happilywilted's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
slow-paced
5.0
At first, this was a jarring read, because after learning about Brando in depth, I was often confronted with the knowledge that he would’ve been intolerable to be around; but at the end he grew on me. I actually felt kind of bad because of the treatment he often got from the media and struggling to find happiness and peace.
Most of the time, he was cocky and the book seemed to use his past trauma to excuse his crappy behavior. But, ultimately this book is not making assumptions about him and just laying the facts on why he acted a certain way.
Prior to this book, I was a huge fan of Marlon, which I still am, but now I’m well aware that he would’ve been annoyed at the idea of himself being someone I’m a fan of. Most of the time, he was described as being irritated at fans, which was also jarring.
Nevertheless, this was a good read. Sometimes, the pages didn’t fly, but it kept me interested and was a fascinating read on a complex figure who is often misread or misunderstood.
bobbert's review
4.0
You get the sense that this, like all biographies, is Mann’s perception of Brando. But hey, what isn’t perception? And to hell with objectivity! I liked how Mann portrayed Brando (not as a ne’er do well whacko who, excuse my language, pissed on the culture of Hollywood) as a multifaceted being, a contender who really tried his best to overcome his personal faults. Marlon’s story has never failed to renew my own faith in the promise of peace. Albeit his struggles with women still elude me; its a wonder how a man who felt so much and loved so much took a whole lifetime and more to develop trust in women…
Honestly, I think my rating wouldn’t be this high if I’d read this at a different time in my life. But something happened just a few hours ago, and this helped drag me “out of the darkness” and accompany me for a few hours. Now I’m just contemplative again, so to hell with it, I’m giving this 4*s for that.
Honestly, I think my rating wouldn’t be this high if I’d read this at a different time in my life. But something happened just a few hours ago, and this helped drag me “out of the darkness” and accompany me for a few hours. Now I’m just contemplative again, so to hell with it, I’m giving this 4*s for that.
cchartier's review against another edition
4.0
A really interesting biography. It's well written and the author is forward with Brando's faults-it's no haiography.
I picked this up after reading an article that mentioned Brando's involvement in the civil rights movement of the 1960s. I knew he has been involved with the American Indian Movement, but not the extent. HIs famous rejection of the Oscar for "The Godfather" had always been described to me as something to ridicule. He was far ahead of his time in rejecting Hollywood for its racism, and the reaction was quick and a public expression of white supremacy (and a bit hypocritical, as another major star had rejected the Oscar just the year before. However he didn't tie it to racism).
The book also makes the case that, with only a handful of powerful films (and not that many bad ones-he didn't actually work all that much because he hated the business of acting), Brando is still arguably the greatest American actor captured on film. It's a solid argument.
Brando just couldn't handle the inequalities in the world and they crushed him. It was worse for him than for the rest of us because, rather than sheltering him from the world, his enormous celebrity made him run from Hollywood and hate a society that prized celebrity news over the impacts of racism, poverty, homophobia, etc., etc.
Sadly, it was only at the end of his life that Brando was able to apply this empathy to his treatment of women. He was sexually fluid from a young age, but that sexual liberation did not translate to his relationships. I'm glad he got there, but his life may have been a lot happy if he could have treated women as equals.
I picked this up after reading an article that mentioned Brando's involvement in the civil rights movement of the 1960s. I knew he has been involved with the American Indian Movement, but not the extent. HIs famous rejection of the Oscar for "The Godfather" had always been described to me as something to ridicule. He was far ahead of his time in rejecting Hollywood for its racism, and the reaction was quick and a public expression of white supremacy (and a bit hypocritical, as another major star had rejected the Oscar just the year before. However he didn't tie it to racism).
The book also makes the case that, with only a handful of powerful films (and not that many bad ones-he didn't actually work all that much because he hated the business of acting), Brando is still arguably the greatest American actor captured on film. It's a solid argument.
Brando just couldn't handle the inequalities in the world and they crushed him. It was worse for him than for the rest of us because, rather than sheltering him from the world, his enormous celebrity made him run from Hollywood and hate a society that prized celebrity news over the impacts of racism, poverty, homophobia, etc., etc.
Sadly, it was only at the end of his life that Brando was able to apply this empathy to his treatment of women. He was sexually fluid from a young age, but that sexual liberation did not translate to his relationships. I'm glad he got there, but his life may have been a lot happy if he could have treated women as equals.
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