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sjbozich 's review for:
My Face for the World to See
by Alfred Hayes
While watching "Clash by Night" on TCM's Noir Alley recently, Eddie Muller mentioned that Hayes (who had written the screenplay for that film) was an excellent novelist as well. His best novel is this title, and I jumped on amazon and ordered a copy, and began reading it the evening that it arrived.
Well, it is a Hollywood novel, a genre which I love - but it is not Noir.
Mostly presented as a first-person interior monologue, the writing in the first third of the book is dense, and full of observations on various aspects of Life, or the narrator's life. The plot, and action, picks up as they head down to Tijuana to watch the bull fights on a Sunday afternoon (only a few pages, but not for people who love animals). And the long section on their break-up (the woman's name is never mentioned) is long, and flows along quickly with lots of action.
Written in the '50's, it seems set in the '30's (his big-wig studio friend Charlie waves to various "names" - all of whom are from that period).
In the end the author seems to blame her, and her fragile personality type, as much as the narrator's cruel, distant naivity. And in the end the narrator comes to accept his need to be controlled, to become part of the "group" in order to survive - even if "survival" comes with a dull, meaningless life that he will always be aware of for years to come.
Hayes has 2 other easily accessible titles, including one on his time in post-War Italy (where he worked in the newly revived Italian film industry with some top names), but I doubt I will read either one. The writing smells of overwritten, introspective, turgid 1950's prose. Too bad, I was so excited too find a new author I had not previously heard about.
Well, it is a Hollywood novel, a genre which I love - but it is not Noir.
Mostly presented as a first-person interior monologue, the writing in the first third of the book is dense, and full of observations on various aspects of Life, or the narrator's life. The plot, and action, picks up as they head down to Tijuana to watch the bull fights on a Sunday afternoon (only a few pages, but not for people who love animals). And the long section on their break-up (the woman's name is never mentioned) is long, and flows along quickly with lots of action.
Written in the '50's, it seems set in the '30's (his big-wig studio friend Charlie waves to various "names" - all of whom are from that period).
In the end the author seems to blame her, and her fragile personality type, as much as the narrator's cruel, distant naivity. And in the end the narrator comes to accept his need to be controlled, to become part of the "group" in order to survive - even if "survival" comes with a dull, meaningless life that he will always be aware of for years to come.
Hayes has 2 other easily accessible titles, including one on his time in post-War Italy (where he worked in the newly revived Italian film industry with some top names), but I doubt I will read either one. The writing smells of overwritten, introspective, turgid 1950's prose. Too bad, I was so excited too find a new author I had not previously heard about.