Howl: The Review
After the kids went to bed, I saw the movie Howl On Demand.
Based on the trailer, I wanted to like it more. James Franco does a great job matching the cadence and mannerisms of Allen Ginsberg. The movie, however, lacked a real plot. There are three stories: scenes of Ginsberg talking about "Howl," the obscenity court trial, and the animated segments of the poem. None of the three was worth the hour and 24 minutes I can't get back.
It would have been more interesting to do a deep dive into Ginsberg's life and lifestyle around the time "Howl" was written. The film heavily relies on animation to drive the story. But by the end, it felt as if the producers ran out of money to make the film they wanted and gave us this. I found the mix of animation and plot annoying, and when Howl ended my reaction was: So what?
I paid $6.99 to see the movie at home. Had I spent money for a sitter and $10 to watch it in a theater, I would have been livid.
Comments
Maybe the main theme is the
developing relationship between
Ginsberg and the audience. I
can hook into a few poems, but
not much overall. Tt seems
to end up unremarkable,
and that's the 'good stuff'.
It might be an age thing.
Should be interesting when a few
Ginsberg fanatics I know have
seen it.
I saw a video of sunflower sutra
by a teen on youtube. That
actually brought an understanding
I didn't have before. I should
look for more like that.
I try. :-)
and that's the 'good stuff'."
That's exactly how I felt. And don't get me wrong, I like animation with poetry, but I don't think it works as well in a movie like this.
The whole movie fell flat for me, and I didn't learn anything I didn't know before.
Jane Campion's Bright Star about Keats. And then there's Il Postino, which glances off of Neruda.
About the Beats, there's a goofy docu-short called Pull My Daisy that I've seen.