During a recent episode of The Graham Norton Show, Olivia Colman couldn’t help but gush about a book premise that has her hooked. The talk show host was thrilled to discuss Richard Ayoade‘s hilarious new book, “View from the Top,” which centers around the Gwyneth Paltrow film of the same name.
As Ayoade began to explain the premise, he jokingly preempted any potential poor salesmanship on his end. “You’re very kind to say that it is very funny, but now you need to tell people what it’s about,” he remarked. He continued, “Okay, let me do some damage now. So, it is about a Gwyneth Paltrow film called ‘View from the Top.'”
Colman chimed in, sharing that she had indeed seen the film and found it haunting. “I saw this film with my wife, that’s not a joke,” she admitted. “That it is possible that someone would choose that. And I was so haunted by this film, but it’s taken me three years to exercise my system.” She explained that she went through the book in forensic detail, explaining why it’s so important. Ayoade added, “We need to have a conversation about this film.”
The book offers an academic reading of the film, treating it as a classic and dissecting its elements. Ayoade expressed the need to give the film the respect it deserves, as he believes it hasn’t received enough attention. “Can you believe this is the first book about this film?” he exclaimed. Clearly, Colman and Ayoade share a passion for analyzing and discussing the intricacies of “View from the Top.”
In addition to their chat about the book, Colman also shared a charming anecdote about her childhood Christmases in Ipswich. She revealed that her mother, who was Norwegian, enforced a tradition of cleaning the entire house before presents were given out on Christmas Eve. Colman cheekily added, “It really was a ruse just to really amp up the housework.” She mentioned her mother’s penchant for baking Christmas biscuits, which she recently discovered are more commonly known as cookies.
As the delightful conversation continued, Ayoade couldn’t help but joke about putting out biscuits for Santa Claus. However, he quickly realized he was in Colman’s territory when she playfully stated, “You’re on my turf now, John.”
All in all, this episode of The Graham Norton Show was filled with laughter and interesting insights. Olivia Colman‘s enthusiasm for Richard Ayoade‘s book premise and their engaging discussions about “View from the Top” made for a lively and entertaining segment. Hopefully, their conversation will spark further discussion about the film’s underrated importance.
