When I heard the news that
Richard Yates' Revolutionary Road (
A) was finally being fast-tracked into production, I ... well, what
did I do? I snickered cynically ("Hardly a book begging for movie treatment, really"), I silently appreciated director
Sam Mendes' gutsiness, while I audibly disdained his
original attempt at this self-same material; then when he enlisted his wife, I conceded I would probably queue up to see the movie in theatres because I'll happily watch
Kate Winslett in anything, even if it
co-stars Leonardo DiCaprio. And, finally, I checked my face in the mirror, to try on a, "Let's give this a try," look that I hoped would impress my wife with its manly "let's remain open to all the options" demeanor.
As for the book, am I the only guy who thought it was ...
funny (resorting to blurbage: "
savagely funny")? Poor April Wheeler comes to a grotty end, but Frank is a truly comic figure who, as
James Wood points out, gets
exactly what he wants by book's end, and isn't fettered with the self-awareness to acknowledge this as a tragedy. Why, Frank Wheeler is as comic a hero as you're likely to find on this side of
Beckett -- or
Road Runner, actually. Now if you'll excuse me, it's time I put books down and took the trash to the curb.
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