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The Beat Hotel

Play trailer Poster for The Beat Hotel 2012 1h 28m Documentary Biography History Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
44% Tomatometer 9 Reviews 65% Popcornmeter 50+ Ratings
In the late 1950s and early 1960s, a cheap Paris hotel becomes a sanctuary for Allen Ginsberg, Peter Orlovsky, William Burroughs and other beatniks.

Critics Reviews

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J. R. Jones Chicago Reader 04/04/2012
Never amounts to more than a flabby piece of counterculture nostalgia. Go to Full Review Nicolas Rapold New York Times 03/30/2012
2.5/5
Mr. Govenar's textbook history of the scene (from around 1957 to 1963) is twinklingly delivered by surviving former residents and scholarly chroniclers. Go to Full Review Frank Scheck The Hollywood Reporter 03/29/2012
Impressionistic documentary about the temporary Parisian home of the Beat writers fails to justify its full-length running time. Go to Full Review Richard Propes TheIndependentCritic.com 09/02/2020
3.0/4.0
The Beat Hotel is a surprisingly straightforward and low-key documentary. Go to Full Review Louis Proyect rec.arts.movies.reviews 03/30/2012
Shocked at the negative reviews here. This is by far the best documentary on the beats. Go to Full Review David Noh Film Journal International 03/30/2012
Likeable documentary about a Beat Generation hotspot that makes you want to pack up your laptop and write away in some cheap garret with a shared toilet. Go to Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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07/11/2013 1957. The Latin Quarter, Paris. A cheap no-name hotel became a haven for a new breed of artists fleeing the conformity and censorship of America. The hotel soon turned into an epicenter of Beat writing that produced some of the most important works of the Beat generation. It came to be known as the Beat Hotel. Alan Govenar's feature documentary The Beat Hotel explores this amazing place and time. See more Read all reviews
The Beat Hotel

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Cast & Crew

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Alan Govenar

Director

Harold Chapman

Actor

Peter Golding

Actor

Oliver Harris

Actor

Kit Hussey

William Burroughs

Jason P. Kendall

Cyclops

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The Beat Hotel

The Beat Hotel (2011) The Beat Hotel (2011) View more photos

Movie Info

Synopsis In the late 1950s and early 1960s, a cheap Paris hotel becomes a sanctuary for Allen Ginsberg, Peter Orlovsky, William Burroughs and other beatniks.
Director
Alan Govenar
Producer
Alan Govenar
Distributor
First Run
Genre
Documentary, Biography, History, Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Mar 30, 2012, Limited
Release Date (Streaming)
Aug 25, 2018
Box Office (Gross USA)
$5.6K
Runtime
1h 28m