Henry Miller 1969
Distributed by Icarus Films, 32 Court St., 21st Floor, Brooklyn, NY 11201; 800-876-1710
Produced by Le Sel de la Semaine
Director n/a
DVD, b&w, 58 min
Jr. High - Adult
Biography, Literature, Storytelling, Writing
Date Entered: 05/26/2010
Reviewed by Brad Eden, Associate University Librarian for Technical Services and Scholarly Communication, University of California, Santa BarbaraThis DVD is a reissue of a 1969 interview with author Henry Miller. It was originally aired on Quebec television, and the 77-year-old author was interviewed by Fernand Seguin. This is an interesting look at a modern-day author through his own eyes. Miller discusses his life as his writing inspiration: how his suicidal depression led him to write Tropic of Cancer, how this book changed the definition of obscenity in literature (and how disgusted he was by people who bought this book merely as pornographic reading), and his years of poverty begging off of friends and strangers alike. The setting is typical for the 1960's: the author is constantly smoking on stage while being interviewed, with images being projected onto a screen behind the author while he talks. A very interesting autobiographical interview and insight on the writings and life of Henry Miller through his own voice.