Fresh
This is a bold, inspiring piece of work, putting experimental techniques in the service of a heartfelt, insightful and surprisingly audience-friendly work of art.
Tom Huddleston, Time Out
Howl
The Obscenity Trial That Started a Revolution. The Poem That Rocked a Generation.
2010 · 1h 24m · R
Drama
Directed by
Rob Epstein
,
Jeffrey Friedman
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Howl
Overview
It's San Francisco in 1957, and an American masterpiece is put on trial. Howl, the film, recounts this dark moment using three interwoven threads: the tumultuous life events that led a young Allen Ginsberg to find his true voice as an artist, society's reaction (the obscenity trial), and mind-expanding animation that echoes the startling originality of the poem itself. All three coalesce in a genre-bending hybrid that brilliantly captures a pivotal moment-the birth of a counterculture.
Director and cast
- Rob Epstein Director
- Jeffrey Friedman Director
- James Franco as Allen Ginsberg
- Todd Rotondi as Jack Kerouac
- Jon Prescott as Neal Cassady
- Aaron Tveit as Peter Orlovsky
- David Strathairn as Ralph McIntosh
- Jon Hamm as Jake Ehrlich
- Andrew Rogers as Lawrence Ferlinghetti
- Bob Balaban as Judge Clayton Horn
- Mary-Louise Parker as Gail Potter
- Treat Williams as Mark Schorer
Critics on Rotten Tomatoes
Top critics, in their words
62%
Tomatometer
Fresh
It's sweet stuff, a portrait of an artist in turmoil, under fire and laying himself bare. Howl captures Howl beautifully.
Tom Long, Detroit News
Rotten
Admirable if fundamentally academic.
Todd McCarthy, Variety
Fresh
What could have been a trivial exercise in nostalgia instead becomes a powerful case for the cathartic power of art.
Ann Hornaday, Washington Post
Fresh
Epstein and Friedman didn't write the film as much as assemble it, using actual interview quotes and court transcripts. And while the loose structure takes some getting used to, it's ultimately effective and at times thrilling.
Moira MacDonald, Seattle Times
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