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Of all the Bruce
Campbell items making it out onto the market
this week, the Book-on-CD release of “Make
Love! The Bruce Campbell Way” was
one of the most intriguing. I’m a
big fan of Books-on-CD, if for no other
reason than they make for a great listen
on my often lengthy ride in to work as well
as my ride home. The radio offers next to
nothing anymore as most music is either
overplayed or downright awful. I also LOVE
to read and don’t always find the
time to do so.
So when word got out that Bruce Campbell
was going to release one of these, I was
ready to jump on it. You see, Bruce Campbell
is the undisputed King of B-Movies (a fact
you might have gleaned from my earlier reviews
– including the two others available
today…).
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Thanks to the “Evil Dead Trilogy”
and his long friendship with director Sam Raimi,
Campbell’s list of hardcore fans has grown
to astronomical proportions over the years. This
‘cult status’ is also explained by
his myriad of appearances in other B-movies (“Maniac
Cop 1 & 2”, “Moontrap” and
“Sundown”), cameos in big budget flicks
(“Spider-Man 1 & 2”, “Congo”,
and “Escape from L.A.”) and short-lived
TV series (“The Adventures of Briscoe County,
Jr.” and “Jack of All Trades”.)
He has also ventured into the area of more successful
series, including a stint on “Ellen”,
and guest-starring roles on “Xena”,
“The X-Files” and “Homicide:
Life on the Streets.” The guy is so popular
that he still headlines conventions around the
country and stars in videogame versions of the
“Evil Dead” series.
Bruce Campbell is a man of many talents, having
stepped behind the camera to direct episodes of
‘Xena”, and more recently his first
feature film, “The Man with the Screaming
Brain.” (Which is also reviewed today.)
Back in 2001 he made the foray into authorship,
writing the autobiography “If Chins Could
Kill: Confessions of a B-Movie Actor”, offering
a hysterically funny look into his varied life
and career. Thanks to Campbell’s trademark
sarcasm the book also took a lot of potshots at
the Hollywood Wheel. Much to the surprise of…
well… everyone… the book actually
ended up on the New York Times Bestseller list
for several weeks. (I do recommend reading it!)
His follow-up book came out earlier this year,
“Make Love! The Bruce Campbell Way”
and went in a totally different direction in terms
of genre. This time, it was a work of fiction…
sort of. It chronicles the fictional story of
Campbell’s offer to move up from the B-List
by working on a Mike Nichols’ film called,
“Let’s Make Love.” It was a
romantic comedy starring Richard Gere and Renee
Zellweiger… and Bruce Campbell. Campbell
was cast to play the worldly doorman at Renee’s
building. He offers Gere’s character advice
on women and love throughout the film.
The story goes on to weave a tale of intrigue
about the Paramount Executive who wants him off
the picture as well as Campbell’s determination
to research every aspect of his character’s
background… which usually end up with less
than desired results. He ends up in a duel with
a southern gentleman, a car chase with eco-terrorists,
and ticking off the film’s costume designer.
Again, I have to mention the whole story is fabricated…
sort of. Campbell himself states that everything
in the book really happened… except the
things that didn’t. Reading the book offered
tons of huge laughs, but the thought that it would
be available on a Book-on-CD was too much for
me. I had to get one.
When it found its way into my hot little hands
a few days ago, I immediately looked over the
packaging to see what I could see. This was where
I learned it was no ordinary Book-on-CD, oh no.
Normally, they are read verbatim by the author,
or more often by actors hired to read them. Campbell
thought he had an opportunity to do something
a little different. After all, he WAS an actor,
and had a lot of actor friends. So instead he
opted to ‘act’ out the book, complete
with sound effects and actors standing in for
all the other ‘characters’ in the
book.
The result is more than I could have hoped for.
Listening to the CD is pure unadulterated comedic
pleasure. Campbell does an excellent job reading
the passages, while ‘acting’ as himself.
His voice inflections and background grunts and
groans are hysterically funny. And as for his
troupe of actors, I can only say they do an outstanding
job. I’m still looking for a list of the
voices, but suffice to say I’m willing to
bet real money that one of the actors is Brian
Doyle Murray. If it isn’t, he has a voice
doppelganger out there somewhere working with
Campbell.
The set has 6 CD’s, offering up he entire
work. As far as I can tell they didn’t cut
anything out. I applaud the packaging which includes
a great shot of Campbell in a robe and ascot,
holding a martini glass, all the props befitting
what is also being billed as a ‘relationship’
book.
Bruce Campbell is an extremely talented actor-turned-author.
I highly recommend the Book-on-CD of “Make
Love! The Bruce Campbell Way”, even if you’ve
already read the book.
Studio: Anchor Bay Entertainment
Release Date: 10/4/2005
Website
We'll give Make Love! The Bruce Campbell Way
an A+.
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