Amelie director \'disgusted\' by plans for Broadway musical

The Café des Deux Moulins in Paris, where scenes from the film Amelie were shot Paris – Arab Today The director of Amelie has said he is \"disgusted\" by plans to turn the hit French movie into a Broadway musical, but sold the rights anyway to support a charity .
Jean-Pierre Jeunet said he hated Broadway with a passion and had a horror of musicals, but had finally decided to sell and use the proceeds to fund medical treatment for children.
\"I hate Broadway. I think it is the very incarnation of tackiness,\" said the acclaimed French director in a radio interview.
\"For a long time I resisted, I turned down every offer. But 10 years later, there\'s a bit of a crisis. I support an organisation called Mecenat Chirurgie Cardiac (Heart Surgery Patronage). It costs 10,000 euros to save a child, I have already helped to save a good dozen children, and then I thought this could be an opportunity to save more,\" he said.

Jeunet said this made him suppress his qualms about the project, despite a \"profound disgust\" for musical comedy.
\"I can tell you that I will not go to see it, I don\'t even want to hear about it, I won\'t listen to what they do, but if it brings in some money, well maybe I can save a few lives, and that\'s the only reason I accepted,\" he added.
The 2001 hit French film, beloved by audiences at home and abroad, will be adapted for Broadway by the American composer Dan Messe.
Few other details have emerged on the stage version of Jean-Pierre Jeunet\'s internationally acclaimed film, which cast a nostalgic eye on contemporary Paris and catapulted actress Audrey Tautou to stardom.
\"So not the best kept secret, but still I\'m happy to announce that I\'ve been commissioned to adapt the film Amelie for Broadway,\" Messe wrote on his band Hem\'s Facebook page, after several leaks in the trade press.
Messe will collaborate with playwright Craig Lucas and composer Nathan Tysen on the adaptation, according to the post.
The film, which sold 8.6 million tickets in France and earned $152 million worldwide, tells the story of a shy waitress who sets out from Paris\'s Montmartre neighborhood on a mission to make others happy.
Amelie won four Cesar Awards in France and was nominated for five Oscars, including best foreign language film, although it went home empty-handed.

Source: AFP