The Film Club : A True Story Of A Father And Son
David Gilmour is pretty brave to write about the three years he and his son spent watching and discussing movies. The Film Club : A True Story Of A Father And Son (2007. Biography. ANF 819.354) is a read that I almost did not finish.
This book might not be your cup of tea at all, or you might love it. I checked Social Living Books on Facebook for other opinions and was surprised to see that my reaction was in the minority. Most did like it.
The book begins with Gilmour telling his son he can quit school at sixteen with only Grade 9 under his belt and do nothing he doesn’t want to, as long as he watches movies that Gilmour picks out and discusses them. It is obvious that Jesse thinks he has landed in Heaven, and the reader is not spared his shiftless days and his almost total self-absorption in his painful relationships with girls. I just about closed the book when Gilmour recounted his hand-holding not once but twice when Jesse mixes cocaine and tequila. I kept thinking “when is this going to end”, but I stuck it out to the end where Jesse suddenly leaves childhood behind.
Jesse must be some kind of child to let his father write about his very painful transition from child to adult, and Gilmour must be some kind of father to be so seemingly calm about the chaos in his son’s life. Very surreal at times for me.
The thread that kept me going was the curriculum that Gilmour devised. One after the other, the titles of movies made their appearance and were accompanied by on-the-mark perceptive comments from Gilmour. I was very happy to see a complete list of them at the end of the book. I have photocopied that list for my own personal use (no copywrite infingement) and will be having my own film festival.
Please note this is the last posting from Gloria, Library Manager at the Nanaimo Wellington library branch. After many years of working for the Vancouver Island Regional Library Gloria is taking a much deserved retirement. Good luck and enjoy Gloria, we are going to miss you! Janice B, Virtual Services Manager
