Nabokov - How Do You Solve a Problem Like Lolita? 1/4 (2009)

Documentary following writer and broadcaster Stephen Smith on the trail of Vladimir Nabokov, the elusive man behind the controversial novel and 1962 film,

[@classicalperformances8777]

He believed he was incompetent to give spontaneous interviews. He always asked for the questions in advance to prepare his answers. Fascinating...

[@kl.9649]

Glenn Gould was the same, the Canadan pianist.

[@lilliansmith503]

i do not think we should not take it to a parents meeting

[@maghrebforever2012]

Ada: Or Ardour is a masterpiece. Tyrants Destroyed, as well; and many of his short stories. He is a fine, fine shard of intellect and thought. Loyal only to his art

[@johnmarino5378]

Have read only Lolita which I loved. Do you consider the titles you mentioned equal or greater to Lolita? I heard Pale Fire is great.

[@maghrebforever2012]

@@johnmarino5378 I think Ada is his best novel. I have read all his work and Nabokov is Nabokov. Lolita was also my first exposure to Nab. and it is a masterpiece; that said I prefer Ada to anything else he has written

[@billhaywood3503]

​@@maghrebforever2012 disagree --it is overdone --my sense is that like many authors (Pynchon and even Melville comes to mind) he is trying to exceed in tropes and in complexity earlier novels. Eventually one "falls from the tree" as is it Ada or Van :)

[@maghrebforever2012]

@@billhaywood3503 ya ur right

[@rooruffneck]

This is good. But i hate that they start with having Nabokov quoting Humbert Humbert (or is it Kinbote) and make it appear as if Nabokov is speaking in the first person. Ugh.

[@jonharvey4625]

How do you find the rest of this documentary??

[@lohkoonhoong6957]

How do you solve a maze like Nabokov? Now you see him, now you don't; often his Characters take over the tale fully.

[@jovvavas9792]

How to find the rest of this documentary?

[@KingMinosxxvi]

Nabokov is the greatest novelist that ever existed....period..and Lolita AMAZING!

[@molocious]

Pointlessness can be a virtue!!

[@eguoren]

After 13:50 the video starts over ..

[@lilliansmith503]

editing his manuscripts because she jknow what he was trying to say

[@gomezgomez7759]

He hates jazz lolll

[@chel3SEY]

We want to see Nabokov's room, not the presenter. So why does the camera focus so much on the latter?

[@molocious]

How pointless!

[@davidgagen9856]

I think it was Martin Amis who said he thought the book was really about tyranny seen through the idea of the tyrant.

[@dragline.]

This is cool and well done.

[@ZendelWashington]

loathe jazz? dagger to the heart

[@lilliansmith503]

he liked the desk cause few things would fall off of it

[@lilliansmith503]

The Habit of Freedom. nothing left to lose

[@lilliansmith503]

i bet that guy never caught a butterfly in his life. butterflies are free to be caregivers of disabled. goldie hawn

[@lilliansmith503]

was not an exclusive expat. I am an expat too

[@billshire2681]

And she re-wrote a lot of Lolita after he tried to burn the ms.

[@lilliansmith503]

THIS IS NOT COMEDY

[@lilliansmith503]

we all live in hotel earth

[@Northychen]

Oh no I didn't know Nabokov was a homophobe :(

[@chemdawg9543]

Northychen something about Russians...

[@bryanwilliams9701]

It's one of the more uncomfortable parts of reading Pale Fire and Lolita (still masterpieces though).

[@Reticence9zen924]

Historically most people were brought up to hate homosexuals or at least, not be comfortable with the subject cause it was such a taboo.

[@DeepScreenAnalysis]

He was probably a closet homosexual himself. After all the body type of a Lolita nymphette is like a teenage boy.

[@henriquebraga5266]

@@DeepScreenAnalysis An extraordinary claim which lacks any sort of extraordinary evidence.

[@dominicgodfrey8015]

No flies on the prince and princess. Don't fly too close to the sun my sons, his heart is hidden in New York. 1/0 0o et si octet, Shh I'm hunting Sirin