Film: American Fiction

This evening, I headed to American Fiction! I saw the trailer a few times, and it looked excellent - a comedy in which an intelligent, well-educated black author realises that he can increase his sales by "ghetto-ising" himself, as that's what white audiences expect from black writers! Showing in my closest cinema. Not that the main listings site had any mention of it being in any Curzon, of course, when I looked.. but I do know to check them separately. Along with several others! Again, I headed to the Cote on St. Katharine Dock for food.

Ah, the service there really is sublime.. and this time, I had calamari for starter, because it's loverly. Steak frites again - I had the Sauvignon Blanc this time, though, which.. interestingly.. is cheaper than the Chardonnay. Anyway, they do them all as carafes - and their wine list is enduringly excellent. The madeleines I have become accustomed to for dessert were served warm, dusted with icing sugar.. what's not to love?!

And so to the cinema, where I had another glass of wine, but was too stuffed for a snack. I can recommend seat C1 in Screen 2 - it's not only on the aisle, but there are steps in front of it, so nobody blocks your view.

Well now, this is indeed a clever film. As it begins, we meet our protagonist teaching a bored class - one of whom takes offence to him writing the "n-word" on the board. (He's teaching a class on nineteenth-century literature, or something, and trying to make the point about how language has changed.) As he says to this (white) girl, if he can put up with it, she certainly can. Cue her flouncing out in tears. Strike one against the snowflakes..

All the scenes from the trailer are hilarious, as he deals with publishers and filmmakers, all of whom think his book, which he has deliberately written to be as trashy as possible, is the best thing since sliced bread. We get to hear a lot about why he write what he wrote. In fact, this is much less a comedy than I thought it would be - we actually spend most of the film dealing with his private life, meeting his family, his mother (who's losing her mind), his newly out-of-the-closet brother, and the girl across the road with whom he strikes up a new relationship.

I got tired of all the exposition, to be honest, until I realised that it had to be like that, or we'd just dismiss him as trite, money-grabbing, cynical - no, he's conflicted about his decision, but needs the money for medical care for his mother. It's wonderful, too, to have him meet another black author - already popular for writing the sort of book he despises - only to discover that they're not poles apart in their opinions. There's a lot of analysis of the black psyche - from the point of view of a black intellectual, part of a successful family. So yes, in fact, quite an insightful film - and not just for bashing people for liking trashy books. Hang on in there, too, for a variety of alternative endings..

Tomorrow, ending a Meetup drought with Discover London - History Walks and Events (DL), for a walk entitled Discover the Secrets of the Riverside Part 2: Cannon Street to Blackfriars. One of those groups that never get listed when I do a general search for a particular day.. I just have to remember to search the group individually. When it's a weekend I'm in London, anyway! They're always good. Crikey though, it's over a year since I did Part 1..

On Monday and Tuesday - yep, a small Meetup drought again - I'm with CT again. Improv both nights - Monday is for Shake It Up - The Improvised Shakespeare Show! It's at the Hen & Chickens - must dig out my membership card, given out automatically at every show there, and good for a year. After all, I was there for horror films at Hallowe'en.

Tuesday, I'm at Stage Time - an Improv Variety Show at Shoreditch Balls. Tickets generally available through Eventbrite.

Two nights with Meetup then - on Wednesday, I'm back, for the first time in most of a year, with The Horror Book Club! They always either clashed with something else, or were reading something I didn't fancy, you see.. well, I couldn't avoid this one, where they're reading Ramsey Campbell. I don't like everything he's written - but he was responsible for my favourite horror book ever, Incarnate. And I see he's still writing - the book they're covering on Wednesday is The Lonely Lands, written just last year! I just bought the Kindle edition - and couldn't resist reading the first chapter, which consists of just one sentence:

"When he heard his wife say 'I'm not alone' he thought at first she meant to reassure him."

Ooh, I cannot wait to get into the rest of it - thanks, book club, for reintroducing me! As usual, they're meeting in the Prince of Wales, Covent Garden - and I can eat there.

On Thursday, I'm with Up in the Cheap Seats (UITCS) - another group that never appears in the general Meetup listings, despite being one of the busiest - for Northanger Abbey, in the Orange Tree Theatre. Another place I haven't been in nearly a year..

Then I'm back to Ireland for the weekend. On the 12th and 13th, back with CT for the Bitesize Festival at Riverside Studios - on the 12th, it's for Second Temple, a Jewish comedy.

On the 13th, it's for All the Men Are Going to Hate Me, another comedy, about a woman trying to write the century's great (female) novel!

Then I have five (!) days of Meetup: the next three with UITCS. On the 14th, we're at When You Pass Over My Tomb, at the Arcola. A "story of love and lust beyond the grave", as described, it sounds like an interesting way to spend Valentine's Day.

On the 15th, we're at Double Feature, at Hampstead Theatre.

And on the 16th, we're at Hir, a transgender comedy at Park Theatre. My companion of last night is coming to that as well.

On the 17th, I'm back (whee! at last!) with Laurence Summers and the 45+ Not Grumpy Old Londoners.. I've been persuaded to redo his Dickens walk. Well, it's months since I was on one of his - and he now only does one Saturday a month, says there's no real demand! And since I can no longer go on the midweek ones, in general.. well.. it'll be great to be back with them anyway.

And on the 18th, back with DL - it was a while before I thought to check that website to see whether there was another walk, and there is, that day! So we're off to Discover London's Oldest Market and Original "High Street"..