SHOOT-BACK HERE | E-MAIL THE AUTHOR

FROM PRINT TO SCREEN

By Matthew Savelloni

BLOOD WORK-The Book-Reading Is Fun For Mentals

Former LA Times crimedog Michael Connelly is best known for his Harry Bosch series, a gritty neo-noir collection of urban nightmares. BLOOD WORK is a slight departure for Connelly, who introduces a new character, Terry McCaleb, a former FBI vet forced into retirement by a heart transplant. Just as he's settling into his golden years restoring his boat in L.A. Harbor, McCaleb finds himself thrust back into "the job" by the sister of his donor, whose death song renewed the lease on the grizzled fed's life. Feeling more than a little obligated, and perhaps fueled by a healthy dose of guilt, McCaleb jumps back into the action with both feet to solve his heart donor's murder.

Of course, to say much more about the plot would chance ruining what Connelly's devoted readers feast upon: a devilish tale of double-dealing, political and bureaucratic swindling, hidden identities, motivational switcheroos and plot twists that turn round and round before racing headlong into a climactic bloodbath. Suffice it to say, there is more than meets the eye in the donor's death and the killer(s) path leads straight to McCaleb's door. Unlike most contemporary "thriller" writers, Connelly knows firsthand of what he writes. It's almost impossible to imagine the horrors he heard or witnessed during his years on the crime beat in arguable the country's most violent city. Connelly channels that experience incisively, with an expanded style previously hindered by just-the-facts journalism, infusing his stories with brutal realism, cynical observations about big-city living, society and bureaucracy, and characters whose tortured depictions mirror the turmoil in their souls. Like the best of hard-boiled anti-heroes, Connelly's protagonists trust no one, eschew personal relationships and lead simple, if not somewhat despairing, lives.

And that is what makes BLOOD WORK such a departure for Connelly. His literary palette is fully indulged here-the coarse settings, the matter-of-fact viciousness, the nefarious motivations-but the story is more "fictional" than any of his previous works. Dare I suggest it, but BLOOD WORK seems to be written with the silver screen in mind. The plot is Connelly's most outlandish to date and its connections are improbable, no matter how entertaining. It is no surprise that Connelly's first work to be developed for the big screen is BLOOD WORK; it possesses the right amount of histrionic flair and hyperrealism that complement the flickering arts. That's not to suggest that Connelly has gone the way of Grisham, Clancy, Koontz or any number of "authors" whose keystrokes said bye-bye to creative storytelling a long time ago and instead embraced mass-market consumerism. Connelly is not selling a product here (at least not overtly), he's not after brand-management, and he hasn't "dumbed-down" his vision, but he seems to have loosened his narrative sensibilities. If any Michael Connelly book with all of its weighty circumstances can be considered "fun," then BLOOD WORK is it. It's never a day at the beach with Connelly, but long after the sun has gone down and the night is just chilly enough to make you pull a blanket up to your knees, you will be cerebellum-deep into BLOOD WORK's alluring prose and intellectually-, emotionally- and psychically-vested into McCaleb's drama. And damn if that isn't the hallmark of a master craftsman.

The Movie-Dirty Terry and The Oscar Writer

The big-screen adaptation of Connelly's BLOOD WORK, directed by and starring Clint Eastwood, hits screens August 9th. Joining Clint are Jeff Bridges (the most underrated actor in Hollywood history), Wanda DeJesus, Anjelica Huston and Paul Rodriguez. The book was adapted by Brian Helgeland (L.A. CONFIDENTIAL, on my personal Top 10 for films of the 90s) blessing the project with Oscar-winners on the page, in front of and behind the camera. The blueprint seems to be writ for an exhilarating, gut-wrenching thriller. However, the recent track record of the director and the anomaly of Brian Helgeland give one pause.

Eastwood is a legend, one of Hollywood's greatest, but his filmography since the landmark UNFORGIVEN reads like this: IN THE LINE OF FIRE, A PERFECT WORLD, THE BRIDGES OF MADISON COUNTY, ABSOLUTE POWER, TRUE CRIME, and SPACE COWBOYS. In other words, he's gotten progressively worse. Eastwood has always been a deliberate director, a style that worked in films like A PERFECT WORLD and UNFORGIVEN but rang the death-knell of ABSOLUTE POWER and TRUE CRIME, like BLOOD WORK, literary sensations adapted for the screen. Thrillers need a brisk pace, which is anathema to Eastwood's helming M.O.

Unlike Eastwood, Helgeland won the Kevin Williamson-Akiva Goldsman lottery: one-hit wonders with no talent who inexplicably continue to get work. And while no one was minding the mint, Helgeland, like Williamson, has since found his way into the director's chair, God help us, and the first atrocity delivered out of that unholy scenario was A KNIGHT'S TALE. Outside of L.A. CONFIDENTIAL, Helgeland's résumé proudly boasts the following: NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET 4: THE DREAM MASTER, HIGHWAY TO HELL, ASSASSINS, CONSPIRACY THEORY, THE POSTMAN, THE POSTMAN, THE POSTMAN...(yes, that...thing...with Kevin Costner) and PAYBACK, a loathsome cure for insomnia taken away from him by Mel Gibson. Hopefully, BLOOD WORK sees a return of whatever magic Helgeland brought to the masterful L.A CONFIDENTIAL script. Other than those two reservations, BLOOD WORK might still be a thinking man's summer movie (and if that sentence seems patently absurd, just remember THE SIXTH SENSE, THE FUGITIVE and Eastwood's IN THE LINE OF FIRE-ever so infrequently, there are such creatures as intelligent popcorn flicks). Eastwood, despite his age, is perfect for McCaleb, a man of few words, direct integrity and tough years. The supporting players are all A-listers and should shine, as Eastwood has never been one to hog the spotlight.

Prediction-B+

Come August 9th, I think we'll see a smart, gripping thriller. Will BLOOD WORK the movie be as great as BLOOD WORK, the novel? No, but movies can never be the equivalent of their printed sources, which is why we read in the first place, you knuckleheads. Will BLOOD WORK the film be as good as it could have been, had it been adapted by Scott Frank and directed by David Fincher? Certainly not, but Christmas only comes once a year and sometimes the presents suck. However the film turns out, it is reassuring to know there are authors like Michael Connelly fashioning intelligent, hardnosed thrillers like BLOOD WORK that entrance any reader fortunate enough to crack its pages.

"For every bad movie, there are 10 great books you haven't read." --Anonymous

Thanks to Amazon.com

SHOOT-BACK HERE! | ARCHIVES