Saturday, January 26, 2013

Big Sur (2013)

Director: Michael Polish

Starring:  Jean-Marc Barr, Kate Bosworth, Josh Lucas, Radha Mitchell, Anthony Edwards, Henry Thomas

More info: IMDb

Plot: Big Sur focuses on a moment in Jack Kerouac’s life when, overwhelmed by the success of his opus On the Road and struggling with alcoholism, he retreats to his publisher Lawrence Ferlinghetti’s cabin in the small, coastal California town of Big Sur, which eventually inspires his 1962 novel of the same name. Kerouac’s time begins with quiet moments of solitude and communing with nature. But, struck by loneliness, he hightails it to San Francisco, where he resumes drinking heavily and gets pushed into a relationship with his best friend Neal Cassady’s mistress, Billie.

My rating: 8/10

Will I watch it again? Nah.


Jean-Marc Barr puts in a great performance as Jack Kerouac and it's great seeing another BOARDWALK EMPIRE actor here at Sundance, Patrick Fischler (who played Arnold Rothstein on BE).  It's funny that the other film at the Sundance Film Festival with Kerouac in it, KILL YOUR DARLINGS, had another BE actor playing Kerouac. The music was great, the scenic CA coastline, the supporting cast and the script.  Barr's delivery of Kerouac's words is very musical.  The cadence of the lines is mesmerizing.  It's a leisurely paced movie that isn't pretty (as far as the story goes) but I was happy to take the 77 minute journey with him.


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