Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Brisk
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Mild
- brooding
- romantic
- witty
- literary film night
- historical drama night
What critics said
Critics generally found the film an energetic and stylish account of the young Beat writers, strengthened by committed performances despite some conventional biographical-drama elements.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Allen Ginsberg, Lucien Carr, Jack Kerouac, and William Burroughs are depicted as young Columbia-connected writers before the Beat Generation's emergence.
The characters reject Columbia's orthodox literary attitudes while their experimentation, desire, drinking, and recklessness produce serious consequences.
The relationships among Allen, Lucien, and David unfold within the repressive social atmosphere of early-1940s America.
The film presents the future Beat writers' intoxicating intellectual circle alongside murder, obsession, and irreversible moral consequences.
Films like Kill Your Darlings, and why
Howl
shared biographical drama, literary ambition, queer themes, and volatile artistic relationships
The Imitation Game
shared period drama, lgbtq romance, literary subculture, and transgressive desire
A Single Man
shared coming-of-age drama, intellectual rebellion, romantic intensity, and tragic consequences
Movie Details
- Director
- John Krokidas
- Release Date
- 2013-10-16
- Runtime
- 103 min
- Rating
- 7.0 / 10 (1436)
Cast
- Daniel Radcliffe
- Dane DeHaan
- Michael C. Hall
- Jack Huston
- Ben Foster
- David Cross
- Jennifer Jason Leigh
- Elizabeth Olsen
- John Cullum
- Brenda Wehle
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- Howdy Amazon Channel
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is Kill Your Darlings about?
- A restless Columbia student enters a seductive circle of future Beat writers whose literary rebellion collides with desire, obsession, and murder.
- What is Kill Your Darlings like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Kill Your Darlings as brisk, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as layered.
- Is Kill Your Darlings violent?
- Only mildly. Ember rates the violence in Kill Your Darlings as mild.
- What did critics think of Kill Your Darlings?
- Critics generally found the film an energetic and stylish account of the young Beat writers, strengthened by committed performances despite some conventional biographical-drama elements.
- Which films are like Kill Your Darlings?
- Films with a similar feel include Howl, The Imitation Game, and A Single Man.
- How long is Kill Your Darlings?
- Kill Your Darlings runs 103 minutes.
- Where can I watch Kill Your Darlings?
- In United States, Kill Your Darlings streams on Howdy Amazon Channel.
