Alright, here’s your “first look,” at James Franco in “Howl,” the biopic of the early life of Allen Ginsberg.
We say first look in quotes because obviously there’s been a lot of shots of Franco from the paparazzi and photogs, but this is basically the first sanctioned press shot that comes from EW (and a little re-remind hattip toFirstShowing, although this was basically in the magazine for weeks before it went online, but we were too lazy to scan).
Not an adaptation of “Howl” the book, because that’s essentially just a long form poem, the film however does center on the obscenity trial Allen Ginsberg faced after the publication of said seminal Beat Generation book. Next to Franco is actor Aaron Tveit who plays Peter Orlovsky, an American poet who was known for his lifelong relationship with Ginsberg.
The film was executive-produced by Gus Van Sant and according to EW, Franco says he’s playing the character as ”an unsure young man who’s trying to find his way. All his uncertainty culminates in the poem ‘Howl’ and gives birth to the Ginsberg we know. The Beats were very important to me when I started reading literature more seriously in high school. They were some of the first writers that I read and fell in love with.”
The film, which is is written and directed by Rob Epstein and Jeffrey Friedman, also stars Mary-Louise Parker, Jeff Daniels, David Strathairn, Jon Hamm, Alessandro Nivola, Treat Williams and is expected sometime in 2010.