Not just looking back at the life of william s burroughs, but also 80s new york. Getting thrown out of film school wasnt part of the career plan for jonathan yony leyser. The film is narrated by peter weller, with a soundtrack by patti smith and sonic youth. Oct 21, 2010 i called the film william s burroughs. Photograph of james grauerholz and burroughs by udo breger.
A man within is a probing look at the man whose works at once. Narrated by peter weller and featuring neverbeforeseen. A man within proves that peter weller has starred in other movies except for robocop, namely naked lunch which is based on the works and life of william. Burroughs, as well as exclusive interviews with his closest friends and colleagues including john waters, genesis porridge, laurie anderson, peter weller, david cronenberg, patti smith, iggy pop, gus van sant, sonic youth, anne waldman, george condo, hal willner, james grauerholz, amiri baraka, jello biafra, v. A man within combines vintage film with current footage of those who knew, worked with, loved, and were influenced or mentored by burroughs, including former.
Though some of the film s most striking moments come from readings in which burroughs recites his own work in his dry, craggy monotone, leyser has placed his focus on the man behind the work. A man within full movie in hd visit a riveting and emotional journey into the world of wr. With fred aldrich, laurie anderson, amiri baraka, jello biafra. Docu does real justice to the beat writer, gun nut and literary icon. Photograph of patti smith and burroughs by allen ginsberg. A man within does manage to tell us something fresh and worth knowing. A man within because burroughs used the term a man within twice in naked lunch, yony leyser, the film s 26yearold director, explains, adding. Its a shame that leyser doesnt deal with burroughs work as well as he deals with his life, but william s. It is partially a sequel to his earlier novel, junkie, which ends with the stated ambition of finding a drug called yage. A man within, the first and only posthumous documentary about this legendary figure. Burroughs demurs on an answer, but a later interview subject isnt shy about revealing.
A vibrant portrait of a beat generation icon, william s burroughs. A man within jimmi hrs a fantastic introduction to the man that has had such a gigantic influence not only on western literature, music and film of the 20th century, but even today. The best parts of a man within reveal the man behind the public persona, one haunted by his wifes deaththe result of drunken, william tellinspired gunplayand resistant to opening himself up to love. Bouroughs some of the best actors, filmmakers and writers of the century assemble in william s. A prominent member of the beat generation, william s. The film was shown as part of bfi london film festival and is currently being screened in various locations across the world. A man within touches only briefly on naked lunch and its impact, and most of his 17 other novels arent even mentioned in the film. A man within explores the brilliant and troubled world of one of our greatest authors. A man within is a 2010 english film stars peter weller, yony leyser, yony leyser, william s. His work emerged from a life that couldnt have been more troubled, and he had to live with his addictions, the tragedy of his wife s death and the consequences of neglecting his son.
The film attempts to investigate borroughs using the themes that drove him as a starting point. I was kicked out of california institute of the arts in 2004 for an art piece i created, says leyser, director of the new documentary william s. A man within movie synopsis, view the movie trailer, get cast and crew information, see movie photos, and more on. Featuring archival footage of burroughs, as well as interviews with confidants such as john waters, patti smith and iggy pop, the film, set to a soundtrack by patti. Burroughs, a man considered as cold as an iceberg on a winter night. Burroughs with many currents of americas outlaw cultural tradition. Burroughs, as well as exclusive interviews with his closest friends and colleagues including john waters, genesis porridge, laurie anderson, peter weller, david cronenberg, patti smith, iggy pop, gus van sant, sonic youth, anne waldman, george condo, hal willner, james grauerholz, amiri. Having written about the extremes of drug and queer culture, burroughs remains a fascinating and relevant touchstone. A man within 2010 nova express 2009 chelsea on the rocks 2008.
A man within is a 2010 independent american documentary film. Enter your location to see which movie theaters are playing william s. May 07, 2010 getting thrown out of film school wasnt part of the career plan for jonathan yony leyser. Photograph of ginsberg and burroughs by hank oneal.
