Rating: 
Summary: The Ultimate Companion to the Movie!!!
Review: To begin, I am not so much fascinated by Buckaroo Banzai as I am fascinated by the fascination! I saw the movie on tape back in '84 and was confused (the flashback scene after Dr. Lizardo gets charged up threw me off-I thought the electricity caused the flashback somehow), so after seeing so many fan-pages on the net, I decided to buy the VHS and see what the entire hubbub was about.After five viewing, I think I understand the appeal. So I bought the book. First of all, which is better-the book or the movie? I think that the book has the "Dune" problem, in that we are placed in a complex world with plots within plots within plots, and it is almost as if we are joining both "Dune" and "Buckaroo Banzai" in "Part Six" of a series. The book starts out very thick and layer with much of the Hong Kong Cavalier's past alluded to in the text and in the MANY footnotes. However, the book seems to loose steam in places where the movie is strongest, such as the chase scenes at the end. In some parts of the book, we are reading a script-a la "This side of Paradise." This allows for quicker, choppier action to be presents almost as it is seen on the movie. But it also may be due Rauch getting tired of novelizing his script. Secondly, the style. Rauch's prose was choppy and bulky at first, but I got used to his style. The story is told from the point of view of Reno, much like Doyle had Watson as Sherlock Holmes's chronicler. This allows us to share the wonder and mystery of the dominating Elvis-like figure that moves events. It supplements the enchantment, and allows us to follow the non-Banzai threads of the book. The narrative has minimal exposition, which keeps the story punchy, but you feel that there is a whole new world with a whole new history behind it, and we are given a peek. Watson always alluded to untold Holmes cases, and Rauch does the same thing as combo parody-tribute. This complexity works well for "Dune" and "Lord of The Rings," and makes the milieu glisten and teem with life. Rauch also peppers his book with oddball, quirky humor. If you are not careful you can miss the gags and one-liners that are so apparent in the movie. With this mulligan soup is a peppering of philosophy-some of it quite observant, some of the philosophy reminds me of my thoughts as 14-year old thinking I was unusually profound. Orson Scott Card once described this type of thinking as "undergraduate level philosophy." (Children of the Mind). Then again, this may be part of the humor, a sort of hyper-irony that is prevalent in "The Simpsons." As far as novelizations go, this one has merit. I always prefer it when the scriptwriters novelize their own stories, since the authors are telling their own story, instead of having a distant hack try to elusively capture the writer's passion and dream. I think the cover is an improvement over the original book-it is more eye-catching, more engaging. Among the original book cover, the original VHS cover, the VHS reissue cover, and the DVD cover, I think the book ahs the best composition. It would have been nice to have some continuity between the covers so we are not confused. But then again, how do you package the #2 cult film of all time. I will sell itself by reputation. For any hard-core fan of the film, I endorse this book, since so many jokes in the movie now make sense. In one scene, New Jersey mistakes Reno for Pecos-well, Pecos is a woman! The casual fan would also be interested, or anyone wanting a quick read. By the way, you need to read the last page VERY carefully!
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