Big Sur (2013)

This film is a total drag. I had no idea Kerouac was such a loser. I honestly don't know what he had to complain about. Here he is, a famous writer, in bed with a gorgeous woman, surrounded by friends and the guy is miserable as hell. I have no sympathy for people like that. Plus he never stops drinking. I guess being a writer the booze is just an occupational hazard but still, I've never seen anyone drink that much! I know he died young as a result of alcoholism and that really doesn't surprise me now. Both he and Cassady had such sad endings. Perhaps there is a moral in there somewhere but I don't know what it is. If you want to read a truly inspirational writer, who is often called the father of the beats, check out Henry Miller, who is mentioned in the film once or twice, as another writer who would up in Big Sur. Now Miller knew how to live. He never let depression beat him. The man was a force of nature. Forget about Kerouac and Burroughs, these guys had serious issues. Henry Miller is yr man. Reading his material never fails to lift my spirits. As for the film, watch it for the scenery and a semi-nude Kate Bosworth, that's about all it's good for.

i thought about this a lot the first time i saw this i was like was Big Sur is one of the most beautiful films ever made with greatest narration ever done in film history turns out i was wrong when i saw it the second time.sure this film had a decent cast almost everyone did a nice job but sad this is Stana Katic just got wasted here this lady is so talented her scenes are totally pointless,if you don't believe me just check her out in castle TV show with Nathon Fillion i am not going to spoil the story here but i will say that the plot & characters are depressing its good to see the acting here but film required editing at most places where it affected the pace,jack's narration gets annoying after a while most of the time he is speaking nonsense.the camera-work and cinematography just saves this drag of a film the way all the amazing scenery is captured its breathtaking.to be honest i am a sucker for slow paced & dialog oriented or novel based films i love them and enjoy them but i don't know why this one failed to click with me even though i tried it very hard to find a place in my heart for this one,Big Sur is a good film but not memorable that's my point.a lot of people and critics have different opinions about films should i have a wrong opinion about this one and say this film came at a wrong time it was 2013 seriously or it was a terrible year more negative points this get as it didn't have any big names in this films and zero marketing etc etc no way and maybe yes it possible to a certain extent but the main thing is Big Sur is simply not exiting enough to sit through.i am not saying this film is a bad one it would be unfair but its just a one time watch that's it i recommend renting it but do not buy this DVD please my rating for Big Sur 2013 is 5/10.

"Big Sur" (2013), based on the 1962 book by the enigmatic Jack Kerouac, details the author's three retreats to a friend's cabin in the magnificent eponymous location a hundred miles south of San Francisco. Sometimes he's alone and sometimes he's with friends. Kerouac can't handle his fame and success as the leader of the beatniks and so descends into the darkness of alcohol addiction. While this is a well-made artsy film featuring narrations from the author himself throughout, it's done in by its subject. At least with 1991's "The Doors," which chronicled Jim Morrison's downward spiral, we got great music, entertaining concert footage and colorful characters. "Big Sur," by contrast, only has Kerouac's stream-of-consciousness verbiage (i.e. "interior monologue") and the beautiful cinematography of Big Sur. Yes, it's professionally made with a quality cast and it kept my interest for the first 45-50 minutes, but then it just drones on to the bitter end. I hate seeing people waste their talents, especially by their own foolish addictions. Of course this is the only way the story COULD end since it's based on real life. Jack was dead at 47. Despite my criticisms, "Big Sur" is worthwhile if the topic interests you and the film's obviously a must for Kerouac fans; it will leave most everyone else bored or depressed.Interestingly, it was 1957's "On the Road" that propelled Jack to beatnik stardom, but he later confessed it "was really a story about two Catholic buddies roaming the country in search of God. And we found him." Too bad his revelation didn't help him out with his increasing substance abuse. The film runs a mere 81 minutes and was shot in Big Sur and San Francisco. GRADE: C

It's impossible to discuss this movie without putting it in the context of "On The Road", which could not find an audience. Knowledge of who Kerouac was is limited in the TV age; and his books, all fictionalized tales, yet autobiographical in nature (and to some a serialized mythology of an artist's life) are reduced to a cult-fan base in this era. If the iconic road story that launched Kerouac into the literary firmament was rejected by the Superhero loving movie audience of today, what chance does a psychological internal monologue about an artist's descent into alcoholism have.So we are left with a simple dividing line: do you know the work of Kerouac and the milieu of "The Beats"? If you don't, then this movie will seem odd and slow-paced, overwhelmingly pointless and pretentious. If you are a fan, then we are confronted with another question: Is simply seeing the narratives underlying Kerouac's poetic stream of conscious writing brought to life worth dealing with the limitations of converting works of art that are not plot-based to film? Like "On The Road", "Big Sur" delivers a simple enough joy to the Kerouac fan. There it is: a dramatization of Kerouac's iconic writings, replete with tons of required voice-over narration of the jazz-based flowing verbiage that makes Kerouac Kerouac. But, you can't help but think, wow-it's just not possible to make a conventional movie out of a Kerouac story, you must have excessive narration, because Kerouac was entirely about the words - the rhythm, the cadence, the explosion of images and alliterations. None of this is bad, but it requires an acceptance of the source we are dealing with to accept such an extensive override of normal plot-driven movie storytelling. The movie is well directed. Polish mixes imagery well, establishes mood and atmosphere, and handles the semi-hallucinatory descent into alcoholic stupor with a pleasant restraint. The actors all do top-notch work, although some of the peripheral characters such as Lew Welch, Ferlinghetti, and Whalen seem to have no emotional connection to the main character or his problems. They are just there. Even Neal Cassady ultimately fades away at the end.Kate Bosworth enters the movie halfway through the story and become the last lifeline that Kerouac throws away. While undeveloped as a character, she does a fine job representing the last real thing left to hold onto. She fits the role well, and plays out heart-wrenching string aptly, as a character smart enough and jaded enough to cope with her fate. As a fan of Kerouac, I can say that there is so much good about this movie and it's straight forward attempt at delivering Kerouac's last important novel as a film, that I would recommend it highly to anyone that enjoyed "On the Road" as a film. If you were bored with OTR, or didn't get it, you will not enjoy this subtle intelligent movie.