The Interceptor Pilot

by Kenneth Gangemi

This cinematic novel tells the story of an American fighter pilot, a veteran of aerial combat in the Korean War. Fifteen years later, for his own compelling reasons, the former ace volunteers his services to North Vietnam in a mission to defend the small country against bombing by his own countrymen. A film you read, with elements of both a treatment and a screenplay, The Interceptor Pilot is a description of the action-adventure thriller that was politically impossible for Hollywood. "Generates the power of the film it imagines itself to be."-New York Times Book Review

127 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1975

About the author

American poet and fiction writer.

Reviews

[Peter · Rating 2 out of 5]

“I thought of what I was doing as describing a film, not writing a manuscript.”

Describing an imaginary film is an intriguing idea, but Kenneth Gangemi’s concept of a film is Hollywood B-movie and his concept of description is a frame-by-frame account in a “cut to a close-up of his face” style.

The imaginary film concerns an American fighter pilot flying for the North Vietnamese, so it’s not 1960s Hollywood in its political allegiance...but, that apart, it reads like a rather dull plot summary of a tv movie.

Having admired and enjoyed Olt, The Interceptor Pilot is a disappointment. An experimental novel that isn’t.

[Andy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Absorbing, easy read with an ending that gave me goosebumps. Presented in the style of a film script replete with jump cuts, montage sequences and other assorted camera techniques gives the story a lot of emotional punch.