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'The Good, the Bad and the Multiplex' by Mark Kermode

So, from lost letters, we move on to potentially lost causes in Mark Kermode's 'The Good, the Bad and the Multiplex'.

Esteemed film critic Mark Kermode is back with a reasoned polemic on the state of cinema and why the current system is failing us, the audience.  Kermode discusses the demise of the projectionist and the knock on effect for performance quality, how remaking popular foreign language films means a lot is lost in translation and independent cinemas' ongoing battle for survival.  This is a book that questions the familiar headlines, revealing that the British are rarely coming (no matter how many Oscars Dame Judi Dench and Colin Firth win) and that, despite the hype, 3D is far from the future.  High noon is approaching, and Sheriff Kermode clearly has no plans to get out of Dodge.

'The Good, the Bad and the Multiplex' is informative, interesting and thoroughly entertaining.  It's a must read for anyone who loves cinema and can't quite understand why its just not as much fun as it used to be.  In fact, I wish a few people in the industry, plus the Minister for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, would read it too.  Hopefully that would stop this being the last chance saloon for the British cinema industry.

One thing I would like to see is an updated version of 'The Good, the Bad and the Multiplex'.  Although little feels like it's improved on the ground since the book was published in 2010/11, there have been some wider changes, such as the fall of Harvey Weinstein, the rise of the infinite Marvel and Star Wars universes and the spread of streaming services, all things that could influence the text.  I'd also be interested to know if his view on blockbusters has changed.  Lately, I've felt like many of them are trying too hard, mistaking convoluted plots for good stories, but maybe that's just me.

Overall, if you love cinema as much as Kermode loves cinema, you'll enjoy this book.  I'm already looking forward to his next, due to come out in September.

Now, what next...

'The Good, the Bad and the Multiplex' by Mark Kermode was published in 2011 by Random House.

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