Fisher reflects on that Princess
Kindle Edition, 267 pages. Published November 22nd 2016 by Blue Rider Press
“I was sitting by myself the other night doing the usual things one does when spending time alone with yourselves. You know, making mountains out of molehills, hiking up to the top of the mountains, having a Hostess Twinkie and then throwing myself off the mountain. Stuff like that.”
There is a lot that makes this book hard to read and death of the author being the biggest one. Yet the main thing you have to remember that this is the recollections of a 19 year old woman trying to find her way in a man’s world. She is involved in a casual relationship with her married co-star, Harrison Ford and she cannot talk to anyone about what is happening. This forms the basis of Fisher’s memoir about her time on the first Star Wars movie.
I found Fisher’s writing to be honest and heartfelt. As outsiders, we see actors as confident, worldly people who are able to handle anything that is thrown at them. It comes as a bit of shock when we realise that actors are really human and suffer from the same doubts and insecurities.
What we saw of Star Wars was the end product with the credits rolling past and our minds exploding in wonder. What the Princess Diarist reveals is the stories of the actors as they made that film. That it was not all sitting around drinking coffee on set, making the next wonderful scene, going back to five star luxury hotels to relax. That it was cheap, that it was unexpected and that they were never prepared for what happened. The fact that the maxim ‘what happens on location, stays on location’ was well respected and enabled the short lived hook up between Fisher and Harrison to remain under the radar for all these years.
Fisher discusses the impact of fame on her life, its importance and negative impact. I was thinking that negative would have been even worse if the world had known of the affair at the time of the film’s release. Her recorded conversations with meeting fans are hilarious as she captures the awkwardness of the meeting but also her appreciation of the sentiments expressed.
As I read Fisher’s early journal entries I wondered what would have happened if she had focussed more on her writing. She certainly had a marvellous way with words.
I found the Fisher’s writing style to be sharp and with good pacing. The subject matter was engaging and it was a fascinating due the Fisher’s honesty.
Normally I would post a link to the author's website but I would highly recommend reading Carrie Fisher's other books.
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