Have you ever watched one of filmmaker David Cronenberg’s
newer movies, such as A Dangerous Method or
Eastern Promises, and wished he would
go back to making movies more like his older, weirder films? Okay, while you
probably haven’t, I definitely have. But while I don’t necessarily dislike his
newer stuff, I do prefer his earlier, weirder titles such as eXistenZ, The Brood, and Scanners. So I was anxious to see what
Cronenberg would come up with when he made his debut as a novelist with Consumed.
This book leans heavily toward the strange. Consumed’s plot revolves around the
radical French philosophers Celestine and Aristide Arosteguy. Celestine was
recently found murdered and the French police believe Aristide, her husband,
murdered and then ate some of her before disappearing. One of Consumed’s main characters, freelance
reporter Naomi, tries to locate Aristide in hopes of scoring a big article on
the murder. It might actually get weirder from there, but I won’t give any more
away.
Consumed is an
impressive debut for Cronenberg. The bizarre plots come together in a
surprisingly neat manner, and it’s definitely not a book where you spend much
time thinking, “Well, I knew that was coming.” I do think it would have made for
a better movie, but it’s definitely a novel that will appeal to Cronenberg
fans, fans of weird horror, and readers who just want something weird.
John
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