Julia Stiles opens The Bell Jar

Let’s face it – when you’re dealing with anything surrounding poet and novelist Sylvia Plath, the twin subjects of depression and suicide are always going to factor in. The last time Plath’s life was brought to the screen – in 2003, with Gwyneth Paltrow in Sylvia – it focused on her struggles with sadness and deep depression.

But now Julia Stiles is tackling Plath’s semi-autobiographical novel The Bell Jar for Plum pictures. It’s the tale of Esther Greenwood – widely seen as a thinly veiled version of Plath – a reporter who heads to New York to kick off her career, but ends up lonely and withdrawn, ultimately heading back to Boston. The story was filmed in 1979, but that version flopped at the box office.

The Total Film team are made up of the finest minds in all of film journalism. They are: Editor Jane Crowther, Deputy Editor Matt Maytum, Reviews Ed Matthew Leyland, News Editor Jordan Farley, and Online Editor Emily Murray. Expect exclusive news, reviews, features, and more from the team behind the smarter movie magazine.