My Goodreads and Amazon review of Mercury Pictures Presents by Anthony Marra (Rating 3) – Unpopped. Anthony Marra’s Mercury Pictures Presents is a witty novel about Hollywood pre- to post-WW2. The book stars Artie Feldman, the vulgar middle-aged Jewish owner of once-thriving studio that teetered when talkies displaced silent films, and Maria Lagana, a wise-cracking Italian immigrant who worked her way up to become his chief assistant. In a strong off-screen supporting role is Maria’s father, an anti-fascist lawyer confined by Mussolini. The studio is under investigation by congressional isolationists who suspect its films are propagandizing in favor of the U.S. entering the war. Then Pearl Harbor happens and the reels are rewound in the studio’s favor. Mercury Pictures Presents is a book best read slowly to savor each guffaw-worthy quip. Marra has also done his research and serves up a lively picture of Hollywood in the 1930s and 40s. As a writer of historical fiction myself (see my Amazon author page and Goodreads author page), I admired Marra’s immersion in the industry’s Golden Age. However, while his characters are too original to be stereotypes, they often lack depth. Some extras and scenes exist solely to show off his esoteric knowledge and special effects arsenal. Those entertained by blockbusters may relish his verbal pyrotechnics, but those who prize character over caricature will find Marra’s novel as unsatisfying as the unpopped kernels at the bottom of the concession stand popcorn box.
