Uncomfortably personal but fascinating account by Bogdanovich of his relationship with Dorothy Stratten. Reading it is like listening to an old friend who has been through this horrible experience unburden himself on you – he goes on too long, waffles, tells you things you didn’t really need to know – but you feel as though you can’t interrupt or say anything because he is a grieving widower. Because it involves famous people and a notorious event you find yourself gripped; but it also makes you uneasy since some of the information feels too personal.
We hear about Bogdanovich and Stratten’s courtship and love making; there are long descriptions of their kisses and what she wore on certain days; Bogdanovich’s theories about what happened to Stratten (rape and torture); frequent comments about how lovely and wonderful Stratten was, including lots of her poetry, the wise things she said, and number of times people commented on her large breasts (apparently one was bigger than the other). I hope this isn’t coming across as mean, that’s not the intention – it’s just this is a very raw and personal work.
Interestingly, Bogdanovich doesn’t just blame Paul Snider for Stratten’s death, he also indicts Hugh Hefner and the whole playboy philosophy. He certainly has an arguable case (he quotes Molly Haskell, among others) – but I couldn’t help thinking that it was a bit unfair and hypocritical of Bogdanovich, since Hefner had showed him so much hospitality over the years (including introducing him to Stratten and co-financing Saint Jack). And Bogdanovich was a wealthy film director and Stratten an aspiring actor – isn’t there some sort of exploitation and power imbalance going on there? I know, nude photography is different from filmmaking and all that - I just felt it was a bit rich of Bogdanovich to exploit Playboy and Hefner for his own ends (not to mention his position as a film director), then get high and mighty about it.
He also gets stuck into Bob Fosse’s Star 80 for its flaws (including complaining that Mariel Hemingway’s breasts weren’t as big as Dorothy’s) – without mentioning that Star 80 shows the director based on Bogdanovich to have some manipulative traits similar to Paul Snider. But I can understand his need to blame someone.
Stratten was a beautiful person and her performance in They All Laughed is very likeable. This is a loving tribute – too loving to get a really accurate picture of her, it’s through soft focus, but would such a thing be possible for someone who lived such a short period of time? What did she really feel about Bogdanovich? Was it love – was she just swept up in the romance and glamour of going out with a rich and successful elder man who wasn’t a scungy pimp like her husband? I know that’s a very personal question to ask, but this is the sort of book that invites these questions.
Gripping, if unsettling reading, very much admired for those interested in Bogdanovich.
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