The Virginia Woolf Reading Group discussion

This is a open discussion about either the book or movie, how the characters are connected, the portrayal of Virginia Woolf, etc.

I was disappointed by the novel, mostly because I couldn't get past the feeling that Cunningham was overly obsessed with writing like Virginia Woolf.

And yet I liked the movie and for the most part the performances transcended the story and connected us back to some of the structural and thematic ideas in Woolf's original work. The exception (regarding performance) was Ed Harris, whose penchant for over-acting threatened to drive the picture into the realm of farce. Somehow the film was more successful at weaving the stories; the book felt forced in this regard.

The impressive performance by Nicole Kidman focused on the bleak (accordingly), given that she was playing Ms. Woolf at the end of her life. That was a shame, because we have a different sense of Virginia in earlier years, and it would have been nice to see more of an arc of her personality (and journey as an artist). Still, the film is drafted on the book, and Cunningham chose to focus on this chapter of her life.

The portrait of Virginia Woolf at her darkest hour seems most closely connected to the character played by Julianne Moore in the film and they are, obviously, echoes of Septimus in the original. The character played by Meryl Streep balances the pathos with a bit of hope, as does Clarice in Mrs. Dalloway.

Did I forget the portrayal of Woolf in the book/movie was meant to occur at the time of writing MD? Wow, that's a glaring oversight, if I did. Why would Cunningham or the director want to imply that? It doesn't make sense.

Which leads me to another topic, which I am going to post in just a minute. Plese respond if you feel like it. It will be listed as Septimus; I want to discuss the identity of this character on another thread.

Wow, I'm in way over my head here. I thought I'd joined because I loved the hours (haven't read the book) and back in college, read A Room of One's Own and thought it was fabulous. I've also seen but not read Orlando.

I did read Mrs. Dalloway after watching the Hours, and was intrigued. It seemed to me to have a plot, I was most interested in her past experiences, and, I will admit, found it hard to keep my attention on the wandering nature of the story.

So, Perhaps I'll pick up the Hours, or I'll read whatever's next on the list, and try to keep up with those of you who are clearly well-versed in Woolf.