Thoughts about Two Weeks in the Midday Sun by Ebert

This is a great book. I've been a reader of Roger Ebert for many years. I've read his reviews of most of the films I've seen over the past five years. This was the first long form book of his that I've read. The book is a memoir of his time spent at the Cannes Film Festival in the mid 80's. It starts out simple enough; Ebert is on a plane to France. He has trouble connecting to the wire service where he can send out his reviews. He takes a walk down the main strip at Cannes. Along the way he imparts advice to other critics and interjects anecdotes about past films and the history of the festival from years past.

He talks about when Francis Ford Coppola came to the festival with Apocalypse Now. He reminisces about past characters like "Silver Dollar" Baxter who would do anything to promote himself and the films he distributes. he also talked about his big dinner with the Prince of Wales and Lady Diana. It all seems like a dream until the last night of the festival. Ebert describes the scene a large group headed by Martin Scorsese is trying to get a table at a restaurant in France. Eventually they secure a table and all is well.

If you've never been to Cannes, and most of us haven't, this is a great book to give you the experience of being there without having to pay for airfare. It is a portrait of the most famous film festival in the World. Sometimes I couldn't help but laugh out loud at some story Ebert was telling. Other times he seemed to be depressed about the current cinema subtly stating that there were no good films anymore. Then he talked about a film that I haven't seen yet; Barfly. Ebert was no stranger to bars or drinking so his endorsement of the film comes as no surprise. I'll have to watch it one night.

Two Weeks in the Midday Sun will last as a testament of Ebert's quality writing. His stinging criticisms and his nuanced descriptions show how great a writer he was. Perhaps next year at around this time, which coincides with the beginning of the Cannes Film festival, I will pick up this book again and relive the stories and characters. And hopefully one year I'll get to Cannes.