The book: Legends of the Fall by Jim Harrison
I have to say that this was one of the most disappointing stories I have ever read. I don't know that it even qualifies as a "book" or "novel", it's so short. The fact that Amazon has at least one copy being sold for one penny, says something.
The story of three brothers who all, to some degree, love the same woman, gets told in a very meandering sort of way. Harrison rambles on about unrelated subplots and stories. More than once, I would get to the end of a paragraph- which had lasted for more than a full page- and wonder, "What the heck was he talking about? What does this have to do with Tristan (or whoever was the focus at the time)?"
Harrison has been lauded as one of the great story tellers of his generation, and I cannot for the life of me fathom why. Maybe because he wrote about sex, drugs, suicide, infidelity and crime? Maybe because he set his story in a time when those things weren't in fashion, and he lived in a time when they were in fashion? The literature of the 1970s seemed to enjoy force-placing their morals on simpler times: it was deemed "enlightened" to pretend that the debauchery of the day had always been in place... maybe that is why Harrison was so highly regarded.
Another theory is that there was tremendous potential in this story. Three brothers, one beautiful woman, the affection of one stubborn father, a picturesque setting and a forgotten era between wars. If only someone had taught Harrison about punctuation. Or staying focused on a topic.
The movie: Legends of the Fall starring Brad Pitt and Anthony Hopkins released in 1994
Rated R for violence, language and sexuality
This film is one of those that stays with you long after the end credits roll. If you ask me to name my five favorite movies, this one probably doesn't make the list. Yet, if I see it on TV, I sit and watch it all the way through to the end. Or, as was the case last time, watch it back to back all the way through, twice (My husband came home 5 minutes before the first showing ended, at least I have a decent excuse for watching the same movie twice in a row).
The characters that seem so wooden on Harrison's pages are brought to vivid life by one of the most extraordinary casts ever assembled. Anytime that somebody like Aiden Quinn plays a supporting role, you know it's got to be great. The love stories are greatly embellished, breathing life and emotion into a triangle (rectangle?) that is otherwise sordid and gross.
The director, Edward Zwick, takes full advantage of the setting in northern Montana and plays up the freedom, the beauty, the harshness, the unadulterated possibilities of living on the northernmost edge of America's frontier. The Natives are treated respectfully, One Stab becomes our narrator (as opposed to Harrison's story which is surprisingly racist for a man educated in the arts during the 60s).
Susanna's emotional distress and psychological disorders are more fully explored, as are the emotions behind the Tristan's wanderings. You feel the pain from both of them- helped in large part by the fact that they are played by some of the most talented actors of their generation, Julia Ormond and Brad Pitt, respectively. And, yet, despite their atrocious behavior, you grieve with them, you pray for their happiness.
The bottom line:
Agree? Disagree? Post your thoughts in the comments?
Images: Google Images
