Turkish thoughts, Atom Egoyan, and Ann Beatie

I leave for Turkey in two days. I haven't prepared. The past few days I've just been trying to organize things in my room and in my life. And otherwise putting off the idea that I'll be gone for three weeks soon. Unfortunately Ed can't leave on Saturday; he'll be leaving Sunday. And so I find myself with a free day in Istanbul to wander the streets alone. Though now on that first night I'll be crashing in a cheap backpacker hostel.

In preparation we watched Atom Egoyan's Ararat. It's a dense film that doesn't really succeed, but has the urge of a story that must be told. In the end, there is almost too much information and exposition, burdening the film with the weight of history. And the underlying structure of the film pays off better in Hou Hsiao Hsien's Good Men, Good Women, which uses similar storytelling techniques. For those who have never seen an Egoyan film, I'd suggest starting with Exotica.

I once saw Egoyan speak, shortly after his adaptation of The Sweet Hereafter was released. He was at the Barnes and Noble on 54th on the East side. It was a panel discussion of sorts between him and a moderator on adapting novels for the screen. Russel Banks was not in attendance. They gave away free books and soundtracks to those in attendance. Afterwards, Egoyan stayed to sign movie posters. I asked him to sign my book. I don't remember what I said to him, but I remember feeling lucky to have seen him.

In Boston I once attended a reading by Ann Beatie. Her new book had just come out and she read a passage from the beginning. The novel was yet another about a college professor dealing with the onset of middle age, lusting after a much younger student. I found the subject tired. During the question and answer session, a woman asked Ann Beatie if she read. She looked at the audience searching for a response.

When I brought my book up for her to sign, I didn't know what to say. I couldn't thank her for the reading; I hadn't read any of her recent novels. Stuck for words, I didn't say anything. She signed the book I proffered and I moved on. Outside, Anna burst into laughter. Posted by eku at August 19, 2004 1:56 AM