Book Review: Somebody, The Reckless Life and Remarkable Career of Marlon Brando

SOMEBODY: THE RECKLESS LIFE AND REMARKABLE CAREER OF MARLON BRANDO (2008)
By: Stefan Kanfer

"To the end of his life, Marlon Brando insisted that he had done nothing special. In his view acting was a trade like plumbing or baking. The only difference was that he played characters instead of unclogging drains or kneading loaves of bread. This was not false modesty; he believed what he said. But what he believed was untrue."
~Stefan Kanfer (opening passage from "Somebody")

Film historian Molly Haskell once wrote, "there is only one Brando." In his 2008 biography on the late actor, Kanfer goes above and beyond in proving Haskell's observation. In only 323 pages, Kanfer manages to do what few other Brando biographers have done; portray the man as he really was, without including empty rumours or petty gossip and speculation. Kanfer portrays Brando as a flawed, complex human being with an incredible talent.

Kanfer provides context to the life of Brando, from his early childhood in Omaha to his death in 2004, by setting the stage with issues that were going on in the world at the time. When Brando was born in April of 1924, two youths kidnapped and murdered a 14-year-old boy in a Chicago suburb. It was the time of Prohibition. Since the Great War, the area where young Marlon grew up saw a rise in its black population, causing resentment and racial strife. Not only do you learn about Marlon Brando, but Kanfer makes sure his readers are aware of the America in which the actor was growing up.

It becomes a historical text in so many ways. Kanfer discusses America, classic Hollywood and the sex, drugs and rock n'roll culture which Brando witnessed. It helps the reader to better understand why Brando did what he did and why certain causes were closer to his heart than others.

The book is full of interesting anecdotes that Kanfer dug up through his extensive research, including the fact that young Marlon was always drawn to those who were seen as social outcasts. As a child he befriended the only black boy in one of his classes and took a female classmate, who had issues with her vision because her eyes were crossed, to the school dance. Later in life, this could still be seen in his friendship to Michael Jackson, even when the King of Pop was on trial for child molestation charges, and in his dedication to the plight of Native Americans.

Despite these good deeds and his loyalty to those friends who stood by him, Brando had a quick temper and always had volatile relationships with the women in his life. Interesting fact: actress Rita Moreno once attempted suicide after Brando broke up with her. Their relationship, both personal and professional, always remained rocky from then on. Brando was father to ten children, although there are at least two others who claim they are his as well. He never connected on an emotional level with any of his three wives and would often go months, even years, without seeing some of his own children.

However, Brando often considered himself an activist, first and foremost. He battled against racial segregation, he fought to help establish a Jewish state and took up the cause of Native Americans. After the 1968 murder of Martin Luther King Jr., Brando made it his mission to help further the works of the late King Jr. in the public eye.

Kanfer details Brando's time in Tahiti, his love/hate relationship with his acting profession and the Hollywood friendships and enemies (such as his nemesis, Frank Sinatra) he made along the way. Kanfer believes Brando was happiest in Tahiti, although the actor often left for Hollywood for long stretches of time. It seemed that even though Brando hated what Hollywood represented, he was always drawn to film.

Brando often claimed he made films because of the large paycheques (which would help him when it came time to pay what he owed in his divorce settlements and child custody disputes). However, his comments on acting make for some of the best moments in Kanfer's account. Despite his flippant attitude towards his profession, Brando was a master of his craft and, without ever admitting it, seemed to be aware of that fact. One of his most famous interviews took place in his house in 1994. The infamous hour-long Larry King interview truly captures the persona of Marlon Brando, and Kanfer's novel manages to do that as well.

Brando never abused drugs. He drank very little. His vices? Sex and food. Even though he remained married to his third wife, Tarita, until his death, Brando had three children by his housekeeper and ate so much that his weight ballooned in a short span of time.

Kanfer's engaging prose and film knowledge go a long way towards making this one of the best and most unbiased celebrity biographies out there. Regardless of whether or not you are a fan of Marlon Brando, his life and unique personality make for a compelling read.

GRADE: A

BRANDO QUICK FACTS
-Born on April 3, 1924 in Omaha, Nebraska
-Nickname: Bud
-Parents: Marlon Brando Sr. and Dorothy "Dodie" Pennebaker Brando
-Siblings: Two older sisters, Frances and Jocelyn
-His mother became a depressed alcoholic, his father was a traveling salesman who slept with other women
-Pupil of legendary acting teacher, Stella Adler
-Revolutionized film acting, used the Method Approach in his performances
-Tennessee Williams re-wrote the character of Stanley Kowalski (A Streetcar Named Desire) to suit Brando's Broadway portrayal of the character
-First screen role: as a paraplegic in 1950's The Men
-Most famous roles: A Streetcar Named Desire, Viva Zapata!, On the Waterfront (for which he won his first Oscar in 1954), The Godfather (for which he won his second Oscar in 1972) and Last Tango in Paris
-In 1990, son Christian Brando shot and murdered Dag Drollet in Marlon's own house; Marlon attended Christian's trial and even testified in court
-Penned his autobiography, Songs My Mother Taught Me in 1994
-Lived next door to close friends Jack Nicholson and Michael Jackson
-Brando's son, Miko, was Michael Jackson's bodyguard
-In 1995, daughter Cheyenne committed suicide at the age of 25
-Married three times: #1 Anna Kashfi (one son, Christian), #2 Movita Castaneda (two children: son, Miko and daughter, Rebecca), #3 Tarita Teriipaia (two children: son, Simon Teihotu and daughter, Cheyenne)
-Children with his longtime mistress and housekeeper, Maria Christina Ruiz: Ninna, Myles and Timothy
-Other children: Stefano Brando (mother unknown) and one child he adopted on his own, Petra Barrett Brando
-Two others claim they are Marlon's children: Maimiti Brando and Raiatua Brando
-Final film: The Score (2001) with Robert DeNiro and Edward Norton
-Gave acting lessons at his house in L.A. during the last two years of his life: Leonardo DiCaprio, Sean Penn and Edward Norton are among those who attended group acting sessions with Brando
-Died on July 1, 2004 in Los Angeles at the age of 80 of complications from pneumonia, diabetes and pulmonary fibrosis
-Considered the greatest screen actor of all time

