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 Forum index » Archive » Archive: Cloverfield (1-18-08) » Cloverfield: General / Updates
[RELATED] Lily Ford's MySpace: House of Leaves reference
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tmerch
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 		[RELATED] Lily Ford's MySpace: House of Leaves reference
This thread is intended as a hub of discussion for the book House of Leaves, by Mark Z. Danielewski, as "suggested reading" by Lily Ford. Following is the history of her suggestion, compiled from posts in other threads.

When the character MySpace pages originally opened, I immediately focused on Lil's emphatic suggestion that everyone go read the book House of Leaves - so I messaged her about it:
Quote:
Hi! Saw "House of Leaves" in your fave books list and wondered, what is it about? I've heard from several people that I need to read it...only no one will clue me in as to why!

She wrote back several days later:
Quote:
Hey Tara--

HoL is pretty incredible, but don't start it unless you really have time to commit. It took me longer to get through this than any book I've read! It's truly unique. The basic story is about a family who finds a closet in their house that can't physically be here. The closet is bigger than the house itself. It's about them trying to figure out the mystery. However, there are also 2 other story lines -- connected but not really. More than half the book is in footnotes from a really interesting young guy who discovered the files about this mystery closet. I know, I'm rambling, but it's hard to describe this one! Next time you are in a Barnes and Noble, take a look!

And so I did. I was thrown off by the size of the novel but it sounded interesting, like an ARG in book form. And the book seems pretty relevant. Below are my observations, clipped from a previous post:

Quote:
...the first chapter explains of two short videos released within less than a year of one another by a director of some acclaim. The videos are shot on a hand-held by the director himself, who narrates - I won't go into detail about the content, it's sort of irrelevant, I imagine. The author goes on to say about the videos that "While [they] have been respectively called a 'teaser' and a 'trailer', they are also, in their own right, peculiar cinematic moments.... However, the most unnerving aspect about both pieces is their ability to convince us that everything really happened, some of which can be attributed to the verifiable elements..., but most of which must be chalked up to the starkness of the production -- the absence of make-up, expensive sound tracks, or crane shots." Other points of note: the director/narrator is never seen; the "structure is...discontinuous, jarring,...even hurried," with one short film beginning mid-sentence.

Also, a nod to "us"?: "Dissemination of [the video] seemed driven by curiosity alone. No one ever officially distributed it....copies were passed around by hand, a series of progressively degenerating dubs of a home video revealing...notably very few details about...the author of the piece." And also regarding the scarcity of information: "Then for two years nothing. Few clues about who any of these people were, though eventually a number of photographers in the news community did recognize the author....Unfortunately, this discovery generated only a few months of heated speculation, before...interest died out."

Incidentally, I continued messaging Lil, but as the topic drifted from the book, the conversation waned. At any rate, it seems like several others have been prompted to start reading as well, hence the creation of this topic. If it doesn't get much traffic, we can close it down, but it seems promising. Oh, and just to make it official...

I hereby call to order this first meeting of the uF book club. (Beats the hell out of Oprah's)

edited to clarify subject referring to Lil's Myspace ~rose

PostPosted: Tue Aug 14, 2007 9:36 am
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Matches Malone
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 		House of Leaves
HoL is one of the best, most frustrating, and most rewarding experiences I have ever had reading a book. It also (for those of you still latching on to Cthulhu)contains a pretty "Lovecraftian" sort of story, about a house that is bigger on the inside than it is on the outside, a closet that leads to a dark, long hallway, which itself leads to a labyrinthine structure that, according to tests of samples, is older than the Earth itself.

The book is really about the process of writing, and subsequently, reading a book. "House of Leaves" is a euphemism for "book". The "meta" story involves Johnny Truant finding a manuscript for a book that was written by a blind man he had recently met. The manuscript contains the story "The Navidson Record", which is written as an in-depth analysis of a filmed documentary describing the house mentioned above and its effect on a young family that has moved into it.

House of Leaves utilizes numerous footnotes to tell part of Johnny Truant's story, as his life continues to erode after finding this manuscript. Some pages are composed entirely of footnotes, and some pages use odd structuring (words printed sideways, shapes made out of text, etc). The end effect is a feeling of getting lost in a labyrinthian tangle of story that both obscures the central mystery of "The Navidson Record" and illuminates the themes the author was trying to bring up.

Wow, that hurt my brain. I whole-heartedly recommend this book, and not because somebody mentioned it in connection with this film. It really is something special.

PostPosted: Tue Aug 14, 2007 10:07 am
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the_velociraptor
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 		I have the book at my side right now. Zampano's notes contains numerous references to "the Minotaur", and I don't think that will be related.

It's very hard to tackle. I tried to plough through it, eventually, I just gave up and read it in pieces. Read it. You'll never look at a hallway the same again.

I wish we had a HoL ARG.

Back on topic - I bet that was just a hint. Maybe Jay-Jay read the book and just put that on as some spice?

PostPosted: Tue Aug 14, 2007 10:12 am
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madeillegal
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 		and don't forget that inside the house is the mysterious growl.
as well as the fact that the Navidson reports are filmed by a guy with Hi-8 video cameras all over his house. And that everyone on his "team" has one during their journey into the "house."

hmm...

PostPosted: Tue Aug 14, 2007 10:13 am
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SisBear
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 		The book also has an entry at Wiki (doesn't everything? Wink ):

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/House_of_Leaves
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PostPosted: Tue Aug 14, 2007 10:15 am
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Matches Malone
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 		I don't think the Navidson Record is real - it was Zampano's metaphorical journey through pain and loss. However, the core story of the Navidson Record was incredibly creepy and chilling. I wish it was being made into a film, because it is the best "Lovecraftian" story I've ever read. Better than Lovecraft by a damn sight.

