Love this book and have directed the play. It is scary that the preface of the story written years ago is relevant today.

Thought provoking and gripping enough to keep me turning pages, yet not a favourite. I think I enjoyed this book more for the conversation that it will inspire than for enjoyment in the act of reading it - the characters were fairly two-dimensional (apart from Scout, who was quite endearing for a psychopathic killer).

I understand that it's a satire of and a look at the movie industry, but at times the dialogue and scenes were almost TOO derivative. For example, I read everything Wayne Hudson said in the voice of Mickey Knox from Natural Born Killers. It's possible that this is because it's the only film of the genre that I'm really familiar with, but I did feel like I was reading the book of the film. That's not necessarily a bad thing as I like that film, though after reading Popcorn that probably doesn't say much about my ethics.

That being said, it's worth mentioning that the book manages to encompass all sides of the debate without feeling clunky or forced. All in all, I'm glad I read it and I'm looking forward to chatting about it.

I literally only finished this book for the sake of my goodreads challenge of this year lmao

- Idk if this was on purpose or not but if an author calls one major character "Bruce" and another "Wayne", you've already lost me
- Some interesting points about our society were made, only to be completely wiped away by comments on a character's boobs or something like that.
- An absurd amount of grammar and spelling mistakes + typos in the translated, Dutch copy I read >:(

I bought this book at a thrift store while on a rainy vacation. Not expecting much, I was very surprised with this story. It had me hooked with great story telling, and edge. Great characters, and a really interesting plot, which kept me turning page after page. I don’t wish to spoil anything, but the ending really was great and left me in shock. Give this one a read you won’t regret it!

Dear P has to read this for school - he has read the first chapter and is not impressed at all. It does seem a rather obscure choice. So I am reading it for him...

On the morning after the night it happened, Bruce Delamitri was sitting in a police interview room.

Characters:

Bruce Delamitri - Hollywood golden boy
Farrah Delamitri - spouse, model, rock singer and now corpse.
Girl and boy Mall Killers
Errol and Mr. Snuff - actor gangsters (again - think Travolta and Jackson in Pulp Fiction, especially the way they constantly debate)
Professor Chambers - a Mr Chips type of character

Chapters 1 & 2
Read Tarantino as Delamitri, and the start of Pulp Fiction for the Mall killers. Moral arguments about society mimicking films.

Chapter 3 & 4
Oscar for Best Director; dreadful acceptance speech. SWAT team enters Bruce's Mansion (that sounds like Batman doesn't it!). Errol and Mr Snuff are shown plying their skills.

Chapter 5 & 6
Back to just before the Oscar ceremonies has Bruce addressing his Alma Mater at USC. Important phase here is 'ironic juxtaposition'. Cut to cheap cowboy woman practically masturbating to music in a dive of a mid-day shit-house bar.


Think Kill BIll!

Chapter 7 and 8
Highlighting - Feminist angle. Electric chair. Middle class white kids wishing to dress and talk 'dude' - generation X. Gruesome film action to the sound of chirpy music (ironic juxtapositioning again)

Chapters 9 & 10
MAD - Mothers Against Death. The females that follow Bruce around, heckling him, because they accuse him of influencing, via the silver screen, those two Mall Killers into randomly killing their children. Jack Daniels. Twinkies.

Important phrase: 'I stand here on legs of fire'. Used within the acceptence speech and reiterated throughout the book. Bruce is ashamed at the utter crap that he spewed but this particularly asinine phrase haunts him.

Chapter 11 & 12
Oscar party. Wayne and Scout.

Chapter 13 & 14
Scout and Wayne. A peeling/Appealing. A 'mid-day shit-house bar' moment.

Chapter 15 & 16
Film influences Brooke. "Bruce look behind you." Sheeeee-it! Bikini line shaving.

Chapter 17 & 18
A Severed Head and we not talking talking Iris Murdoch.

Chapter 19 & 20
Enter from stage precinct - Detectives Crawford and Jay. A Chicago moment(page 185)

Chapter 21 & 22
Kurt. Karl. Uh-oh.

Chapter 23 & 24
Bulimic Susan.Mr Chop Chop and a sock in the chops.

Chapter 25 & 26
Early Bruce and Farrah. Is a blow job the same as a nose job? Reporters. Choppers. "What we are looking for is someone else to take the blame."

Chapter 27 & 28
Reporters.Centre stage for the media.

Chapter 29 & 30
"Scout 'n' me are your fault."

Chapter 31 & 32 & 33 & 34 & 35 & 36 & 37 & 38 &39
Deep down, everyone wants to get on TV. Ratings. I KEEL YOU! It's my job, I'm a maniac. Pavlov. She's my mom. SWAT. Epilogue

ob

Not bad. Nice easy read and the ending wasn't necessarily 'traditional'.

Interesting, but just not that much. Storyline is linear, the characters poorely developed for my taste. There were few humorous points where I loled, but that's about it.

Life Imitating Art

Everyone is to blame but no one is responsible. A glancing satirical observation of the modern cult violence movie industry and I suspect as others have mentioned of the works of a popular American film maker who will go unmentioned and the potential impact these people can have on a society that in general has become indifferent to violent crime. Its pretty daft this book, not to be taken too seriously, true pulp! I had a few giggles from the absurdity of it all. Well written, engaging, easy to read and surprisingly light hearted given the subject matter It did raise some interesting points but did so I guess in the way Neil from The Young Ones might do with a bin bag full of snot on his head. I think my next move now will be to go and lie prostrate so I can consider which book to read next.

weird debate

Algo confuso de início mas estou feliz por não ter desistido porque foi melhorando sempre.

Não confiei o suficiente no autor porque não entendo como ele adquiriu os conhecimentos necessários para as suas opiniões tão fortes... Foi por isso que a minha experiência de leitura não foi tão boa como poderia ter sido. Mas vou relê-lo no futuro para tentar retirar o máximo dele, porque acredito que haja muito para retirar.

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[EN] Quite confusing at the beginning but I'm glad I didn't gave up because it got better and better.

I didn't trust the author enough because I'm not sure how he got the required knowledge to express these strong opinions... That's why my reading experience wasn't as good as it could be. But I'm going to reread it in the future in order to make the most out of it, because I believe there's a lot in it.

Ummm bit of a slow start but then a juicy middle and a whack end that should have been shorter.

Unsure if I'm taking too much from it, but appreciated how the first 2/3rds subtly rinsed how formulaic blockbusters have become - down to the fictional scenes from films that didn't exist that could litro be in any Tarentino or Marvel, to then the depiction of a narcissistic director who again could be.... (down to the feet)

Had some interesting takes on violence and how gratuitous it is in modern film but some of the points made were just a bit clumsy and stuck out (e.g. the film lectures and the nutty debate between Wayne and Bruce at the end).