If you're reading this book, you're no doubt familiar with Dr Kermode from his weekly radio show and podcast with Simon Mayo. I am a fan of the show myself, and also fondly remember Mark from when he used to introduce films on Channel 4 in the late 90s. If you've been following the show or the podcast for a while, some of the material in this book will be familiar to you, though fortunately not all of it. Through the introduction and the first chapter or two, it seemed that this was entirely going to consist of re-hashes of anecdotes that Mark had already regaled us with (sometimes on numerous occasions) on his radio show or video blog. However, from a couple of chapters in it covers new ground and becomes far more entertaining. In book form, Mark is able to either tell longer tales, gives us more detail, or address topics that he wouldn't be able to on daytime radio. It then rounds off with a chapter on the Werner Herzog shooting incident, which I must admit I was rather tired of hearing Mark wheel out again and again, but actually turns out to be rather well told here.The parts about Mark's early career and how he chanced his way into the film world were particularly interesting, especially for someone with some experiences of trying to get a foot-in-the-door of a competitive industry (it is funny to note how much some things have changed since the 80s). The centrepiece of the book is a long chapter about an ill-fated trip to the Ukraine, via Russia, in order to write a set report for a horror movie. Much like the book as a whole, it's very funny, but we learn next to nothing about films from it. That's not really a problem, since as mentioned you're probably reading this because you're a fan of Mark, rather than hoping to gain hard insights into film. But this is very much a book about Mark, and not a book about film criticism. I bought this and his follow-up book, 'The Good, The Bad, and the Multiplex' at the same time. I gather that the latter is more of a book about film itself rather than Mark's memoirs, so I look forward to reading that. A fantastic book detailing Mark's life and how his love of films has developed over the course of it. Mark tells the famous stories he has experienced over his career, many of which will be familiar to any regular fans of Wittertainment, although this did not spoil my enjoyment of the book. I recommend this to anyone with a love of films and appreciates Kermode's style of reviewing, his stories are laugh out loud and I'm sure will be relayed to my friends and family much to their dismay. Overall the main message from the book is, it is anything but only a movie.
What do You think about It's Only A Movie (2010)?
Started this, but only a few chapters in. Not as funny as the podcast.
—edgar1957