To clarify - the "growling" was the sound the structure made as it changed shape.

PostPosted: Tue Aug 14, 2007 10:18 am
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rose
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 		house of leaves from 2005
You might find this thread from 2005 about House of Leaves of interest.
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PostPosted: Tue Aug 14, 2007 10:39 am
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deletia
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 		meta-feedback?
So I haven't read HoL, and I probably won't be able to get around to it for a few years. That said, I've been told by a number of friends that it's pretty mind-bending and fantastic.

So my question: Is there an author- or reader-character in the book? and if so, is there interaction between the author/reader-character and his or her creations?

What I'm fishing for here is evidence that we can talk to the MySpace characters about their fictional roles in this unfolding drama.

PostPosted: Tue Aug 14, 2007 10:45 am
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the_velociraptor
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madeillegal wrote:
and don't forget that inside the house is the mysterious growl.
as well as the fact that the Navidson reports are filmed by a guy with Hi-8 video cameras all over his house. And that everyone on his "team" has one during their journey into the "house."

hmm...


And the fact that someone shoots one of the members in the head. (It was one of the team member, but I think it's the Minotaur.

And the fact that the walls are meteoric.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

I think it used to be an alien lab, then the aliens moved their stuff somewhere, and maybe the laboratory had a computer, and it's still working. Maybe the computer used to move things around, that's why the house shifts? Sage.

EDIT: Lily has it wrong. They find it near the living room of the house. It also takes five minutes and thirty seconds to reach the grand stairway of the house.

PostPosted: Tue Aug 14, 2007 10:46 am
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cgsheldon
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 		In case anyone wants to go seriously in-depth with the book, the HoL forums are highly recommended (as is the book and album); a warning that there are - obviously - significant spoilers in the forums.

Here's is a list of useful forum threads for the book.

PostPosted: Tue Aug 14, 2007 11:01 am
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Matches Malone
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 		Re: meta-feedback?
deletia wrote:
So I haven't read HoL, and I probably won't be able to get around to it for a few years. That said, I've been told by a number of friends that it's pretty mind-bending and fantastic.

So my question: Is there an author- or reader-character in the book? and if so, is there interaction between the author/reader-character and his or her creations?

What I'm fishing for here is evidence that we can talk to the MySpace characters about their fictional roles in this unfolding drama.


Your question is a good one, but can't really be answered. The book is constantly interrupted with footnotes from Johnny Truant, giving his life story, and even from the mysterious "Editors" who make corrections and give further information at certain points in the various narratives.

There are clues also hidden in the book, in the form of codes and other things very familiar to the unFiction community.

The narrative regarding the "Navidson Record", which is the story of the family confronting the labyrinth, is written by a character named Zampano, whose manuscript is found, compiled, and edited by the ostensible "protagonist" of the book, Johnny Truant.

The book can be enjoyed on many levels. For those craving just a really creepy, keep-you-up-all-night-staring-at-your-bedroom-door story, there are few better than "The Navidson Record".

For those wanting to peel back the layers a bit more, and really go on a wild journey exploring the relationship between writer and reader, there's the story of Johnny Truant and his degradation.

For those that have read HoL - if "The Navidson Record" were ever to be made into a real film, wouldn't Stanley Kubrick just be the only choice? It's a damn shame Kubrick did not survive to read this book. I think he might have been able to convince MZD to sell him the rights.

PostPosted: Tue Aug 14, 2007 11:16 am
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Melampus
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the_velociraptor wrote:
I bet that was just a hint. Maybe Jay-Jay read the book and just put that on as some spice?


Given the apparent depth and complexity of the book, it does feel like the book may have been referenced just to lend "some spice." But, even if it's only for that, doesn't that implicitly promise some kind of ARG? Something beyond mere marketing/ARE? Referencing that book, and then having Lily encourage people to read it - that seems to say: get ready for something like this (like HoL).

If any minions of Bad Robot are reading this, blink twice if there's an ARG... or, either reinforce or downplay Lily's commitment to HoL somehow - give us a sign, one way or the other! Pleeease!! ARG

ok, sorry - lost my cool there. Resume discussion on HoL. Sounds like an amazing book.

PostPosted: Tue Aug 14, 2007 1:36 pm
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the_velociraptor
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 		I liken House of Leaves to Silent Hill, without the monsters.

Also, this is about Cloverfield, and not Zampano's documentary on a documentary. I think they might have put that in as a reference to cameras used during the giant monster attack1.

1. It has been speculated this monster is a giant squad, a giant crab, Godzilla, Cthulhu, a lion, a mutated Dinosaur, a mutated human,and a Minotaur. It's also been "leaked" that this monster can cause humans to be zombie like. 2

2. Half of those monster theories are a load of bullshit. A more rational explanation would be XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX3

3. Mister Truant never explained why this section was scribbled out. -Ed.

PostPosted: Tue Aug 14, 2007 1:47 pm
Last edited by the_velociraptor on Tue Aug 14, 2007 2:17 pm; edited 2 times in total
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Matches Malone
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 		^LMFAO

PostPosted: Tue Aug 14, 2007 2:10 pm
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tmerch
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 		Incidentally
In my original post I mentioned that Lil had stopped messaging me until I told her I bought the book. Then she responded immediately: "Oh cool! Let me know what you think. Yeah I know, its quite a commitment. "

So, assuming that there's a logical thought process behind which messages are answered, HoL may be a good in... [/cautious optimism]

PostPosted: Wed Aug 15, 2007 8:29 am
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