Book #34

The Duke in His Domain by Truman Capote

 

Now Brando looked at people with assurance, and with what can only be called a pitying expression, as though he dwelt in spheres of enlightenment where they, to his regret, did not.

This mesmerizing profile of an insecure, vulnerable young Marlon Brando, brooding in a Kyoto hotel during a break from filming, is a peerless piece of journalism.

I thought I had an interest in stories of Hollywood stars from bygone eras. Maybe I am easily tricked by the glitz and glamour, and when it comes to conversations in a hotel room my interest wanes.

Capote writes an article for the New Yorker on Marlon Brando after interviewing him in Japan whilst filming. It’s a clear story of social climbing, a rags to riches, pauper to prince kinda tale. Maybe this would be fascinating if I were in the right mindset, or if I were able to get past certain things.

Almost from the jump, the stench of alpha male energy wafted from the pages and wrinkled my nose. Then the clear fetishisation of Japanese women reared its ugly head. I could not.

I may need to come back to this one.