When you have a powerhouse talent with an illustrious career writing about the movie making process; you ought to sit up and take note immediately. It’s like pulling aside a curtain and welcoming the movie goers to a world shrouded in glittering mythical mystery. So, it’s no wonder that The Making of Another Major Motion Picture Masterpiece piques the movie audiences’ curiosity by a notch specially if it’s coming from an accomplished and revered actor turned author like Tom Hanks.
As the name suggests, the storyline unfolds in the present day and revolves around making of a science fiction movie based on a comic book hero set in WWII. The comic book itself is written during the late 70s- early 80s with reflections of American societies around the time.
So the book takes us on three distinct timelines across United States of America during the 40s when the troops were stationed overseas to fight a war alongside their allies, then it moves forward to 70s when the author of the aforesaid comic book author sculpts his action hero based on the story of his maternal uncle and finally to the current times emerging from the shadows of a pandemic. Each period has its own unique timestamps on the American lives felt not only in the big cities like San Fransico but even in the small towns like Lone Bute.
That’s how the story begins- giving us glimpses of everyday lives of a small boy growing up in a small town in California post war years. He is Robby Andersen who has grown up in that small town hearing stories about the great war been fought millions of miles and continents away where his father and maternal uncle have given their own contribution. His father is back home to his family, quite content with his life, wife and children. No more talks of the fighting, Thank You. Unlike his uncle- Bob Falls who has became sort of a family lore after disappearing for good few years. Eventually he comes for a brief family visit but realises quickly that his presence is less than welcome around the tightly knit familial environment of Robby. Then Bob Falls disappears again for good part of a decade, only to resurface through the letters written to his long lost nephew. This saga of Bobby Falls inspires Robby to launch his own comic series featuring his Marine uncle coming from WWII and depicting his heroic tales with a twinge of trauma.
Years go by and a charismatic film-maker Bill Johnson picks up this long-forgotten comic hero as ‘Knightshade’ for his next motion picture masterpiece. This maverick writer-director finds his imperfectly perfect superhero in the form of ‘Knightshade’ and offers it company in the form of a troubled enigmatic Eve Knight. So tumble in tons of characters playing crucial roles in this upcoming super hit movie like Allicia Mac-Teer, O.K. Bailey and Wren Lane. Each of these characters are introduced in details with their own background, life stories and what they are looking for in the story of Firefall. It’s as much about their own fates coinciding with the fate of the movie they are shooting for.
It’s worth noting the coincidence of shooting a major motion picture during a pandemic which deals with the traumatic aftereffects of WWII, another global catastrophic event few decades ago.
Well, this is really what the actual story of this novel. That’s what matters, that’s the crux of the story around which the premise of this fictional moviescape is built. But there are so many stories and backstories to go around and remember who-is-who and what role they will be playing in the production of the upcoming blockbuster becomes tedious after a while. Like a real movie helmed by a maverick filmmaker being praised for its superb storytelling and crisp editing, this book also required the book editing skills in ample amount.
Indeed there is innovative storytelling, narrated from a moving-third-person perspective which keeps on shifting from person to person giving an insight into their thoughts and aspirations. This is no straightforward storytelling but narrated like a movie script is a
As the name suggests, the storyline unfolds in the present day and revolves around making of a science fiction movie based on a comic book hero set in WWII. The comic book itself is written during the late 70s- early 80s with reflections of American societies around the time.
So the book takes us on three distinct timelines across United States of America during the 40s when the troops were stationed overseas to fight a war alongside their allies, then it moves forward to 70s when the author of the aforesaid comic book author sculpts his action hero based on the story of his maternal uncle and finally to the current times emerging from the shadows of a pandemic. Each period has its own unique timestamps on the American lives felt not only in the big cities like San Fransico but even in the small towns like Lone Bute.
That’s how the story begins- giving us glimpses of everyday lives of a small boy growing up in a small town in California post war years. He is Robby Andersen who has grown up in that small town hearing stories about the great war been fought millions of miles and continents away where his father and maternal uncle have given their own contribution. His father is back home to his family, quite content with his life, wife and children. No more talks of the fighting, thank you. Unlike his uncle. Bob Falls who has became sort of a family lore after disappearing for good few years. Eventually he comes for a brief family visit but realises quickly that his presence is less than welcome around the tightly knit familial environment of Robby. Then Bob Falls disappears again for good part of a decade, only to resurface through the letters written to his long last nephew. This saga of Bobby Falls inspires Robby to launch his own comic series featuring his Marine uncle coming from WWII and depicting his heroic tales with a twinge of trauma.
Years go by and a charismatic film-maker Bill Johnson picks up this long-forgotten comic hero as ‘Knightshade’ for his next motion picture masterpiece. This maverick writer-director finds his imperfectly perfect superhero in the form of ‘Knightshade’ and offers it company in the form of a troubled enigmatic Eve Knight. So tumble in tons of characters playing crucial roles in this upcoming super hit movie like Allicia Mac-Teer, O.K. Bailey and Wren Lane. Each of these characters are introduced in details with their own background, life stories and what they are looking for in the story of Firefall. It’s as much about their own fates coinciding with the fate of the movie they are shooting for.
It’s worth noting the coincidence of shooting a major motion picture during a pandemic which deals with the traumatic aftereffects of WWII, another global catastrophic event few decades ago.
Well, this is actually what the actual story of this novel. That’s what matters, that’s the crux of the story around which the premise of this fictional moviescape is built. But there are so many stories and backstories to go around and remember who-is-who and what role they will be playing in the production of the upcoming blockbuster becomes tedious after a while. Like a real movie helmed by a maverick filmmaker being praised for its superb storytelling and crisp editing, this book also required the later part of the movie business in ample amount.
Indeed there is innovative storytelling, narrated from a moving-third-person perspective which keeps on shifting from person to person giving an insight into their thoughts and aspirations. This is no straightforward approach but more like narrative storytelling, much like a movie script. Certainly it’s a brilliant idea although executed rather haphazardly. At the end, we all feel that the novel, the story and the characters therein would have benefitted with little bit of editing touches.
Having said that, it is worth giving this rambling roundabout movie making venture a chance. It’s worth for a quick, reading-on-the-side or listening (if you take my approach) to get a peek into the moonlight tinted world of making a motion picture masterpiece.