tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3119105822589181967.post6187169263485847596..comments2024-03-28T15:01:21.285-04:00Comments on SleuthSayers: The Reins of NarrationLeigh Lundinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07921276795499571578noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3119105822589181967.post-72658808561742521172013-02-09T09:31:11.129-05:002013-02-09T09:31:11.129-05:00Great article - "To Kill a Mockingbird" ...Great article - "To Kill a Mockingbird" is another great example of narration by an adult of things that happened when a child, allowing for dual, shifting perspectives on what actually was going on. Another one - not a "traditional" mystery, but a very interesting novella - is Katherine Anne Porter's "Old Mortality": its disconcerting shifts in perspectives leave it up to the reader to decide just exactly how a young woman died and why...Eve Fisherhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03015761600962360110noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3119105822589181967.post-52763820618549780452013-02-09T02:30:02.455-05:002013-02-09T02:30:02.455-05:00Well, John and Toe, I have to admit that there are...Well, John and Toe, I have to admit that there are certainly movies that outshine the books they're based on. <br /><br />In the case of such movies, I often find that I enjoy the film more if I have not yet read the book. I suspect this is because, if I read the book first, I immagine certain details that might naturally clash with the way they're portrayed in the film. This doesn't mean the film is bad, of course -- just different from the way I immagined things when reading the book.Dixon Hillhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11220791609338404147noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3119105822589181967.post-44517054742799219892013-02-09T00:35:50.285-05:002013-02-09T00:35:50.285-05:00Toe, I must agree that Shane, like a few others I ...Toe, I must agree that <i>Shane</i>, like a few others I can name (<i>To Kill a Mockingbird</i>, <i>Lonesome Dove</i>, <i>The Silence of the Lambs</i>, etc.), turned out to be a great movie adaptation of a great novel. I liked it in both forms.John Floydhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04001712728130488485noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3119105822589181967.post-11522038337269590312013-02-09T00:18:09.734-05:002013-02-09T00:18:09.734-05:00Shane is a great story. But, in my humble opinion,...Shane is a great story. But, in my humble opinion, the movie far outshines the novel. How can you beat a cast of Alan Ladd, Jean Arthur, Van Heflin, Brandon deWilde, Elisha Cook, Jr., Jack Palance, and Ben Johnson? And everything you said about the dynamics between the characters is revealed brilliantly. Either format, you can't lose on this amazing work. Thanks for reminding me. Yours truly, Toe.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17407149021673167001noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3119105822589181967.post-23901097034414309162013-02-08T16:39:36.005-05:002013-02-08T16:39:36.005-05:00Sorry to chime in so late, folks. I just got back...Sorry to chime in so late, folks. I just got back from taking my dad across town to an eye doc, then on to his chemo treatment, followed by lunch and a little vehiclular recon so that he can navigate better on his recumbent trike.<br /><br />John, I saw the movie years ago, but couldn't remember it clearly. In fact, I later realized I had it confused with another film. I have no doubt, however, that the book is better than the film. As you point out, they nearly always are.<br /><br />David, I think it's definitely worth reading. And, at around only 150 pages, it reads quickly.<br /><br />Thank you, Elizabeth. And, you're right: I called it love, because it is. I've long thought that one of the shortcomings of the English language is that we don't have all the words for different types of love, which the Greeks had. I think that could serve to promote love's recognition more often, without people getting so wrapped around the axle about things. That film montage sounds hilarious! I'll never forget the part in <i>The Birdcage</i> when Robin Williams tells his lover: "No. You got it right. That is how John Wayne walks. I just never realized how effeminate it was, before!" <br /><br />Jeff, I couldn't agree more! Serling was phenomenal! And, who could forget Shatner's voiceover of the captain's log? Or, Patrick Stewart's either? Thanks for the great additions.<br /><br />Anon: I saw what you posted (and read your email), and am glad to hear you want to read the novel.Dixon Hillhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11220791609338404147noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3119105822589181967.post-90207986797824719062013-02-08T10:52:29.028-05:002013-02-08T10:52:29.028-05:00Dix, I've always been thankful that I read Sha...Dix, I've always been thankful that I read <i>Shane</i> long before seeing the movie (I read the book in high school in '64, fifteen years after it was published, and saw the movie in college in '68, fifteen years after just about everybody in America had already seen it). The movie was great, but the book--as usual--was even better.<br /><br />I agree that the choice of the viewpoint character, and what his advanced age allowed him to remember and describe, was perfect.<br /><br />Enjoyed reading your analysis.John Floydhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04001712728130488485noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3119105822589181967.post-83620747041355299522013-02-08T10:35:19.096-05:002013-02-08T10:35:19.096-05:00Great post, Dix! I've always loved the film, ...Great post, Dix! I've always loved the film, but never read the book--it sounds as if I should. Thanks.David Deanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13005457506363262838noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3119105822589181967.post-33213311588953301162013-02-08T09:50:50.234-05:002013-02-08T09:50:50.234-05:00Dix,how perceptive you are to come right out and c...Dix,how perceptive you are to come right out and call male bonding love. On a lighter note, the year the movie Brokeback Mountain came out, the high point of the Edgars banquet was a short film put together by mystery author Kris Montee (if I'm not mistaken) showing brief clips of moments between characters from classic Western and other movies that, out of context, read hilariously as gay male bonding. (Picture a close-up of John Wayne hitching up his belt buckle or the Lone Ranger and Tonto exchanging a silent glance.)Elizabeth Zelvinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13944424094949207841noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3119105822589181967.post-59266747960655234962013-02-08T02:31:20.422-05:002013-02-08T02:31:20.422-05:00Wow. Now I'm going to have to go read that no...Wow. Now I'm going to have to go read that novel! I had no idea it had that kind of depth to it.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3119105822589181967.post-23388693521637546152013-02-08T00:23:40.684-05:002013-02-08T00:23:40.684-05:00We of the t.v. generation recall Rod Serling's...We of the t.v. generation recall Rod Serling's introductions and postscripts to Twilight Zone episodes. not quite full-blown narrations, more in that line were Wm. Shatner's "Captain's Log" bits that played through the Star Trek episodes.Jeff Bakerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00316081079528920123noreply@blogger.com