Reviews

Star by Yukio Mishima

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casparb's review against another edition

3.0

A baby but a nice time. Mishima's style again pulls through the translation well, it seems. Certainly not a crucial work but interesting and worth the afternoon or less one might spend on it. There are better ways of getting into YM- I'd point to The Sailor, but I'm not yet broadly acquainted enough to say with confidence. Anyway. He's ridiculously talented and it hurts. Also nice to see Japanese cinema discussed in this way- nicely familiar lately thank you very much for that brief, specific part of your life, Yukio, and no other xoxo

charliebuttle's review against another edition

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reflective sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

beachy123's review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

A novella about a bitter film star working in a seemingly cruel industry. Not much plot! A story with no redeeming characters.

phoebsreads's review against another edition

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reflective fast-paced

5.0

readingtheother's review against another edition

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dark reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.75

i like my books short and weird and star by yukio mishima ticks both those boxes. this is very ✨no plot just vibes✨ exploration of the way fame and stardom alienates celebrities from reality. a celebrity’s job is to create a fantasy world for the audience - their actions have no real consequences, everything they say is mediated by a PR team, and their own image is the most important thing, no matter what happens behind the mask. in this novella, Rikio is an up and coming actor who is starting to feel the strain of this constant artifice. he finds sanctuary in Kayo, his assistant who consciously subverts the standards of the film industry in her own fuck you to the pretense she helps create. rikio doesn’t know what he’s looking for - while his relationship with kayo helps offset some of the alienation, he is still longing for something to change. we don’t know if he finds it, but experiencing his detachment is just chefs kiss

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