Out of Tune: David Helfgott and the Myth of Shine [Hardcover]

Margaret Helfgott (Author), Tom Gross (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1, 1998

Margaret Helfgott, sister of the piano virtuoso David Helfgott, shines new light on the story behind the film that brought him into the public arena. Her story contests the ideas developed in the film Shine in a thought-provoking manner.

Editorial Reviews

Review

It is hard not to sympathize with the woman who wishes to clear her father's name. If what she says is true--and she does speak with authority--Mr. Hicks never should have billed Shine as a true story. Having said that, enough had been said. This is no occasion for a book-length memoir. -- The Wall Street Journal, Daniel Mark Epstein

Product Details

• Hardcover: 294 pages
• Publisher: Warner Books; Ex-library edition (April 1, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0446523836
• ISBN-13: 978-0446523837
• Product Dimensions: 6.4 x 1.1 x 9.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,931,217 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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75 of 80 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A sister's view, November 25, 2000

By 

Arts&HistoryFan/Kindleworld "Andrys" (United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Out of Tune: David Helfgott and the Myth of Shine (Hardcover)

I've finally read the book after waiting a period of time after reading Scott Hick's published letter to the Wall Street Journal when this book first came out. And I'll include that here in fairness and as background to my reaction to the book.

The book's view is almost diametrically opposed to the one in the film and I sense the truth is somewhat in the middle. There is also a disclaimer at the end of the movie to the effect that it was a "fictionalized" story based on the life of David Helfgott.

Margaret's view of her father is that he was an angel. Reading between the lines, this can't be so, in which case we may be dealing with undue loyalty and the perspective of a sister who seems, in her narrative, jealous of the attention her father gave young David. It's an unpleasant read. Here are excerpts from Scott Hick's response to the reviewer for the WSJournal Aug. 27, 1998.

--- '... my primary source was not David Helfgott's wife Gillian, but David

Helfgott himself.

'In "Shine" I made a film that speaks for itself, and I stand by the research that was conducted in preparation for it, drawn from numerous interviews with friends, relatives, teachers, medical people and colleagues of David's. A number of these people were adult observers of Peter Helfgott and his family when Margaret and David were very young children.

'I maintain that all of the actions of the character Peter Helfgott have their origins in real events. In fact, some people who knew David Helfgott's father have commented to me that it is, if anything, a rather kind portrait. Certainly, I was told of abuses far more serious than those shown in the film, which I chose not to include in order to spare the family as well as the audience. When David's sister Susie read the script, she thanked me sincerely for my discretion about these events, which I have never discussed publicly. Susie continues to dispute Margaret's view of events, and has said publicly that her sister views the past through "rose-coloured glasses."

'Margaret Helfgott's first words to me were, "My father was a saint," a view she continues to campaign for, but which is not shared by other members of her family. I believe she chooses, for reasons of her own, to block out the memories of the years she has described in her own letters to family members as "traumatized."

'David's brother, Les Helfgott, has repeatedly told me and others that his father hit him, on one occasion actually knocking him unconscious. Les was omitted from the screenplay at his own request. When I gave him the script to read, he asked to be included in it again, but added that he gave the film his blessing, regardless. I gave Les, David's sister Louise and his mother Rae the opportunity to preview the film privately and discuss it with me. Afterward, Les Helfgott wrote to thank me, saying, "Any fears we may have had regarding the film have now gone. You have done a brilliant job of 'Shine'." Several weeks later, Les and Louise were my guests at the world premiere of the film, joining in the celebrations publicly with me. This was a strange way to show the concern and anger that Margaret's book would now have us believe they feel.

'Louise was also our guest during filming, and actually appears briefly in the film. Louise is the author of a play about Peter Helfgott (which she told me was workshopped at the Australian National Playwrights' Conference in Canberra) that is more explicit in its depiction of her father than is "Shine."

'Margaret Helfgott is, of course, entitled to her memory, despite consistently denying her brother David's right to his. It is tragic that she is unable to share her brother's joy at recapturing fragments of his lost career while overcoming the difficulties of his past. Perhaps this is a reflection of a decades-old jealousy instilled by the intense spirit of competitiveness her father fostered between Margaret and David, as she herself describes in her book . . .

'. . . she remains devoted to the memory of a complicated man who, whatever his merits, left behind him a family legacy that one psychiatrist who knew the Helfgotts described to me as "a bottomless pit of need."

Scott Hicks Director of "Shine" Adelaide, South Australia '

---

Hopefully, a balance to a much-distributed book.

18 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A distortion and disservice to her brother, November 2, 1998

By 

[e-mail] (Ozaukee County, Wisconsin) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Out of Tune: David Helfgott and the Myth of Shine (Hardcover)

4 Stars for writing style; 2 stars for the implications and reason for publishing. One cannot comment on this book without making reference to Gillian Helfgott's book as well. Margaret cannot be 100% wrong. David and Gillian Helfgott cannot be 100% wrong. Therefore, I took both Gillian's book and Margaret's book and began comparisons. Several things struck me: what man would pick up his family, force them to travel 2000 miles, and all with no prospects or money? (I mention this since the biggest bone of contention seems to be the father, Peter--his actions at certains times were questionable behavior by any stretch of the imagination.) Next, why are some of David's siblings literally beaming in the photo (in Gillian's book) taken with Actress Redgrave during the filming of SHINE? I could go on and on, but I think the truth lies somewhere in-between the two books. It's unfortunate that this book has and may continue to overshadow David's career and Gillian's sincerity. Read this book with the proverbial grain of salt. Besides, Margaret's childhood was not necessarily David's, unless she was with him 24 hours per day. The only good thing about the book is the obvious love the author has for her deceased father. Of course, Gillian made an effort in her book, too, to show that there were happy times and love. No stars for how Margaret took some of what Gillian had to say out of context. This leaves the book with a very iffy three stars.

17 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A painful and loving fight against the myth of "Shine", May 7, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Out of Tune: David Helfgott and the Myth of Shine (Hardcover)

I recall after seeing "Shine", I remarked to a friend that while I enjoyed the film, "It sadly doesn't happen that way in real life".

As a health professional who has worked for many years with people, including artists who suffered from schizophrenic disorders, I can affirm that Margaret Helfgott's book rings only, too true.

As a painful and loving testament to her father Peter, her family and her brother David, Margaret Helfgott takes the reader through the maze of distortion and lies by "Shine's" director Scott Hicks, David's second wife Gillian, and the commercial exploitation of David Helfgott by post production interests. Despite the distorted need to invent blame, the profound reality of David Helfgott's illness will not be altered by the many lies in "Shine" about his late father Peter and his family.

I could not put Margaret Helfgott's book down, and highly recommend it to anyone who saw the fiction of "Shine", read the screenplay, or are just interested in understanding the impact of schizophrenic-type disorders on patients and families.