Book Review: Gone with the Wind

Margaret Mitchell's 1934 masterpiece is the epitome of the sweeping epic.

Set in Atlanta during the American Civil War and subsequent Reconstruction, Mitchell chronicles the successes and struggles of Scarlett O'Hara, the daughter of an Irish immigrant plantation owner. Scarlett watches her beloved house, Tara, fall into disrepair as her household disbands upon the outbreak of war. Making the occasional appearance at both the most convenient and most inopportune moments is Rhett Butler, the dashing, albeit socially ostracized, gentleman who, if nothing else, lusts after Scarlett like no other.

I've always been a fan of the 1939 David O. Selznick film version, in all its technicolour glory. However, when reading the novel, I was struck by how much the novel is an actual history lesson. I was going on the assumption that the novel was more of a romance, as the film suggests, yet it's much more powerful and shouldn't be brushed off as such.

Scarlett O'Hara is the most complex female character I've ever encountered in a novel. Vivien Leigh is beautiful and charming, however, the film didn't do complete justice to this vibrant character. While reading the novel I couldn't believe how much of an anti-heroine Scarlett really is in Mitchell's writing. She speaks her mind, regardless of its consequences, openly loathes Melanie Wilkes, a woman so kind she practically has a halo around her head, and will use any man at the drop of a hat should she need money to provide for herself and her beloved Tara.

Even when I didn't agree with something Scarlett was doing, saying or thinking, I loved her to pieces. It astounded me that this vibrant, controversial character was created in the 1930s. I found myself rooting for her, even when her actions called for her to be taken down a notch. Unlike her youngest sisters, when the O'Hara riches began to disappear Scarlett fought tooth and nail to scrounge what she could, regardless of its cost to others. Scarlett O'Hara is a complete original. Perhaps when Charles Darwin wrote his theory on the "survival of the fittest" he had a woman like Scarlett in mind.

Rhett and Scarlett were made for each other, however, they were both equally too stubborn to really embrace the concept. Even though Rhett was the one who more openly adored Scarlett in the relationship, he had his moments where he almost threw his love for her to the wind. Scarlett was too oblivious and wrapped up in her own individual struggles to realize the looks Rhett gave her were looks of love and respect. I love open-ended finales and I admire any author who can leave their audience hanging and wanting more without giving everything away and leaving nothing to the imagination. We have no idea whether or not Rhett ever came back to Scarlett. I like my fiction with a dose of realism so I kind of like the unsatisfactory idea that Rhett never returned. What Scarlett said to him was the final straw and Scarlett was left trying to fill a void in her life that no amount of money could fill.

Ashley Wilkes was much more compelling in Mitchell's writing. He's a bit of a drip in the film; scrawny and not particularly worthy of Scarlett's unwavering devotion. However, in the novel, he was much more of a stud and I found that I understood his character a lot better. He was a man broken by war and what he witnessed and his pride prevented his ever feeling comfortable with Scarlett's generosity towards him and Melanie. He had his masculine pride and, like all men in the novel besides Rhett, he felt threatened by the obvious success of Scarlett, a woman. In the film I always thought Ashley truly did love Scarlett. After reading the novel I realized that he was "in lust" with her the entire time. He didn't love her temper, her savvy money skills, her brashness, her opinions or her mind the way Rhett did. He (and its sad in its own way) married a woman he didn't love simply out of an obligation to family tradition.

It made me realize Scarlett and Rhett were so ahead of their time, in their personalities and belief systems. They threw caution to the wind and dared to be themselves in a time still steeped in old traditions and separate and distinct gender roles. I love that Scarlett had no desire for motherhood. It completely casts aside the notion that every woman desires to become a parent one day to a large brood of children. Scarlett would have fit in well with today's career-oriented, independent world.

I never knew much about the American Civil War, however, Mitchell's novel gave me a great history lesson in and of itself. Her novel is jam-packed with vivid details on war trails, crushing battle fronts, famous generals and intricate societal expectations. She displayed admirable attention to detail in describing the fashion of the time, the destruction of towns, the freedom of black slaves and the subsequent creation of the Ku Klux Klan, among other issues.

The descriptions of the tragedies of war and the desolation of its aftermath were compelling and profoundly moving.

I read this giant, epic, 1200 + page tome in about a month. I was swept up in the tragedy, the romance and the overall greatness of Margaret Mitchell's stunning novel. It's one of the few novels you will read in your lifetime that you can credit as being absolutely flawless in every regard.

A++