projects Michel Gondry attached himself to in recent years was an adaptation of Philip K. Dick‘s “Ubik.” The metaphysical story follows a man who works at an anti-psi security firm that blocks telepathic spying and other sorts of supernatural trickery. When the company is hired to tackle a job on the Moon, things don’t go as planned. And while we hadn’t heard much about the movie in some time, last year Gondry said, “We are still at the very beginning. It’s an amazing story. It’s a very complicated story from a very prominent book so I am taking it slow.”
The writer/director has told French outlet Telerama (via Jeux Actu), that he is no longer working on the project. We’ll spare you a crappy Google Translate update, but essentially he feels the book is too literary to adapt properly, and he can’t find a way into a big screen adaptation. And while we’re disappointed, you have to admire Gondry’s realization that perhaps he’s not the best person for the material, or that perhaps the book might just work better on the page.
But no matter, he’s already at work on his next film aiming to shoot this summer. Last month, he revealed only that it was about “two teenagers on the run,” but chatting with Tel Quel recently he added a few more details. “It is the story of two teenagers isolated from the rest of society because they’re a bit outdated,” he said. “To run away from their boring lives, they make a car to travel through France.” And we’re sure that car will be pretty wacky.
And oh, the title? “Microbes et gasoil,” which translates to “microbes and diesel,” which we presume will have something to do with that aforementioned home-built car.
No word yet on casting or other info about the film, but hopefully more word arrives soon.
