Comments | baleanoptera: What has been read and what has been seen

baleanoptera

What has been read and what has been seen

Jun 28, 2007 23:11

Lawrence Durrell: The Alexandria Quartet

( In which our narrator proves to be most unreliable+ there are mentions of Cavafy + questions are asked if its what really happens or if its what we remember happening that is of the greatest value + the dealings of a large numbers of ex-pats in 1930’s Alexandria + Gnosticism and Coptic beliefs. )

war film, remembrance, film, books, picturing history, recs, www2

Comments 12

aquamarcia June 28 2007, 23:35:01 UTC

A minor correction: while it's pronounced 'coreman' it's spelled 'corpsman'.

Your review of Flags of Our Fathers has nudged me to the point where, after all the hype, I think I'm ready to see them film. Thanks for posting this.

baleanoptera June 28 2007, 23:36:38 UTC

minor correction fixed! Thank you. :)

baleanoptera June 29 2007, 10:25:13 UTC

As for "Flags" - I too was a little hesitant to view it. Truth be told I was dreading a gung-ho war/combat movie, or one that glorified the sacrifices made in war. (pretty much my main beef with "Black Hawk Down" is how it makes a military blunder into something heroic.)Instead Eastwood delivers something much more morally complexed and down right grumpy.

For me the film also gained from Adam Beach's portrayal of Ira Hayes, who delivers a very honest and unsentimental performance.

As mentioned I'm watching "Letters from Iwo Jima" tonight, and I'm very much looking forward to see how it plays out both as a compliment and a contrast to "Flags".

koalathebear June 29 2007, 00:28:11 UTC

Ah, Flags of our Fathers was very interesting. I personally preferred "Letters from Iwo Jima" but I wonder if that's because I watched the movies in the wrong order ;)

baleanoptera June 29 2007, 10:31:46 UTC

I'm watching "Letters" tonight, and I'm very excited. (though I'm a little unsure if excited is the right word for the emotional turmoil that war movies usually create) I find the choice of showing both sides of the battle in two films to be very fascinating - and everybody says "letters" is better than "Flags", and that sounds promising!

nutmeg3 June 29 2007, 01:40:52 UTC

I read The Alexandria Quartet when I was still in college (ie: back in the dim mists of time) and loved it. His language absolutely seduced me. And I love reading about Durrell himself in his brother Gerald's hysterical accounts of their peripatetic childhood.

baleanoptera June 29 2007, 07:31:48 UTC

His language is absolutely mesmerising! It's like it takes you and wraps you into this silk covered, slightly disturbing story.

And I must try to find Gerald's accounts of the their childhood. That sounds so, so good!

nutmeg3 June 29 2007, 13:20:47 UTC

Iirc, there are two: My Family and Other Animals, which should be easy to find, because it was filmed for TV relatively recently, and another one that followed and whose name I can't remember. And then he started writing wonderful accounts of putting together his zoo (The Aye-Aye and I, etc.).

semyaza July 1 2007, 07:58:37 UTC

This post reminded me of how much I love Durrell and how long it's been since I read anything by him. I keep glancing at my shelves and thinking 'must read that again soon.' I prefer the Avignon Quintet (because Monsieur was my first Durrell), but what I like best in all his novels is the wonderful set-pieces and the depth of the description. And the gnosticism, of course. :)

baleanoptera July 2 2007, 16:42:11 UTC

I'm starting the Avignon Quintet soon actually. I think I'm a bit hooked. ;)
I must admit I knew nothing about the author before picking up the "alexandria quartet". All I saw was a book with a very pretty cover and some references to C.P. Cavafy. Now I love Cavafy's poetry, so that was enough to sell the book to me. I'm glad I did.

I agree he does have some wonderful set-pieces. His description of the carnival in Alexandria and the night market filled with local religious figures was utterly mesmerizing.

semyaza July 2 2007, 18:21:52 UTC

I loved Gerald Durrell's books when I was a kid (I planned to be a zoologist), but I didn't read Lawrence until shortly after Monsieur was published. I was so attracted to the cover of the Faber edition and the title that I had to buy it. While I was waiting for the sequels, I read everything else I could find. A friend, who lived in Egypt on and off, was crazy about the Alexandria Quartet, and thinking about it now reminds me of our discussions and of the letters she sent from Cairo. I can't really detach the books from that particular time in my life.

baleanoptera July 3 2007, 11:13:33 UTC

I think I'm approaching the "reading everything else I can find" stage - though I thankfully don't have to wait for sequels.
I must admit that reading "The Alexandria Quartet" was a very strange experience for me, because for the first 100 pages or so I did not care for the book at all. I found the main narrator boring and Justine something of a cliche - but then all the other characters and subplots startet to take hold and I was hooked.