2008 Pulitzer Prize winning author of the novel, The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao, Junot Diaz, is a Grand Theft Auto fan. He’s played all of them since the first 2d entry into the series and has liked them. But does he think the game is art on the level of The Godfather, as many critics have said?
According to his missive on the WSJ, the answer is “No.”
GTA IV for all its awesomeness doesn’t have the sordid bipolar humanity of “The Sopranos,” and it certainly lacks the epic flawed protagonists that define “The Godfather” and its bloodier lesser brother “Scarface.” Successful art tears away the veil and allows you to see the world with lapidary clarity; successful art pulls you apart and puts you back together again, often against your will, and in the process reminds you in a visceral way of your limitations, your vulnerabilities, makes you in effect more human. Does GTA IV do that? Not for me it doesn’t, and heck, I love this damn game.
Take that GTA fanboys! How do you like dem Pulitzer-winning apples now!
Read Junot’s entire essay [wsj.com]