Is dialogue overrated?
Monday 1 October 2007 21:45-22:30 (Radio 3)
In October 1927, the release of the Jazz Singer starring Al Jolson marked the arrival of the first feature length 'talkie' and the movie business was revolutionised. But did the arrival of synchronised speech in cinema lead to the tyranny of the spoken word? And what about spoken exchanges in theatre and novels? Matthew Sweet and guests ask if dialogue is overrated.
John Simpson
John Simpson fleeing the scene of a 'friendly fire" incident in Northern Iraq between Mosul and Kirkuk.
Playlist
John Simpson
On Night Waves Matthew Sweet will be talking to John Simpson about 'Not Quite World's End', his latest book in which he takes an optimistic look at the changes in the world he has experienced in his long career as a journalist.
Cecil B. DeMille
Also in the programme, a new biography of the film director Cecil B. DeMille, best known for his biblical epics including 'The Ten Commandments' and 'Samson and Delilah'.
Simon Louvish, the author of 'Cecil B. DeMille and the Golden Calf' will be discussing DeMille's role as a pioneer in Hollywood and why critics are split over whether he was a master craftsman or a hypocritical opportunist who mixed sex with God to create a vulgar brew.
Cecil B. DeMille and the Golden Calf by Simon Louvish is published on 25 October by Faber and Faber.
Film Dialogue
DeMille began his career directing silent movies in Hollywood before the talkies arrived. Matthew will be joined in the studio by the novelist A.S. Byatt and the playwright Mark Ravenhill to debate whether dialogue might just be overrated.
Control
And the music journalist and broadcaster Robert Sandall will be reviewing 'Control', a new biopic about Ian Curtis, the lead singer of Joy Division.
One critic at the Cannes Film Festival suggested that the film has revived a British film tradition he described as 'beautiful realism' - but will Robert and Matthew agree?
Control is released on 5 October, certificate 15.
