Review of Howl (2010) by A Z — 09 Nov 2010

Half a star off for portions of the courtroom segments, particularly the judge's ruling whose execution was one part John Grisham, one part movie-of-the-week.

That said, I was moved. The portrayal of Ginsberg's recounting his search for himself intercut with two readings of "Howl" (one in front of a good-naturedly rowdy audience in a bar or coffee house, one set to some often beautiful animation) struck several chords, much as the poem itself did when I read it, even if I lack the words to satisfactorily articulate exactly why. The movie's flow was just about flawless, the intercutting expertly done. This one's going to stick with me, I think.