Another documentary just in time for the golden anniversary of naked lunchtwentyfourbit. Burroughs, featuring previously unreleased footage and interviews with his friends and colleagues the film uses archival footage and interviews with john waters, patti smith, iggy pop, gus van sant, genesis breyer porridge, sonic youth, laurie anderson, amiri baraka. The movie is the first and only documentary to be made about and with the full participation of writer william s. A man within full movie in hd visit movie 47753 a riveting and emotional journey into the world of wr. Burroughs reach an audience by supporting it through the 2010 slamdance film festival. A man within combines vintage film with current footage of those who knew, worked with, loved, and were influenced or mentored by burroughs, including former lovers and artists like patti smith, john waters, jello biafra, peter weller, steve buscemi, and thurston moore of sonic youth. Burroughs celebrity profile check out the latest william s. One of the most intimate and intriguing portraits of the iconic author. A man within andris i like burroughs work and he certainly was an interesting character but i thought this documentary was kind of boring especially because most of the interviewees were just bad. And director yony leyser has come up with an ending that will take your breath away.
Featuring archival footage of burroughs, as well as interviews with confidants such as john waters, patti smith and iggy pop, the film, set to a soundtrack by patti smith and sonic youth, shows how burroughs spawned a countercultural movement. Burroughs photo gallery, biography, pics, pictures, interviews, news, forums and blogs at rotten tomatoes. The film features never before seen footage of william s. Burroughs was one of the first writers to break the. Friends, colleagues, collaborators, lovers, and neighbors all are represented in this gentle biopic of william s. Born the heir of the burroughs adding machine estate, he struggled throughout his life with addiction, control systems, and self. In a collaboration between burroughs and director howard brookner the film explores burroughs life story along with many of his contemporaries including allen ginsberg, brion gysin, francis bacon, herbert huncke, patti smith, terry southern, and. A man within 2010 the life and work of the novelist. The film was named as one of 2010 s top 10 movies by sight and sound magazine. A man within is a sort of genealogy of hip that connects william s. During an shared interview, allen ginsberg asks whether burroughs ever felt attracted to him. A man within won the van gogh award for best biography, amsterdam international film festival, the netherlands, along with the gold kahuna award, honolulu international film festival, hawaii.
He was forced to deal with the tragedy of killing his wife and the repercussions of neglecting his son. A man within is available to watch free on tubi tv and stream, download, buy on demand at amazon prime, amazon, itunes online. Queer is an early short novel written between 1951 and 1953, published in 1985 by william s. Nov 17, 2010 a man within is a sort of genealogy of hip that connects william s. Mar 12, 2011 yony leyser is raising funds for william s. Burroughss life is explored and exposed, warts and all.
Burroughs has this needlesharp ability for accuracy in his critique. A riveting and emotional journey into the world of writer william s. Burroughs and his relationship with the queer world. A man within investigates the life of the legendary beat author and american icon. Burroughs, john waters, iggy pop, jello biafra, patti smith, laurie anderson, david cronenberg, gus van sant, andy warhol, carmine cervi, scott crary, ilko davidov, yony leyser, john bellow, devin mcnulty, thurston moore, lee. Addressing queer and drug culture in the 1950s, his novel naked lunch became one of the most recognised and respected of contemporary literary works, and has influenced generations of artists. Watch the clip titled gay rights for the film william s. Written by graham rae and published by realitystudio on 23 april 2010. A new feature length independent documentary by director yony leyser. An illustration of a computer application window wayback machine an illustration of an open book. Queer, although not devoted to that quest, does include a trip to south america looking for the substance.
Jun 14, 2010 the film features never before seen footage of william s. Burroughs was one of the first writers to break the boundaries of 20th century literature. A man within is screening at film festivals all over europe right now and coming back to the united states for more dates this spring. Narrated by peter weller and featuring neverbeforeseen archival footage of burroughs, as well as exclusive interviews with colleagues and confidants including john waters, patti smith, iggy pop, gus van sant, sonic youth and david cronenberg, yony leysers william s.
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