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A review by candacesiegle_greedyreader
The Electric Hotel by Dominic Smith
5.0
"The Last Painting of Sara de Vos" was an extraordinary reading experience and a tough act to follow. Author Dominic Smith appears to be a writer ready to transport readers to a totally different world. Instead of 17th century Amsterdam, he takes us to the turn of the 20th century world of early cinema.
As a young French photographer, Claude Ballard sees a demonstration of moving "filmstrips" presented by the Lumiere brothers. He is fascinated, and begins making these very brief films himself in hopes of joining the brothers in bringing this new art form to the world. He will do this, traveling the world collecting images and sharing them with eager audiences.
In the 1960s, Claude is living in a worn Hollywood hotel with the nitrate films of his career disintegrating around him. A young film historian runs him down to hear his story and offers to restore the films Claude has been trying to preserve. But most of all, he's come to talk to him about "The Electric Hotel," the vanished film he considered his masterpiece.
As the two ends of Claude's story come together, we meet a cast of characters including Sabine Montrose, the respected French actress whose filmstrip of a playful bubble bath with a soapy kiss blown to the audience changes all their lives.
This is a lovely novel, offering rich, appealing characters, exploration of a little known glimpse into a brief period of film history and a new window into World War 1.. "The Electric Hotel" is an immersive experience.
Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for permission to review this fine novel.
As a young French photographer, Claude Ballard sees a demonstration of moving "filmstrips" presented by the Lumiere brothers. He is fascinated, and begins making these very brief films himself in hopes of joining the brothers in bringing this new art form to the world. He will do this, traveling the world collecting images and sharing them with eager audiences.
In the 1960s, Claude is living in a worn Hollywood hotel with the nitrate films of his career disintegrating around him. A young film historian runs him down to hear his story and offers to restore the films Claude has been trying to preserve. But most of all, he's come to talk to him about "The Electric Hotel," the vanished film he considered his masterpiece.
As the two ends of Claude's story come together, we meet a cast of characters including Sabine Montrose, the respected French actress whose filmstrip of a playful bubble bath with a soapy kiss blown to the audience changes all their lives.
This is a lovely novel, offering rich, appealing characters, exploration of a little known glimpse into a brief period of film history and a new window into World War 1.. "The Electric Hotel" is an immersive experience.
Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for permission to review this fine novel.