Audience Member
I enjoyed it overall (could have used more Ferlinghetti or Tom Waits) what I found particularly weak about it was the any section related to kerouac's life beyond OTR, this was especially evident when Amber Tamblyn was chosen to talk about the death of Jack's cat in relation to his feelings about his brother. Anyone talking about this part of the book should know that the comparison goes beyond simply equating his brothers death to his cats. Kerouac felt guilty his entire life that he died and his "saintly" brother Gerard did not. When he's comparing the two it is important to realize he is guilty he is living and his cat is dead, that he sees the cat as a continuation of his brothers death and that he is still alive, bored, jaded and not writing. It is moments like this that the doc falters but overall I recommend it if you enjoy Kerouac's writing, The section on his poem the Sea is probably the best part...
Rated 2.5/5 Stars •
Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars
02/09/23
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Audience Member
Superb study of the corrosive effects of fame and fortune on one of the greatest writers of the post-WWII period.
Rated 3.5/5 Stars •
Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars
01/21/23
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Audience Member
A WONDERFUL MOVIE. I read the book when it first came out, yes I am that old. I was already off on my own road and still am, though moving a little slower. One of my seminal experiences was taking Wholly Communion with some of the celebrants at the Royal Albert Hall in 1965. Over the decades I have made contact with some of the characters, directly or indirectly. It would be impossible to make a 'true' movie of Jack's life, or mine for that matter, and nothing can be the book. However through a creative and revealing use of his words, and through the eyes of a superb cinematographer and crew, they have given us a glimpse into his soul, which I think many of us old heads will grock and be grateful for. Good job cats and kitties. Thanks.
Patrick Monk.RN. SF. Ca. USA
Rated 4/5 Stars •
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
02/24/23
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Audience Member
An exceptional study of Jack Kerouacâs book Big Sur. The kind of movie that gives you just enough to make you want to pick up the book and discover the rest. A well balanced study of his life and the work and the celebrity interviews actually ADD to the content. Well done.
Rated 3.5/5 Stars •
Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars
02/02/23
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Audience Member
"One fast move or I'm Gone" offers a hard look at Kerouac's 1962 novel "Big Sur", a novel Jack wrote about the time he spendt in Lawrence Ferlinghetti's cabin in Bixby Canyon, Big Sur. It's about his growing alcholism and delusion with the world that would forever see him as "The King Of The Beats". "Big Sur" is a harsh yet strangely moving book about madness, alcholism and fear and this documentary captures the feel of the novel with subtle poetic beauty. Everything is perfect, from the cinematography by Richard Rutkowski to the soaring, bittersweet soundtrack by Jay Farrar and Ben Gibbard.
Rated 5/5 Stars •
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
02/14/23
Full Review
Audience Member
Charming exploration of Kerouac's Big Sur from those who knew him (including Lawrence Ferlinghetti, Carolyn Cassady, and others) and those who have since been influenced by him and Big Sur in particular. The film traces the origins of Big Sur in Kerouac's pending nervous breakdown, a result of his inability to handle the success of On The Road and the escalation of his alcohol abuse as a result in part of his sudden fame. Big Sur, Ferlinghetti's remote cabin in Bixby Canyon, is at first a refuge and then a prison for Kerouac, a man unable to put to rest his demons. Yet as many of the talking heads (including Tom Waits, Patti Smith, Sam Shepard, Dar Williams, Donal Logue, and others) say, Kerouac's genius as a writer is inextricably connected to his self-destructive personality. The film as a whole is touching, with John Ventimiglia vocalizing Kerouac's words and attempting at times to retrace the man's steps and thought processes. The end, in my opinion, contains the film's most poignant moments. It is here that Carolyn Cassady speaks to the complicated love triangle between she, Jack, and Neil, and we see through multiple accounts Kerouac's hope for a life as a Cassady and his sad resignation at the realization that such an arrangement is not to be in his life. The most moving part, to me, occurs in the reciting of the book's optimistic final pages. Despite a life that has chewed him up physically and spiritually, Kerouac offers readers a glimpse of his underlying faith in something better; in the wake of a nervous breakdown when all has seemed to finally fall to pieces, Kerouac says that all will be set right again as if nothing had ever happened. To watch Dar Williams attempt to read this section is quite moving. I nearly cried along with her.
If you are interested more in the study of a text and its author, this is a film for you. It does provide a very rudimentary history of the Beats, but this really is the story of Kerouac and the writing of Big Sur. I recommend it.
Rated 3.5/5 Stars •
Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars
02/14/23
Full Review
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