Nicole Kidman: Before I Go to Sleep (spoilers)

Last weekend, I finished my first novel (Before I Go to Sleep) in probably (gulp) years (?).  Anyway, I'm using the term "finished' rather liberally.  I didn't actually read the whole thing word for word (or sentence for sentence, for that matter).  I gave each page a chance, but, after a while, took what information I needed and moved on.  That isn't to say it wasn't a good read or you wouldn't enjoy; I just didn't have the patience for it.  Or, perhaps (hey) I need to ease myself back into reading.  Anyhow, there's a "big reveal" I knew was coming, and the idea of discovering what the secret was became more of my focus than actually soaking in S.J. Watson's prose.  Afterwards, I checked the Amazon reviews and, though the majority of the critiques were glowing, I did find at least one other person who found many portions of the book to be repetitive, as did I.  (I also noted that the book jacket sports accolades written only by authors.)

The whole impetus for reading Sleep was Nicole Kidman.  She's currently filming the movie version with Colin Firth and Mark Strong.  Rowan Joffe (son of Roland) is directing his own adaptation as a followup to his feature debut Brighton Rock, a poorly received dramatic thriller starring Andrea Riseborough, Helen Mirren, John Hurt, and Sam Riley.  Joffe is working with a decent pool of talent in front of and behind camera, so, on paper, there's reason to think this may end up to be good (it should have no problem surpassing Joel Schumacher's recent Kidman-vehicle Trespass in quality).  It'll be interesting to see how it all plays out, though, regardless.  Sleep concerns Christine Lucas, a wife who suffers from an incredibly rare case of amnesia, where each day she wakes to a clean-slate and she can remember virtually nothing of the last twenty years of her life.  [There are no major spoilers here, but I do share a bit about how the story moves along.]  When we first meet her, she rises from bed to discover a man who is a stranger to her, until he finally convinces her he is her husband.  The comparisons to Memento and 50 First Dates will be endless.  Strictly a mystery thriller, Lucas must slowly piece together her life with the help of an ambitious and invested young doctor.  The mid portion of the novel is somewhat epistolary in that we have Lucas begin journaling each subsequent day in order to retain whatever memory she can (which she also utilizes to remind herself of what she already knows with each new day).

via Just Jared

A bit of artistic license must be given to the author, as these "recollections" and the logistics behind Sleep, become absurdly long, busy, and detailed, complete with extended quoted conversations.  Basically, they defy the ability to recall, even for a person so desperate to remember.  While this was forgivable, more trying was the repetition of not necessarily events, but Lucas' feelings and conjectures about the people around her.  Those around her must earn her trust (with good reason).  Some of the mental motions Lucas goes through are shrewd and believable, but become quite taxing after a while.  I actually was pretty devoted the first one hundred or so pages, but had to put the book down out of boredom.  When I finally returned to it with the intent of completion, I had to rifle through and adopt a faux-"Evelyn Wood" method of reading (or what I imagine it might be, but actually isn't).  And, while I wish I could have enjoyed the novel more, this expedited approach was the only way I was ever going to finish.  Was the climax satisfying?  Not really.  It was clever, I suppose, but plagued with implausibilities, and didn't come together in a way that was exciting and jaw-dropping.   I was pretty disappointed.  There are bits of information the author drops to keep us interested as we make our way to Lucas' redemption, but they're sparse and difficult to make an emotional connection.  Hopefully, Joffe will bring something to the film's style that will make the journey intoxicating and edgy like its progenitor Memento, as well as encourage more investment in the characters.  But, this will be a challenge for a story centered around a protagonist who doesn't even know the first things about herself.

What I found most striking, however (and this is in the context of the lead actress), was that Lucas is a 47-year-old woman who has basically lost the last two decades of her life and has a scene mourning the loss of her youth.  Kidman is an enigmatic actress who is obviously talented and towers above most of her peers.  She chooses complex roles and tends to work with an assortment of intriguing directors.  What makes her persona both frustrating and even more confounding, however, is her choice to indulge in plastic surgery in her personal life to the point where it becomes distracting (and unnerving in that she is in such denial about the extent in which she partakes in) in her professional work.  Aging, as with most, is a huge issue for her, being constantly in the spotlight and striving to remain relevant in her chosen industry.  However, she has basically gone on record recently acknowledging that her leading lady days are over and she now considers herself a "character" actress.  Interesting admission that may be opening up a new chapter of her life.  She has put Grace of Monaco to bed (and criticism of the mid-40s actress portraying Grace Kelly in her early 30s will surely resurface come Oscar time in early January when the film begins its wide expansion) and is now, with her Christine Lucas, playing a character, who, at least in the novel version, is a woman who must literally confront the reality of her age in a mirror when she was convinced she was two decades younger than she actually was  (this could also be the first character Kidman has played in the last ten years that is technically older than her--though only by two years).  I imagine it won't be the most involving element of the production, but perhaps it will solidify a turning point in her career where she embraces growing old gracefully.  Who knows.  They say once you start messing with your face, you can't put that genie back in the bottle (and, as I'm willing to guess, that particular wish-granter has been freely milling about for over a good ten years) ...

Sleep is scheduled to open probably sometime in the first quarter of 2014.  If it indeed turns out to be a winner and her Grace Oscar campaign takes flight, we'll probably be seeing it sooner rather than later.