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Melanie Caldicott (6 KP) rated Goodnight, Brian in Books

Apr 29, 2021

Goodnight, Brian

Steven Manchester | 2013 | Fiction & Poetry

2.0

(1 Ratings)

Book Rating

The concept of this book originally interested me and I found the first few chapters where the tragedy that caused Brian's disability is uncovered takes place moving. However, I quickly grew tired of Mama and found her a very manufactured, unrealistic character who was just too "perfect". Her "clever" answers in how to bring out the best in Brian and the myriad of problems the rest of the family faced seemed to serve no other purpose than to allow the author a platform from which to preach at us. This, in my opinion, was painfully unsubtle and fiction should not be used as a vehicle for moralising, but to merely describe the experiences of characters, their feelings and reactions which provoke thoughts and empathy within the reader. I did not finish this book as the sermonesque style ultimately became unbearable!

Kudos

St. Trinian's (2007)

5.0 (2 Ratings) Rate It

Movie

Modern-day reworking of the classic Ealing comedy of the 1950s. Faced with dire financial problems,...

Gary Giddins recommended Mr. Arkadin (1962) in Movies (curated)

Mr. Arkadin (1962)

1962 | Classics, Drama, Mystery

7.0

(1 Ratings)

Movie Favorite

"Criterion’s comprehensive edition of this long-undervalued film is a major DVD event, though it may not enlarge the film’s fan base. The problems, beyond a few incomprehensible plot points, include a dreadful lead performance by Nixon look-alike Robert Arden, who is surrounded by terrific actors in the margins (Akim Tamiroff, Michael Redgrave, Mischa Auer, Katina Paxinou), plus gorgeous Paola Mori; the result feels a bit like Hamlet without Hamlet. Then there is Welles’s wig and beard, evidently borrowed from a junior high school performance of Faust. Never mind: there are many, many unforgettable moments, and the plot is so good—detective as inadvertent Judas goat—that a fine, conventional film could still be made from the same material. Criterion includes the surprisingly good novel, which Welles variously took and denied credit for. In my hearing, he took credit."

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Kudos