Kill Your Darlings 2013

"Some things, once you've loved them, become yours forever. And if you try to let them go... They only circle back and return to you. They become part of who you are... Or they destroy you."

Due to the name of the actors connected with this film and its story based on true events, I was curious about watching this. I didn't know much about it, I just knew that it involved some of the famous writers in the history of the American Literature.

Kill Your Darlings is centered in the early life of Allen Ginsberg at the Columbia University. In the film we see how he knew Lucien Carr, William S. Burroughs and Jack Kerouac, all together were about to start The Beat Generation a post-World War II group of writers whose ideals involved the free speach, the use of drugs to help them be inspired intellectually, spiritual and sexual liberation, among other things.

My main problem with this film is its inconsistency. I didn't know much about The Beat Generation and the film was not able to keep me interested the whole time. Sometimes I found myself wondering about other stuff. The film mostly succeeds because of the performances more than the structure of the story itself. The story starts to get more interesting on the second half, where the tension around it raises and a coming-of-age story became more of a thriller that will lead us to a tragic event.
Some of the characters, specially the supporting roles needed more character development.

Daniel Radcliffe proves again that he is able to do different stuff, he is not "Harry Potter" anymore! His performance his amazing, very intense but not just his. All of the cast give absolutely amazing and engaging performances, Dane DeHaan, Jack Huston, Michael C. Hall and Ben Foster.
The chemistry between Radcliffe and DeHaan is terrific, despite we know that both are homosexuals and their sexual tension is always present during the entire film, the relationship between the two is very well delivered during the film, never too heavy and very mysterious at the same time. So, if you think you will see something shocking you won't. You will feel a very complexed and poetic relationship.
Jack Huston, Michael C. Hall and Ben Foster don't have the same time on screen but when they're at a scene the spotlights are always above them. Ben Foster was my favourite, I absolutely loved his performance!

Kill Your Darlings is a story about a generation that revolutionized a lot of people's life styles but it's also a story about self destruction.

Wonderful performances and great music! I understand this is a fictional account, but I do not believe accuracy is particularly relevant in such an old case, specially when the names involved have already passed away.
Focusing on the connection between the characters was a great choice over telling a sensational murder tale, it made the Beat Generation look like a debauched version of The Dead Poets Society, and I loved it. The one flaw is that the story starts a bit slow. I found myself almost uninterested during the first half hour, but once relationships are stablished, they become quickly intense and complicated, and the characters develop into these tortured souls, so easy to empathize with, under this charismatic libertine façade, and it just makes you curious and more curious about how things will turn out even though you know exactly what dark event looms ahead.
The main cast was great, and this will probably remain as my favorite DeHaan performance even with his many recent projects (excellent example of well-deserved attention!). I was particularly impressed with Radcliffe, who totally made me believe he was born and raised in America, and gave life to Ginsberg in a way that made him look detestable and selfish and yet feel so relatable. Another excellent work under his belt.