Book Review – All Day at the Movies by Fiona Kidman

About the Book

When war widow Irene Sandle goes to work in New Zealand’s tobacco fields in 1952, she hopes to start a new, independent life for herself and her daughter – but the tragic repercussions of her decision will resonate long after Irene has gone.

Each of Irene’s children carries the events of their childhood throughout their lives, played out against a backdrop of great change – new opportunities emerge for women, but social problems continue to hold many back. Headstrong Belinda becomes a successful filmmaker, but struggles to deal with her own family drama as her younger siblings are haunted by the past.

Format: Paperback (302 pages) Publisher: Gallic Books
Publication date: 8th March 2018 Genre: Fiction

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My Review

I commenced my Backlist Burrow reading challenge in 2023 with the aim of reading two books from the backlists of six authors whose other books I’d enjoyed. Unfortunately, I only managed to read six of the books I chose so I’ve carried it forward to this year. Having loved Fiona Kidman’s novel, This Mortal Boy, the two books I picked were The Infinite Air and this one, All Day at the Movies.

Starting in 1952, All Day at the Movies charts the fortunes of one family over the following five decades, set against the background of events in the history of New Zealand and social change. It’s a story of trauma, separation and troubled relationships. When faced with misfortune or tragedy the instinct for many of the characters is to take flight, to disappear and sever connections with other members of the family. Jessie, Irene’s eldest daughter does this early on and later Grant, Irene’s son, will make an even more purposeful attempt to leave his former life – and some traumatic experiences – behind. In the case of Janice, the youngest daughter, her life becomes a flight from one difficult situation to another.

The story involves some challenging issues such as teenage pregnancy, child abuse, racism, mental illness, domestic violence and drug addiction. There’s a lot that happens to the characters, especially Grant and Janice, and if, at times, it makes for uncomfortable reading it always feels true to life. And the book has its fair share of monsters in human form.

The book’s title is reflected in subtle ways. For Grant, who was my favourite character, the cinema is a sanctuary, a place of respite. ‘In the evenings, on week nights, he got out of the house and went to the pictures. He liked that. He could lose himself for a bit.’ And later he uses a ploy from his favourite film, The Day of the Jackal. Jessie becomes a famous foreign correspondent, reporting from all over the world. Belinda is a documentary film maker whose gaze, for much of the book, is directed elsewhere and not on the drama unfolding in her own family, or its secrets.

I learned a lot about events in New Zealand’s history through reading All Day at the Movies and I suspect this aspect would really resonate with readers from that country. It’s a well-crafted family saga that explores some important social issues through the experiences of its characters. However, it didn’t quite move me to the extent that Kidman’s novel This Mortal Boy did. Her 2013 novel, The Infinite Air, awaits.

In three words: Insightful, dramatic, assured

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About the Author

Dame Fiona Kidman OBE is one of New Zealand’s most highly acclaimed novelists. New Zealand Books said of Kidman, ‘We cannot talk about writing in New Zealand wihout acknowledging her.’ Born in Hawera, she has worked as a librarian, radio producer, critic and scriptwriter. Her first novel, A Breed of Women, was published in 1979 and became a bestseller. She has written more than 25 books including novels, poetry, non-fiction and a play. 

Fiona Kidman lives in Wellington, New Zealand.