The Beat (2000) – In the 1950’s American literature and culture would change through the work of the Beat Movement. At the center of that movement, you find William S. Burroughs, his wife, Joan Vollmer, Allen Ginsberg, Lucien Carr, and Jack Kerouac. They would burst over the literary landscape in the 1950’s but their story begins in 1944 when they meet at Columbia University. Two deaths will change their lives forever, both at the hands of a member of their group. The movie follows them through all the events of that time.
Directed by Gary Walkow Starring: Kiefer Sutherland, Courtney Love, Norman Reedus
This movie is a puzzle to me. But then I think it is a puzzle to itself as well. Whose movie is it? Is it Burroughs’s (Sutherland), struggling with the demands created by his sexuality? He can’t get the affection he desires from his male lovers, and can’t seem to process the devotion of his wife (Love). Is it about the tragedy of Joan Vollmer? A writer of unknown quality because virtually nothing of her work survives. Yet, she is seen a lodestone for that group, a woman perfectly able of intellectually running with these boys. Is it the story of Lucien Carr (Reedus), a longtime editor at United Press International but considered a genius by some members of the Beat circle. One of the two deaths will haunt him for the rest of his life. Ginsburg (Ron Livingston) gets a little time for his story, while Jack Kerouac (Daniel Martinez) slides quickly through the movie, never to be noticed again, on screen.
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| An exceptionally dumb poster that gives the completely wrong idea of the movie. |
The descriptions of the movie point toward Burroughs and Vollmer, who are the common points for most of these stories. Sutherland gives the writer an odd cadence to his lines that doesn’t seem to match with the couple of video interviews I’ve found of him. If the goal was to make Burroughs look peculiar it works. Meanwhile, Vollmer was supposedly profoundly devoted to Burroughs, staying with him through thick and thin. Love’s version seems to border on Virginia Woolf, waiting for the final shove that will push her into that angry, vicious territory. I will note that Love is far and away the most interesting actor in this movie. She makes Vollmer very real and brings a deep inner strength that would clearly draw men of all descriptions to her.
In the end, the men who would create the Beat Movement come off as broken, weak boys. The performances here lack any feeling of the energy that I associate with their work. Any of the several story lines here would have allowed a fuller exploration of the people and the creative energies they were gathering. Walkow, who both wrote and directed, never finds that center for his story.
Why I Liked It – Each of the smaller pieces of the storyline is fascinating, in and of themselves. It inspired me to go back and look again at some of the work, even though I’ve never been a fan.
Why You Will Like It – Courtney Love may not get a true star turn here, but she gives a performance that is well worth watching. Take you eyes off the screen when she’s there, I dare you.
The movie has an R rating for elements of sex, drugs and violence.
Rating – *** Worth A Look
Stories Are My Life 
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