Director
Anthony Minghella, CBE, a former university teacher of medieval theatre, is a scholarly prose writer. He has scripted many stage plays, including 'Child's Play,' 'Whale Music' and 'Made in Bangkok'. In 1984 he was voted as Most Promising Playwright by the London Theatre Critics, who also chose 'Made in Bangkok' for their Best New Play award of 1986. His first film as a writer/director – 'Truly, Madly, Deeply' (1991) – was a great success both in Britain and in the US, collecting several awards. He has worked in both radio and television, and recently directed Beckett's 'Play' as part of the RTE/Channel 4 'Samuel Beckett on Film' cycle.
Minghella's adaptation and direction of Michael Ondaatje's best-selling romantic novel 'The English Patient' (1996) established his international reputation as a screenwriter and film director, bringing two Golden Globe Awards and six BAFTAs, eleven Academy nominations and nine Award Oscars, including Best Film and Best Director statuettes for Minghella. Its follow-up, his adaptation and direction of Patricia Highsmith's 'The Talented Mr Ripley' (1999), was nominated for five Academy Awards (including Best Adapted Screenplay) and seven BAFTAs (including Best Film, Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay).
Producers of 'The English Patient' and 'Ripley' – Sydney Pollack (who directed 'The Firm', 'Tootsie' and 'The Way We Were') and Bill Horberg of Mirage Enterprises - received a review copy of Frazier's 'Cold Mountain' novel from film producer Albert Berger. Pollack forwarded the work to Anthony Minghella just as, coincidentally, both Michael Ondaatje and United Artists separately presented copies for Minghella's consideration.
Though initially reluctant to undertake another literary adaptation, Minghella soon realised the thematic richness and cinematic potential of 'Cold Mountain'. He was enthralled by the true story of the author's relative who abandoned the battlefield and endured multiple trials in his quest to regain the peace of his Cold Mountain home. The pilgrimage held appealing metaphorical echoes of both the 15th century morality figure Everyman and Homer's Odysseus. Minghella found Frazier's descriptions of man's intimate relationship with the landscape fascinating, particularly the novelist's perception of a mystical 'Tao' pattern within the landscape. Minghella's Chinese wife explained that the book's epigraph, from an 8th century Chinese Zen/Taoist poem:
Men ask the way to Cold Mountain.
Cold Mountain: there's no through trail.
– Han Shan
signified that Cold Mountain symbolised a spiritual destination, achieving that which is both physically and spiritually difficult and indirect. 'It's nirvana!' Minghella realised and the challenge of bringing the narrative to the screen proved irresistible.
With bookstores reporting impressive sales of the novel, however, rival Hollywood studios had begun making offers for its film rights.
Minghella approached Frazier and together they discussed the film project while retracing the novel's journey through the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina. Following further discussions in London, Frazier concluded that Minghella would be his ideal choice as director, 'I knew it would be a perfect match because he is somebody who came to movies by way of books. I felt he was someone who'd be able to make the material his own, because a movie has to be that to succeed. But at the same time, I knew what respect he had for what I had written.' With Frazier's blessing, Minghella was authorised to script and direct the film.
In July 1997, United Artists acquired the film rights (reputedly for $1.25 million) and approached the Disney-owned Miramax Films to co-finance the movie. Eventually however, when UA (and subsequently MGM) withdrew from the project, Miramax Films were left with the prospect of their most expensive production ever. After reflecting on how their recent backing of another epic – 'Gangs of New York' (2002) – had grossed over $200 million worldwide, with an additional $100 million from video sales (collecting 10 Oscar nominations, a Golden Globe Best Director award and a BAFTA), Miramax boss Harvey Weinstein courageously decided to invest some $83 million in 'Cold Mountain'.
In late 2000, Minghella settled to freely adapting Frazier's manuscript as a screenplay. A first draft was completed by March 2001. His final script was approved by the studio in May 2001.
