Set Fire to the Stars (2015)
Review of Set Fire to the Stars (2015), directed by Andy Goddard
I think I have a really good nose for sniffing out poetry. Maybe it’s because I’m an avid poet myself, or simply because I’ve become too acquainted with the cinema world and deciphering the titles in a way that gives major context to what the actual plot is about.
As soon as I stumbled upon this movie on Kanopy, my instinct told me that this was a poetic film. The title alone clued me in onto that, and what a surprise as I press play and find out this movie is a semi-autobiographical movie based around Dylan Thomas’ time in the United States.
Whenever I think about the poet Dylan Thomas, I think of his poet “Do not go gentle” (not the full title, but I think the shorthand is okay here because most people will know this poem immediately and so would Google) and my high school writing teacher crying as she told us it was was she memorized and recited as her mother lay dying in a hospital bed.
I knew nothing of Dylan Thomas’ poems and work in general, this was all I knew, but I knew that he was a really troubled person plagued by illness. And that’s what this movie focuses on, although our main character isn’t Thomas himself.
Let’s get into this review.
Content
As soon as the opening shot of this film begins, we can see that it’s shot in black and white immediately. I found this to be an interesting choice at the very beginning of the film, but as delve deeper into the story between Brinnin (a literary critic and poet who has brought Thomas to the United States, despite his reputation being absolutely trash) and Thomas, it becomes clearer why it was chosen to be depicted in this way.
There’s such a grim and glum atmosphere to this movie, one that permeates in almost every scene. Even if you’re laughing at the poor guy whining about Thomas breaking his beloved crock pot, there’s still this distinct brand of sadness in the scene. This is created by the black and white effect.
This is a straightforward film, one where the narrative follows the historical one. Brinnin has brought Dylan Thomas to the United States to show the world of his brilliance as a poet, but then is restrained by the actual Dylan Thomas. In real life, Thomas had an absolutely terrible reputation due to how drunk and boisterous he was in his everyday life; his marriage even was marred with infidelity and even abuse.
Brinnin’s job is to take Thomas across the United States to all these prestigious universities and places, leaving him vulnerable to the temperate of the poet he’s hauling around. If you’re looking for Thomas the poet, you’re not getting it in this movie. There’s no insight to who he is as a creative, only showing the negative reputation that he carried with him until his death at the age of thirty-nine.
The theme I got out of this movie is don’t meet your heroes. Brinnin was absolutely in love with the work of Thomas, and when he invites him to the United States, he learns that you shouldn’t meet your heroes. After watching the movie, you can really understand that this was based on a memoir and that’s the essence of this movie because of how skewered the narrative is.
At a certain point, it doesn’t seem like Brinnin doesn’t actually want to help Thomas get better. He’s just trying to keep him capable of performing and looking somewhat decent to all these people they’re meeting. And why, you may ask? Because Brinnin’s career is on the line. He’s doing this to advance himself and his career.
As someone coming to look at this movie from a poetic angle, I just wanted more poetry from it. Thomas doesn’t write anything nor does he really talk about poetry in a way that’s productive. Instead he just sexually harasses women and acts like he’s hot shit when he’s not. In a story that is central to this man, he is swept to the side in favor of Brinnin, who isn’t that interesting either.
He’s touted as a poet himself, but, again, we see none of his poetry in the actual film. It’s so frustrating. There’s a reason why Thomas is still known and Brinnin isn’t. There is one super gay moment where they’re in a boat and seem to be talking poetically, which gives such a glimpse into the potential that this movie had to offer.
Also some casual 1950s sexism in this movie (e.g. the one guy saying his wife “needs him,” Thomas treating the waitresses like they’re pieces of meat, etc.).
I also noticed that the big boys (aka: the men) write a thing that’s seen as respectable (poetry), while the wife mentioned before writes ghost stories (things often seen as outlandish by society). A small detail, but it helps continue the narrative of power and gender in the literary world.
Overall Thoughts
While enjoy black and white films as well as films central to the poetry world, this one just doesn’t hit it for me. Perhaps if you come into it with no expectations you might enjoy it, find some value in the writing and cinematography.
The cinematography is the best part of this film for me, along with that awkward drunk dinner party where they tell ghost stories—reminded me of Mary Shelley and how she came to write Frankenstein. All in all, I don’t think this is a worth a watch more than once, but if it sounds interesting to you, give it a shot.
