RARA-AVIS: Ellroy's "Contino," another Leonard film

Levin, Doug (DLEVIN@DIRECTIMPACT.COM)
Tue, 5 May 1998 10:51:00 -0400 I'm closer to Bill Hagen on "Dick Contino's Blues," but I have not yet
read the rest of the collection. Rather than being jazzy and hip and
experimental, the prose strikes me as a little thin. True, there are
good moments, and I'm glad to see Ellroy (or any writer for that matter)
fooling around, trying to do something different, etc. The ending goes
by fast too, as James noted. I remember reading (on this list?) that
Ellroy had a two-hundred page outline for one of his long novels. "Dick
Contino" almost reads like an outline--action brushed in, with some
plans to expand. I also think Ellroy makes the mistake of substituting
fast prose for fast action. The hyped-up prose for hyped-up scenes
seems right, but it's draining to read constantly--I'd prefer a greater
variation in modes.

On another note, I just saw an ad for the summer film _Out of Sight_
based on the Elmore Leonard novel. Stars George Clooney and Jennifer
Lopez. Supporting cast: Ving Rhames, Don Cheadle, Dennis Farina, and
Albert Brooks. It's directed by Steven Soderbergh--the _Sex, Lies,
Videotape_ guy (and director of the underrated _Kafka_). What do people
know about this film? What's the story on the Leonard book?

Doug

>
#
# To unsubscribe, say "unsubscribe rara-avis" to majordomo@icomm.ca.
# The web pages for the list are at http://www.vex.net/~buff/rara-avis/.