While it might seem a little odd to cast a well-known British actor to play a well-known Jewish-American writer, I have to admit that Daniel Radcliffe as Allen Ginsberg has been winning me over via clips and trailers for Kill Your Darlings. This latest clip does not give us much to go on, but it’s once more a tantalizing teaser for a film that continues to rise on my ‘must-see’ list.
Kill Your Darlings follows young Ginsberg as he makes way through Columbia in 1944, meeting some of his future Beat Generation pals along the way. There’s Jack Kerouac (Jack Huston), William Burroughs (Ben Foster) and, most importantly for this film, Lucien Carr (Dane DeHaan). Carr introduces Ginsberg to the world of the future Beats, but in the process they tangle with David Kammerer (Michael C. Hall), an older man passionately in love with Carr. Kammerer’s resultant murder and the implication of the four young men in it solidify and form their relationships, both personally and professionally. It’s a great story, and has the potential to be a fascinating film.
This clip introduces Carr to Ginsberg as a wild and attractive young man ready to begin tearing down the establishment. As a tour guide recounts the traditional glories of the university, Carr springs upon a table and begins reciting less than traditional poetry. Everyone is shocked, except for Ginsberg of course.
I happen to enjoy the Beats and look forward to Kill Your Darlings to begin with, but I’m also pleased that it looks so very good. All the trailers and clips we’ve seen thus far have been exciting, and this one is no different.
Kill Your Darlings hits theatres in the US on October 18. You can watch the latest clip below and check out some new stills from the film. Does this look like a good representation of America’s greatest poets? Let us know.
