Gay romance gloss-over upsets author's sister

Author Elizabeth Knox's sister has waded into the row over the film adaptation of The Vintner's Luck, saying the glossing over of a gay relationship was a case of "bad politics".

Sara Knox, an academic and writer, said she had refused to see the film and shared her sister's sense of "betrayal" over its treatment.

Elizabeth Knox told The Dominion Post this week she had cried for days when she found her novel's central relationship – a gay romance between French peasant winemaker, Sobran Jodeau, and an angel, Xas, – had been played down in the movie by Kiwi film-maker Niki Caro.

Sara Knox, who is gay, said yesterday that she was upset at the decision to remove the relationship in the film.

"The reason I haven't seen it is because I already feel like the film is a betrayal. I feel that personally, partly because I'm Elizabeth's sister, but the book was gay romance.

"If you take that out ... all of the conflict and drama is evacuated. It leaves nothing," Dr Knox said. "It's bad politics and I don't like it.

"There isn't enough fine literature written about great varieties of different kinds of love, that's what [The Vintner's Luck] did. It could have been an opportunity for a film to add to the human experience of joy and love, but no."

Elizabeth Knox did not want to comment further. "I want to just give Niki a chance to talk to me," she said.