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Summary: Talented Actress, Beautiful Girl, Heartbreaking Life
Review: This is a riveting, heartbreaking, and rather shocking account of the tragic life and untimely death of Natalie Wood. Finstad answers questions that until now have remained unanswered and helps to solve the mystery of her final hours. This was a woman who brought her audience and her loved ones so much joy and who deserved so much better than she got, in life, and in death. Anyone who is or was a fan, would find this book a "must-read". One of the most informative, well-constructed, and well written biographies I've ever read.
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Summary: Less is more
Review: Suzanne Finstad specializes in obsessive research and conspiracy theories, both of which figure largely in this book. The problem with the first is that the writer becomes eager to show off that she has done her homework. So she repeats information--the same information--that she has obtained from numerous sources, over and over. You can almost reconstruct the questionaire she used for her interviews from the information disclosed. Did Natalie mention her fear of dark water to you? Or the gypsy curse? It's a wonder Wood had any time to have a career at all, she appeared to be so busy going about expressing her fear of H20 to all and sundry. It never seems to occur to Finstad that Wood might have colored or exaggerated her stories of her childhood and youth in Hollywood to garner sympathy, a ploy not unknown to actresses. (Monroe and Garland were both experts at this.) More skepticism and less gullibility would be welcome. And instead of regurgitating the same material endlessly, she would have been better to analyze it.Wood was a very pretty child with a very ambitious mother. Not an unfamiliar story. The difficulty is that once her mom fades out of the story, our interest flags. She is appalling, but her vitality far outstrips that of her daughter. Wood undoubtedly had a painful problem; she needed to ditch her mother to survive, but upon ditching her, she seems utterly panicked and bereft. Natalie herself appears to be a rather nice, rather unexceptional, rather neurotic woman way out of her depth in Hollywood. As an actress, she had a somnambulistic quality, and after sampling her mother, you'll know why. The pity of it was that Wood was quite ambitious, but utterly conventional, so that she missed opportunities that she might have profited by. The material on Wood's death, which seems to be have been a grotesque accident, is just speculation. Finstad loves conspiracies, but frankly, who cares? It's pretty obvious Wood wasn't murdered. I seem to recall a quote from Finstad saying she was moved to write this book by seeing Wood's daughters on television. If she truly cared about them, she might have left this book, with its reams of prurient speculation, in oblivion. It scarely serves its subject, or anyone else.
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Summary: The wrist and what it represents............................
Review: This book is a significant contribution to literary history. Finstad gives her subjuct the same meticulous attention as she did Howard Hughes in her other masterpiece, HEIR NOT APPARANT. An especially poignant moment in the book is when Natalies wrist is broken. The drama, the dark water, and the pain that she was forced to hide would set the pattern for her life.
This wrist was an area of her life that brought shame, not because of the deformity but because of her lost of autonomy. The ruthlessness of the director is reminiscent of what Otto Preminger did to Jean Seberg in JOAN OF ARC. I suspect the man who rapes her is Kirk Douglas, he fits the Bill. I think to understand a persons motives we must first be aware of their fears, fortunately this book does an excellent job of taking us inside Natalie Wood.
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Summary: Dark Water
Review: Natasha is a mesmerizing read, a spellbinding book that allows a glimpse of Hollywood that is seldom seen. The nasty and the pure, the shadows and the light, it is all there, written with such care and tenderness that it will break your heart. A little girl for sale, doing everything to make the deal happen, losing her innocence to become the saviour for her desperate family. Finstad takes us into this vulnerable psyche, revealing Natalies fears and her desires. The seediness, the glamour, the dreams of Hollywood, it is all there but told in a style that Tolstoy would feel comfortable with. Natalies Russian heritage is absolutely fascinating and informative, giving us a better understanding of how Natalie, the legend, began.
