Thiago Rodrigues Rodrigues itibaren Kotva, Uttar Pradesh 273407, Hindistan
Enjoyed this memoir very much, although I'm sorry that Branagh didn't hold off a few more years (it was published in 1989) so that it could have been even more full of anecdotes and reflections on Branagh's remarkable (and by no means concluded) career. It helps that even as a young man he was both self-reflective and capable of being ironic about himself; indeed, it's probably what made him in any way tolerable to those who dealt first-hand with his precocity and ferocious drive in his early 20s! What we lose in scope, we gain in relative freshness of perception, and for something that was thrown together, as he disarmingly admits, for the money, during what sounds like an entirely inhuman schedule of acting, directing, and forming a company in the late 80s, this is a remarkably readable and enjoyable piece of work. Among the many highlights, his appreciative comments about Judi Dench's debut as a director, his very funny anecdote about ad-libbing in iambic pentameter about the absence of an absolutely crucial prop - a glove - and his diary-like daily entries about the filming of Henry V are what stick in my memory right at the moment. Very much recommended to anyone who's enjoyed his work.
Solid, interesting spin on a familiar topic. Best when they are at school.