ATIKA ASSESS Hollywood by Charles Bukowski

Hollywood by Charles Bukowski is the last novel by the author to feature his alter ego, Henry ‘Hank’ Chinaski. Before his death, Bukowski would write his final novel ‘Pulp’. Apart from short stories and poems by Bukowski that also cameos the character, Chinaski is the main protagonist in the five novels; Post Office, Factotum, Women, Ham on Rye and finally Hollywood. This book recounts Bukowski’s experience through his alter ego during the later years of his life working on a screenplay when he had found comfort; financially and professionally, though that loveable and roguish devilment still appears somewhat. 

As stated previously this book charts his experiences writing the screenplay and his involvement in the pre and post production of the 1987 film ‘Barfly’ which starred Mickey Rourke and Faye Dunaway, though in the book the title of the film is something else and the films actors given different names. As a fan of Bukowski, I felt that much of the tropes from previous novels containing Chinaski’s ‘devil may care’ attitude and exploits were left lacking; understandably of course because the writer/character is older, professionally more accomplished and happier due to now being settled with his eventual widow. Not that he ever did openly and indulgently wallow in his own disappointment previously. Fans like myself may have enjoyed Chinaski’s earlier nihilistic outlook of poverty and dead-end existence crossed with absurd and sometimes grim hilarity; a life lacking in pleasures of anything other than drinking, writing and screwing but not overly self indulgent. It is a slight departure from delivering mail, looking for work, getting drunk and frequenting the racetrack (he still does some of the latter). Bukowski classically never did ask the reader to feel sorry for the character but rather accept that sometimes things are just simply what they are. He writes for the most part very unpretentiously, often coupled in with his contemporaries from the beat movement though largely very different to them; rather a kind of foul mouthed Hemingway with bursts of short, straight to the point sentences. The romanticism in Bukowski’s work is the very startling lack of it and his characters are trying to get by the best they can with so much stacked against them.

This book takes us through his meetings with producers, directors, movie stars and also exposes the cut throat realism underneath the famous yet shallow world of glitz and glamour and the poverty that exists just a stone's throw from the rich and famous up in the Hollywood Hills. He finds himself simultaneously rubbing shoulders and clashing heads with power hungry Hollywood executives to humorous results. I highly recommend this book but in case you are new to Bukowski, I would start with ‘Post Office’ because there is a moment in this where he ends a chapter with “sometimes life was good” and there are few examples where I have felt such a simple statement explained so much; but it did so because it had to be earnt from both parties.

This review was written by Kieran Dobson. Kieran works in the stockroom at ATIKA London and is also a professional actor, graduating from the East 15 Acting School. He most recently appeared in ‘Still Life With Onions’ by Rob Burbidge at the Barons Court Theatre.