The life and times of Allen Ginsberg

Allen Ginsberg was one of the central figures of the Beat Generation. This documentary examines his work and activism from his beginnings as a poet in New York in the 1950s to his involvement in the politics of the anti-war and peace movements in the sixties and seventies. The Beat Generation combined a European bohemian lifestyle with a distinctly American energy and passion: their poetry and writing reflected the cadences and rythms of jazz and New York City. Of them all, Ginsberg’s poetry had a specifically political urgency best reflected in his most famous poem “Howl”. However, his was a politics devoid of the rigidity and moralism of most agit-prop. The video traces the history of the Beats including a discussion of Ginsberg’s working relationships with William Burroughs and Jack Kerouac, then moves to examine Ginsberg’s contribution to the anti-Vietnam war movement. Ginsberg continues to write and to be active in radical politics including lending strong support to the peace movement. In the eighties he has concentrated on exploring Eastern philosophies and critiquing the consumerism of American society. The video includes interviews with Ginsberg’s step-mother, Timothy Leary and Joan Baez. The poet himself reads “Howl”, “Kaddish” and other poems straight to camera. Not only a documentary on Ginsberg and the Beats but a fascinating survey of the turbulent intellectual history of the United States over four decades.