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3.73 AVERAGE
3.73 AVERAGE
In the novel Night Film, there's a recurrent image referred to of a tapeworm eating its own tail. That's the structure a huge chunk of the book follows. I was gripped in the beginning of this story and entranced by the portrait of a Fellini by way of Argento seamy underbelly of New York City that author Marisha Pessl conjured. I also enjoyed the mixed media format, which largely disappeared in the final half when it was needed most to break up all the reading in circles, as our intrepid investigative reporter Scott McGrath and his sidekicks, manic pixie dreamgirl Nora, and the moody and misunderstood Hopper, track down shady character after shady character who all basically reveal the same information: Stanislas and Ashley Cordova are dark, they're mysterious, and they're not like you and me.
Overall, I'm left frustrated by this book. I've got nothing against door stoppers when the length serves a purpose and the story moves forward. This could have been a four, maybe even a five, star read for me with about 300 pages trimmed.
Overall, I'm left frustrated by this book. I've got nothing against door stoppers when the length serves a purpose and the story moves forward. This could have been a four, maybe even a five, star read for me with about 300 pages trimmed.
A little slow, but intriguing "what's the truth" mystery. Some members of book club hated it, some loved it.
Interesting fact...it looks to be at most 400 pages, but this is a 600 page book printed on what must be magic paper.
Interesting fact...it looks to be at most 400 pages, but this is a 600 page book printed on what must be magic paper.
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
It takes 600 pages for this book to do even a single interesting thing.
UPDATE:
Ok ok ok we're bumping this up a star because I actually keep thinking about the last quarter of the book. And it can't go up more than a star in my opinion because a 600-some page book can't be only good in the final stretch. There has to be enough to propel you to that goal (other than sheer stubbornness to finish, which is what propelled me). But it really really makes you look back on the entire novel and rethink the whole read.
This does not make up for the fact that I think Marisha Pessl writes incredibly flat characters and doesn't have the skill (or maybe the will?) to write distinctly enough for all the different styles she's invoking in this book. And there's too many loose threads still left flying that will conveniently be hand-waved as part of the vision.
But the ideas here!
UPDATE:
Ok ok ok we're bumping this up a star because I actually keep thinking about the last quarter of the book. And it can't go up more than a star in my opinion because a 600-some page book can't be only good in the final stretch. There has to be enough to propel you to that goal (other than sheer stubbornness to finish, which is what propelled me). But it really really makes you look back on the entire novel and rethink the whole read.
This does not make up for the fact that I think Marisha Pessl writes incredibly flat characters and doesn't have the skill (or maybe the will?) to write distinctly enough for all the different styles she's invoking in this book. And there's too many loose threads still left flying that will conveniently be hand-waved as part of the vision.
But the ideas here!
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-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
not worth finishing. blatantly racist, sexist and transphobic. all you need to know.
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
3 stars for enjoyment, 2 stars for the homophobia, transphobia, racism, and other weird things that popped up. At first I wasn't sure if it was supposed to be the character, that he's an unreliable narrator and possibly an anti-hero of some kind, but no, it's just the author, and it made parts of this story really gross. The mystery was engaging, though parts did drag. It's unfortunate that the interactive elements are defunct.
this yet another book i feel like i can’t rate. i enjoyed myself most of the time but i’m coming out of the book with more questions than answers. the author had a fantastic way of making you feel complicit in the actions of the narrator and like you were privy to super top secret information. that aspect i loved. unfortunately, it seems like the author was trying much too hard to be literary that some of the intrigue was lost. i’m a little disappointed that this is the first pretty long book i’ve read in years. towards the end, reading it just felt like a chore and the ending provided doesn’t give enough gratification for the story to have dragged that much. i feel like this will be one of those books in the future that people say “oh i can’t believe you haven’t read that! it’s such an experience.” so i guess i’m thankful for that? anyway, i didn’t love this, i didn’t hate it, i just feel disconnected and confused with the “resolutions” i was given.
Story filled with almost 600 depersonalization-derealization pages. Has very strong plot twists-nearly all unexpected. Lots of shadowy, jungle, witchy depths in the book.
This would be a good spooky season book.
This would be a good spooky season book.
I really liked this. It was absolutely amazing. I loved how it screwed with your head. I seriously had no idea what to expect next. Lots of people say the ending was disappointing, but I thought it was perfect. Cordova’s endings were always left to the interpretation of the person watching his films. This book allows you to draw your own ending based off your interpretation of the characters.
The best thing about the story was how realistic it was. Not every story has a happy, fulfilling ending. It ended to me at a part that seemed like a new beginning. Scott’s character grew in this story and I truly appreciated his betterment.
The best thing about the story was how realistic it was. Not every story has a happy, fulfilling ending. It ended to me at a part that seemed like a new beginning. Scott’s character grew in this story and I truly appreciated his betterment.
