Literary giant Anton Chekhov died at 44 in 1904. In that brief span he produced hundreds of short stories, 16 plays, a novel, five novellas, and three books on travel. His big four stage works,
The Seagull, Uncle Vanya, Three Sisters, and
The Cherry Orchard, continue to be produced worldwide. His writing has been translated into just about every language known to man. Like most great authors, his focus is the human condition. Last night I watched the latest film adaptation of
The Seagull (2018), courtesy of Netflix. It features a stellar cast. It is set largely at a country estate, the home of a famous middle age actress, her unmarried brother, and her son, who has literary ambitions. The young man stages an unorthodox play in the backyard, attended by family and friends. Conflicts abound. Saoirse (pronounced Sur-sha) Ronan, a Bronx girl of Irish descent whose picture seems to be in the paper every day, plays an aspiring actress instantly smitten by a famous writer, the lover of the older actress. The often unreasonable selfishness and obsessiveness of not only of artists but people is captured perfectly in the play, one of the reasons it is a magnet for serious actors. Everyone in the cast is solid, but Elizabeth Moss stands out as a hard-drinking victim of unrequited love, another of the play's themes. The person one loves loves someone else. That's happened to me and, I'm sure, to many, many others. Annette Bening brings her usual excellence to the role of the older actress, as does Corey Stoll his as the author. Veterans Brian Dennehy and Mare Winningham inject much needed life and humor into the proceedings. The UK's Billy Howle is affecting as the young writer. The screenplay was adapted by Stephen Karam. Michael Mayer, who has worked mostly in TV, directed. 1000+ users at IMDb have rated
The Seagull, forging to a consensus of 5.9 on a scale of ten, too low in my opinion, although I realize the work appeals largely to artists and fans of Chekhov. The tone is mostly downbeat. Anyone unfamiliar and curious about the work of the Russian master should take a look. It seems Ronan, not yet 24, is headed for greatness. Here she is:
After reviewing the third proof of
Inside Out, I made 24 changes to the Word file, only a handful actual corrections. I've approved the book and await its posting on Amazon. I will then buy a copy, along with three of
Close to the Edge, which has been sold out since summer. If that copy has not suffered mishaps on Amazon's end, I will announce its availability.
My thanks to the woman who purchased two paperbacks in Russian. I spent almost all of today's session of the floating book shop in my car, out of the cold. The forecast predicts the coming snow will change to rain. It's so cold I won't be surprised if it's all snow. I parked my car on the left hand side of the street in a spot where it should get a lot of sun - just in case.
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