Wednesday 9 March 2011

Howl

If you have a free afternoon to catch a new movie I recommend 'Howl'. It tells the story of the events which shaped Allen Ginsberg's seminal poem 'Howl' and the obscenity trial that followed it's publication. As someone who had always found 'Howl' impenetrable, the film completely drew me into the poem & also made me more open to the way that people were trying to live, think & feel differently during this period of American history. Some critics are iffy about the animation, I'm not sure if they object to the quality of the animation or the idea of accompanying a poem with animation. It worked for me as it contributed to the overall hypnotic quality of the film and because I didn't have strong ideas about or a strong attachment to the poem. James Franco is perfectly cast. love tt