April 11, 2021

Killing Commendatore Review

Been excited to read this book finally that I have to sit down with it. It’s a large book. The last book that
have I read that I could compare to the length of Commendatore is 1Q84, which I read in a tablet. I read
Commendatore in a printed version. It is a chore holding the book with my hand that sometimes I have
to take a pause and do some stretches.

Delving into the book and reading Murakami’s other stories, there are times that I feel the stories is
cliché in terms of tropes that the author used in his previous books. There are recurring themes and
stories that Murakami used before and applied to the Commendatore—which for a long-time Murakami
reader would be predictable and kinda boring. But still Killing Commendatore is fun to read. I’m
engrossed in Murakami’s language that sometimes I would finish 4-5 chapters in one sitting. I take
breaks because my hand cramp due to the book’s weight.

Murakami’s Killing Commendatore follows the story of an unnamed narrator – a classic Murakami story
device – who is a painter and lived in a house on top of a valley. The story unfolds after the narrator
discovers a painting hidden in the house’ attic. Aptly titled Killing Commendatore, it was a work of the
house’s previous resident which is a famous Japanese-style painter. After the narrator brought it down
from the attic a series of events happened in his life. There is a strange neighbor, living in a ridiculously
big-white mansion, who commissioned a portrait to the narrator for a fairly large amount of money; a
bell ringing from a deep well at midnight; and a ghost, who burrowed his form from the Commendatore
of the painting, who keeps on appearing inside the mansion.

As with other Murakami stories, the narrator is living alone and goes for a ride after meeting a series of
character and encountering a series of events. It is always a fun to read Murakami’s stories because the
reader is taken to a wild ride because of a series of events, be it fortunate or not.

Another Well and Lost Things: A Review of Haruki Murakami’s Killing Commendatore

Released in 2017, Haruki Murakami’s Killing Commendatore novel is a 700-page pain-in-the-ass book
that I had to sit down to read for a week. My copy is in hardbound format and weights heavy.
Sometimes I have to take a break to keep the blood in my arms flowing --that huge-ass book gives me
cramps in my hand.

As with other Murakami novels, it starts with an unnamed narrator looking for a thing that he has to do.
Well because most of Murakami’s characters strangely have huge amount of time in their hands that
they a luxury to do some stupid things like digging a dry well, and sit inside with a cover on top for
hours. That’s what most of Murakami’s character likes to do – spent their free time on weird and
absurd activities. And as they participate in these strange series of events, they will find themselves in a
dream-like world but as always they will see that world like it’s a normal thing.
Killing Commendatore follows the story of an unnamed narrator who is a painter and lived in a house on
top of a valley. The story unfolds after the narrator discovers a painting hidden in tge attic. Aptly titled
Killing Commendatore, it was a work of the house’s previous resident which is a famous Japanese-style
painter. After the narrator brought it down from the attic, a series of events happened in his life. There
is a strange neighbor, living in a ridiculously big-white mansion, who commissioned a portrait to the
narrator for a fairly large amount of money; a bell ringing from a deep well at midnight; and a ghost,
who burrowed his form from the Commendatore of the painting, who keeps on appearing inside the
mansion.

Delving into the book and reading Murakami’s other stories, there are times that I think Killing
Commendatore is cliché in terms of tropes that the author used in his previous books. There are
recurring themes and stories that Murakami used before and applied to it to the novel Commendatore,
which for a long-time Murakami reader would be predictable and kinda boring.

The magic of Murakami’s writing is in his language. I never read a writer that has a firm grasp on the
fluidity of word. Sometimes I think, in the most Murakami-way possible, the words literally come out on
the page. Even though some parts of the novel are clichés for me. My eyes can still breeze through each
of the chapters. There are times I find myself reading 5-7 chapters in one sitting. If you are thinking that
it’s just a few chapters, as said sometimes I have to break to rest my arm. The book very heavy!

I may not recommend this book for new readers of Murakami’s stories. I think Killing Commendatore
does not have Murakami’s prowess in putting readers in different twists and turns of the story. I find the
first part of the story is boring. I do not found the action that Murakami’s previous story have in this
one. The novel picked when one of the major’s characters has gone missing, but that part comes out in
in three quarters of the book. A bit late. When I finally enjoy the flow of the events, little did I know the
end is already in sight.

This does not mean to say that I didn’t enjoy the first part of the book. Of course, I’m taken away by the
story of the unnamed painter and where it leads. But in the first part of the story, there is a promise that
I would find something (probably towards the end of the book) about the dug-up well, the connection
between the painting and the house’s previous owner, and about the ghost. I did not find an answer on
all of them. Their story arcs were not complete. Of course it does not mean to say that all of the stories
should have a complete arc. But for the Killing Commendatore, I had a feeling that I was cheated.

As I said, the story picked up after one of the major characters gone missing. Because that is when I
know that the next turn of events will eventually lead to an answer why that character gone missing.
However, the answer that I find in the end of the novel still feels empty.

Killing Commendatore is good for readers who wants to get their fill of mundane and out-of-this-world
story. Murakami masterfully blends these two concepts that sometimes the boundary between the two
becomes blurred. This is where Murakami excels in his story that will take the readers in an interesting
journey towards the end of the book.

I will give Killing Commendatore a rating of 7/10.