Can anyone suggest why, a writer with Greene's invention and talent - has in this movie, characters with such 'common' names as:
Brown
Jones
Smith
and of course Green(e) is another!
Absolutely nothing wrong with these names - but I bet you can't name another movie with such a high incidence of common surnames, when there is the whole world to choose from
The names were specifically chosen for their commonality, specifically for their anonymity. One theme running through the book is how everyone is acting a part, that no one really knows if anyone else is "for real" or not. Thus the names could be looked at as part of the disguise. This is what the title refers to and one character even goes as far aas to compare everyone to Comedians acting in a play.
I hope that makes sense.
They are actually pretty explicitly discussed when Maj Jones reveals his past to Brown, and likewise. I don't remember it word for word, but worth a listen again.
sharebut I bet you can't name another movie with such a high incidence of common surnames
First the film example
Reservoir Dogs:
Brown
White
Pink
Blue
Orange
Blonde
Not common names except the first two but this is more about color.
Second, I totally "got" almost from the beginning why Greene used names like this and I thought it was very clever.