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The Grip of Film

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The Grip of Film

By: Richard Ayoade
Narrated by: Richard Ayoade, Jesse Eisenberg, Jon Korkes
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About this listen

You SLUG the guy.

You KISS the dame.

You TOTAL the car.

That's movies. And I love 'em.

Gordy LaSure's passionate about film. He eats film, he drinks film, and sometimes he'll even watch a film. But most of all, he loves talking about film, and how they'd be a shit-ton better if only people would pull their asses out of their ears and listen to Gordy LaSure.

The voyage of this audiobook can be categorised as an attempt to understand How In Hell Film Works. Why are some films bad and some films terrible? How come just a handful of films (Titanic, Porky's, Dirty Harry) are any good at all? Gordy'll tell you How and Why, and he'll give you a shot of Wherefore on the side. And he doesn't shoot from the hip; he shoots from the gut.

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All stars
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Love that he references roadhouse as a masterpiece but rubbishes citizen cane.. I think I agree!!!! 👍🏻

Nice work! If you like roadhouse...

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Hilarious and so clever. I never thought audiobooks could have this kind of quality. Ayoade's writing and Korkes' acting really brought life to this character of Gordy LaSure and made me almost believe he was real. I would totally go to his community college class. This was an experience you can not get by just reading the book. Great listen.

fucking hilarious

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this was laugh out loud funny in multiple places from the "great movie" lists to the genre titles. One of those cases where the author has to know a lot about film in order to have such a funny view of it. The only parts that didn't really work for me were the recreations of scenes from a film to illustrate a point. The rest was gold though and I'd happily read the other books by the fictional author Ayoade has created.
The performances were strong, the trump like main character was particularly strong while Ayoade is always great doing deadpan and sarcasm.

great parody on movies

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Ayoade's 2017 audiobook "dramedy' is a real laugh or loud treat, just the medicine needed for a winter lockdown. Ridiculing 80's/90's vintage action flicks and the mindset behind their production/existence may be like shooting fish in a barrel but Ayoade obliterated that barrel and left but a smoking crater in its place. His knowledge of screen writing and plot structure lend extra scope and depth to his hilarious observations and clever narrative tricks make the audiobook experience more immersive and multi layered.
Jon Korkes performance is sensational as the contemptible buffoon Gordy LaSure. Loved it.

Hilarious observations and virtuoso performance

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There are plenty of quite funny and enjoyable moments but at times it drags on a bit, particularly at the start, the first 30 mins or so aren't great.

Something which I think a potential buyer should really be aware of is that very little of the audiobook is narrated by Richard. Eisenberg does a little bit in the forward and Richard chirps in from time to time but it's mostly Jon Korkes. If you were expecting to listen to Ayoade you may be disappointed.

Good Enough

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The intro is a slog, but once you’re past it and get into the character that Richard has invented, it’s pretty funny. The book is a reflection on the worst parts of Hollywood; the racism, the sexism, and the repetitive nature of mainstream movies, particularly the action movies of the 80s and 90s.

A fair few laugh out loud moments but takes some getting in to

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Ayoade as always gives me a giggle with his dry humour and played innocence but all in all too much “dramedy” and “secret length” banter for me. Love these types of films, so plenty of interesting parts, but this book is not for everyone

Some funny parts, but mostly rambling

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I had previously already read the physical book on release but the audiobook is even better. Jon Korkes in particular is excellent as Gordy La Sure with plenty of audio interjections by the author himself Richard Ayoade.

Hilarious

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A very pointless but incredibly entertaining book. The narration is exquisite. Not sure I have ever laughed so much at a book

Hilarious Nonsense

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I really didn't know what to expect from Richard Ayoade's book on film but it certainly wasn't the fictionalised ramblings of an alcoholic womanising hanger-on Gordy La Sure (is this a Geordy Shore reference?) who is obsessed by Roadhouse and Steven Seagal.
I've read a few other reviews from people who didn't like this book, and I can see it's not for everyone, but I laughed a lot listening to it, and would recommend to anyone who Finds sarcasm funny, especially when mixed with a healthy dollop of American hero worship.

So dry it should come with a drinks voucher

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