Product Details

• Actors: Allen Ginsberg
• Format: Color, Dolby, DVD, Subtitled, NTSC
• Language: English
• Subtitles: English, French, German, Spanish
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Studio: Kultur Video
• DVD Release Date: November 21, 2006
• Run Time: 50 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B000JGWD0U
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #98,531 in Movies & TV (See Bestsellers in Movies & TV)

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Editorial Reviews

Product Description

No More To Say & Nothing To Weep For - An Elegy For Allen Ginsberg 1926 – 1997

A portrait of the American Beat poet, Buddhist and counter-cultural hero, who died in New York in 1997, this revealing documentary includes his last television interview as well as extraordinary footage of his final days. Participants include his family and friends, fellow poets and performers, Patti Smith and Paul McCartney. Composer and collaborator Philip Glass also appears and there is a rare interview with Ginsberg’s life-long partner Peter Orlovsky.

Ginsberg candidly discusses his personal life and literary career in the film and provides access to home movies of himself as a child. Archive footage provides a fascinating overview of the poet’s eventful life: his 1965 reading at the Royal Albert Hall, his chanting at the 1968 Democratic Convention and at the Rocky Flats plutonium plant and TV interviews with William Buckley and Dick Cavett. There is also a chance to see previously unseen film of him in performance with Paul McCartney as well as Patti Smith’s poignant New York memorial service tribute.

Ginsberg was always interested in the idea of death and invited Jonas Mekas (a leading light of the US underground cinema) to film his final moments. The last sequence shows Ginsberg on his deathbed in his loft in New York.

Allen Ginsberg was born in New Jersey in 1926, the son of a well-known poet and teacher. As a student at Columbia in the 1940s he struck up friendships with William Burroughs, Jack Kerouac and Neal Cassady. Ginsberg became associated with the Beat movement in the 1950s and published his first volume of poetry Howl and Other Poems in 1956. Howl overcame censorship trials to become one of the most widely read poems of the century. A great lover of music, Ginsberg collaborated with Bob Dylan, Paul McCartney and Philip Glass.

Subtitles: English, French, German, Italian, Spanish

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An intimate and revealing picture of a legend, December 20, 2006

By	Zach Kluckman "Tigereyes" - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This documentary presents us with Allen Ginsberg in a very intimate manner, and by the end of it, you feel as if you know more of the man for the experience. Poetry is always subjective, but seeing and hearing about his life and death from his own lips and those of the people who loved him gives us a deeper insight into what his words meant, and what they meant to so many. You don't have to be a poet to apprecaite this portrait of a counter-culture icon, but for the poets who do watch it, there are a lot of very exciting and interesting features in the show itself. Just hearing about the beginnings of the Beat movement, and watching Ginsberg act/react to William Buckley and the politics of the day is invigorating. There are several clips of Ginsberg reciting his work, as well as clips of other poets and his life partner reading his poems threaded throughout, which make a solid backdrop to the rare footage and interviews the producer has put together. Add to that the chance to hear from Ferlinghetti, Kerouac, Snyder, and a plethora of other amazing writers, and this 50 minute doc becomes a riveting experience that is sure to leave you with a deeper respect for Ginsberg and his work.
Unfortunately there are no special features on the disc, but the people and things happening on screen in the body of the film are more than worth while. I especially enjoyed Ginsberg jamming the short version of "Ballad of the Skeletons" with Paul McCartney, and Patti Smith reading a tribute poem. All in all, this one is well worth watching. Take it home and have a copy of the collected works nearby when you watch it, because afterwards you'll be wanting to dig down with some more of his work!

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Very little information within, January 30, 2008

By	JAV "Video Lover" (Denver, CO) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I saw THE LIFE AND TIMES OF ALLEN GINSBERG DVD and a lot of that film ended up in this very short British TV version without any extras. I think that the over 8 hour DVD that this is paired with (85 minute film and over 6 hours of amazing extras) gives the viewers much more value for their time and money. If you buy both you are wasting your money in my opinion.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Back to the 60's, February 17, 2008

By	Robert Hanson "koshin" (Neshkoro WI) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I am a follower of Ginsberg, having discovered the poet in my soul in my later years. I was nutured by the beat poets as I struggled through the 60's. This DVD brings back sweet memories and facts that have enlightened me again and again. A must for the student of petry and the beats or any one who enjoys a good "watch". koshin, Bob Hanson