The Painted Bird by Jerzy Kosinski

 

Jerzy Kosinski's The Painted Bird met with much controversy when first published in 1965. It is set in an unnamed Eastern European country and follows the harrowing experiences of a young boy abandoned by his parents at the beginning of World War Two. The controversy largely surrounds the depiction of the peasants that the young boy encounters as he moves from village to village over a period of about five years. They are brutal, ignorant and callous to an extreme. Compare this to what the author really experienced as a young boy trying to evade the Nazi occupiers and I can understand the controversial response. Many villagers housed Kosinski and his family at the risk to their own lives and there is no evidence that he was badly treated. Why Kosinski decided to write a book vilifying these people is both perverse and baffling. I don't understand why Kosinski wrote The Painted Bird in the way that he did and the actions of the peasants are so bad as to be almost unbelievable. But it is a work of fiction of course, and I guess that would be Kosinski's defense. Some of the scenes of violence, brutality and rape are extremely disturbing and harrowing, and I would recommend caution in reading this book. The frustrating thing about this book is that it is so well written, with Kosinski demonstrating a great command of language. This book could have been a masterpiece but it will remain a highly disturbing enigma.  

This Is A Call: The Life And Times Of Dave Grohl by Paul Brannigan

This Is A Call charts the rise and rise of Dave Grohl, from fledgling punk rocker to drummer of grunge superstars Nirvana to lead singer of his current band Foo Fighters. This biography is an interesting insight into one of music’s most successful and talented rock stars of the last twenty years. One of the things I liked about the book is that the author, Paul Brannigan, has walked the walk, rather than being a general music fan who decides to do some research into Dave Grohl and write a book about him. It is obvious that Brannigan has followed punk rock and grunge from his early years and his passionate and dedication comes across in his writing. He builds up a good picture of the punk rock/grunge scene of the 1980’s and 90’s, describing and referencing bands that influenced and played a part in Dave Grohl’s developing music taste and career. The book struck a personal note on more than one occasion. I was a big Nirvana fan in the mid 1990’s and I remember well the importance of this type of music as an expression of my teenage angst and confusion. Since then my musical tastes and hormones have mellowed considerably but reading This Is A Call made me wonder about all the bands and fans who didn’t make it, either in terms of commercial success or just personal happiness and growth. It’s obviously better for people to channel their alienation and hurt into music than get involved in violence or crime or drugs but in saying that music, especially that kind of music, is not enough to heal and console – Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain is a prime example. He seemed like a nice guy but ultimately damaged and very fragile. I remember the feelings well and grunge music served its purpose in its own strange way for a time but I am glad that I am no longer part of that scene. But not all rockers are like Cobain or destined to share his fate. Dave Grohl, in the interviews I have seen on YouTube and in this biography, comes across as a very down to earth, likable guy with his head firmly screwed on. He has had his trials and tribulations like everyone else; his experience in Nirvana was pretty challenging and ended in the suicide of Kurt Cobain, and even Foo Fighters had personnel problems in its first few years. But despite this there is a sense that Grohl manages to maintain a positive outlook on life and not let all the group dynamics weigh him down. In all of this his passion for music and his own musical integrity shine through brightly. 7/10  

The Quick And The Dead

Unusual take on the western genre. Sharon Stone stars as a woman gunslinger out to avenge her murdered father, thus entering a quick fire draw contest to get to the man responsible, Gene Hackman. All the western clichés are hammed up, and director Sam Raimi has get fun with them. I really enjoyed some of the performances; Gene Hackman is his usual brilliant self as a tyrant of a villain, Russell Crowe plays a reformed killer forced to take up the gun again, and a fledging Leonardo Di Caprio swaggers about as a cocky young gunfighter desperate to impress. Sharon Stone is not great, maybe because she tries too hard to play her role like Clint Eastwood. Quirky entertainment. 7/10

Extremely Loud & Incrediably Close

A precocious young boy called Oskar, possibly bordering on Asperger syndrome, loses his father, played by Tom Hanks, in 9/11 and in an effort to make sense of his loss and deal with his grief he becomes convinced that his father has left a final hidden message for him somewhere in the Big Apple. The premise sounds strange and unlikely to work but director Stephen Daldry does a really clever job of making the boy's search for his father's message both meaningful and compelling. Without being overly patriotic or sentimental the film really brings home the horror and damage of 9/11. The acting is terrific, especially Thomas Horn as Oskar. He really convinces as a very bright but confused young boy trying to make sense of a situation with no clear answers. Max Von Sydow is also excellent as a mysterious old man who teams up with Oskar for part of the search - he does not speak one line but his facial expressions and body language convey so much at times. There are some really powerful scenes, especially with Oskar and his mother, played to good effect by Sandra Bullock. An unusual film, but highly watchable. Well acted, well directed and well written. 8/10

Man Of Steel

I loved the trailer to this new reboot of the Superman franchise so I had high hopes for the film, but I came away from the cinema feeling a bit underwhelmed and disappointed. Parts of the story are interesting and I liked the way Michael Shannon's villainous character is integral to the plot but director Zach Synder and whoever wrote the screenplay explain certain things in a clumsy way that I found unsatisfactory. Michael Shannon is the best thing about the film. How many times have I said that recently about this fine American actor? The story should have been given more thought and less attention should have been given to the fight sequences which, dare I say, reminded me of the mess that is Michael Bay's Transformers. Too many buildings are destroyed, and it's a bit over the top and messy. Watchable in parts but ultimately a let down. 6/10

The Iceman

Based on a true story, Michael Shannon puts in a powerhouse of a performance as notorious mafia contract killer Richard Kuklinski. It's an engrossing character story about a man living a double life: a devoted husband and father but also a cold blooded and remorseless killer. Shannon, whose star continues to rise film by film, is utterly convincing as a psychopath who cares for nothing except his wife and two daughters. There's a good balance to the film, with director Ariel Vromen showing us what Kuklinski is capable of without overcooking it. In the end you almost pity Kuklinski - he seems to be lacking something, something which prevents him from seeing the humanity in others. It's strange how evil can fascinate us and make such good subject matter for cinema. 7.5/10

A Bronx Tale

De Niro makes his directorial debut in this gritty drama about the struggle of a father to protect his son from the influence of a local gangster. Coming from a rough neighbourhood myself part of me watched this film through my own father's eyes. I can imagine his concern to preserve my innocence and protect me from bad influences while trying to respect my own individuality and freedom to choose. It's a moral tightrope that most parents have to face. Robert De Niro gives a understated but powerful performance as a decent working class family man trying guide his son, Calogero, through the pitfalls and dangers of living in the Bronx, most notably in the form of Chazz Palminteri who plays the local mob boss, Sonny. Calogero is the son that Sonny never had and he tries in his own limited and streetwise way to be a good father figure. The polarization of De Niro and Palminteri works really well in the film, with young Calogero in the middle, not quite sure of things as many teenagers are at that age. A Bronx tale is relevant, intelligent and well directed. 8/10