Apologize for the double post, but it seemed like I should separate my update.
Zoozilla - 2/50 Books | 8/50 Movies
Today I finished Kazuo Ishiguro's
When We Were Orphans. It's my second Ishiguro novel, after
The Remains of the Day. I have to admit, at first I was pretty disappointed that the voice of Christopher Banks, the protagonist, was
so similar to that of Stevens from
Remains. Even the structure is the same - diary-like entries, with recent events prompting memories of past events that now have new relevance. After a while, I warmed up to the subtle differences in the characters and the different setting. Overall,
Orphans is much more overtly dramatic than
Remains, and near the end I thought it almost went too far. There's a pulpy element to
Orphans that sometimes worked and sometimes didn't. I think I like
Remains better - it's more consistent - but I don't regret reading this one, either. ★★★★
Also watched a documentary on Ray Harryhausen - it was pretty standard, but Harryhausen's the man. Seeing his work always makes me smile. ★★★
I really liked
A Separation - it managed to be very dramatic without ever feeling false, and it was pretty impressive how Asghar Farhadi resisted painting any one of the characters as essentially good or evil. It reminded me of Spike Lee's
Do the Right Thing, in a way. It managed to teach me a little about Iranian culture while also commenting on universal human faults and traumas. I was very impressed. ★★★★
