In his unrelentingly fascinating novel, Flicker, author Theodore Roszak masterfully mixes conspiracy theory, mystery, romance, and film theory. Feeling like a detective novel by way of Christian Metz, Flicker blends fact and fiction with fantasy to tell the story of Max Castle, the oft overlooked director of such films as SHADOWS OVER SING-SING and FEAST OF THE UNDEAD. The reader learns about Castle and his unique filmmaking techniques via revered film critic Jonathan Gates. Readers are taken from Gates's youthful appreciation of foreign films as a font of earthy sexuality through his carnal tutelage by Clarissa Swan, all the while with the specter of Castle's work acting as guideposts along the way, leading him into an underworld as dark as the lines between film frames.
More than anything, Flicker is a romance novel. It captures the passion for cinema. I felt such a strong kinship to Rozak's protagonist that I bought a dozen copies of the book after I was done with it to share with my "filmy friends." If that isn’t a recommendation, I don’t know what is.
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