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Summary: Hollywood's Princess if Not a Russian One
Review: Finstad has indeed written a thorough and engrossing book on a winsome and affecting actress, Natalie Wood. I agree with other reviewers that her relationship with her mother and it's attendant neuroses are overdone. Truly, the 'deformed wrist bone' scenario is interjected at every opportunity. I will never be able to watch Natalie again without taking note of her bracelets' Clearly, Natalie Wood was a talented actress, regardless of whether or not her mother pushed her into it. She was also a haunting but insecure beauty who captivated friends, beaus, and moviegoers alike. Finstad's sympathetic portrayal of Wood made me like her, even though she played the Movie Star, with a capital M and a capital S. I have wracked my brain to no avail to decipher the identity of the 'older, married Hollywood star' who allegedly raped Natalie in the mid-50s. It's an outrage that she felt she could not report the attack due to her mother's dictum that she not do anything to endanger her career (another unsavory aspect of Mrs. Gurdin's personality). I did find it strange that Robert Wagner drifts into the narrative without much introduction. He seemed very one-dimensional for such a large figure in her life. Surely Wagner did not give Finstad any interviews, considering the controversial circumstances behind their break up of their first marriage as related in this book. But some general background information on him from another source would have been helpful. One wonders if her sad outcome was a self-fulfilling prophecy. Having been told all her life to fear dark water, she nevertheless spent an inordinate amount of time around boats. Did the gypsy's curse come true or did an inebriated Natalie have an unfortunate accident? Or, as the Captain's account at the end of the book insinuates, was it murder? Despite some flaws, this book provides us some enlightenment into her turbulent life, and serves as a cautionary tale for those who tend to believe the image and not the reality.
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Summary: One of the last of Hollywoods royalty
Review: This is a great biography of an enigmatic, beautiful woman named 'Natalie Wood' who continues to fascinate us even after her death. Her long career in show business gives us some insight into what was known as 'Hollywoods royalty.' There are also some great photos as well as interesting tidbits about other Hollywood actors. Natalie Wood was truly one of the last great 'stars' and her untimely and horrible death was a real tragedy.
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Summary: Audiobooks cannot escape their narrators
Review: "Natasha" is a real tape turner, audiobook-wise. The content of the book/tape is gripping and entertaining. The prose is a little well-used but the enthusiasm of the author overcomes all, probably much like Natalie did. However, the book's publishers did no service to Ms. Finstad or Natalie Wood by using Lana Wood as a reader. Her presentation interferes with your enjoyment and comprehension of the book's theme. Her voice unfortunately employs all of the techniques of Acting 101 and it's hard to get past that to the poignancy and rawness of Natalie's story. Her narration goes up and down and in and out. While I recognize that technique as one which actors are taught to use to make strings of words interesting, the strings themselves here were fascinating enough on their own without the unnecessary inflections. I recommend that you experience the book but be prepared to have to appreciate the content through the haze of an unnecessarily dramatic rendition. "Natalie" is an accomplished biography which draws you closer to Natalie Wood and makes you only want to wish well for her left-behind daughters and Robert Wagner. It was a life well lived despite the fact that Natalie Wood was a persona who was created out of a mother's imagination.
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Summary: Wonderful story
Review: This is a wonderful story of the "good old days" in Hollywood when stars were stars and looked and acted like it. I thought it was right that Natalie insisted on full make-up and nice clothes when going anywhere to keep up her image. I have seen most of her movies and don't have a favorite. It is odd to think, though, of the number of times she had to be in or near water and how frightened she was of it. You would never know from watching her. For that reason, I wonder why she spent so much time on boats. Her last hours put her in great danger, but she seemed unable to stop the spin. It reminded me in a way of Princess Diana's last day where she did threw caution to the wind. The questions concerning her death are disturbing and I don't suppose the truth will ever come out. I recommend this book to anyone who remembers her and for those who would like to know about a real star.
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Summary: Engrossing story even though often repetitive
Review: You come away from this story feeling sorry for Natalie Wood. The book indicates that she was a truly loving, caring and friendly person despite Hollywood pressures. It became repetitive when it was often repeated how Natalie was scared of deep dark water, fearful of drowning and how controlling her mother was. I would have liked an update in the novel as to what her children are doing 20 years later and how they have survived this tragedy. I was also wondering if RJ still drinks! I walked away feeling that her death was a horrible accident due to intense inebriation on everyone's part.
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Summary: Suzanne did it again!
Review: While not particularly a fan of Natalie Wood, I read this book because of the Author, Suzanne Finstad. Having read all of her prior works, I was compelled to add this book if for no other reason then to not ruin a perfect record. As was the case of "Child Bride", where I really didn't have much interest in Priscilla Presley, Suzanne's incredible ability to research her subject and put her findings in such intriguing and readable form really shines in this book. Just a thought. I wonder if RJ has read the book? Suzanne, if you read these reviews, how about a sequel? The Biography of Robert Wagner. I'm prepared to wait!
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