‘Heart Beat’ of a Beat Generation

“Heart Beat,” a film about Beat Generation legends Jack Kerouac and Neal Cassady and the woman they both loved, is a meandering character study that lasted in movie theaters (in 1980) only a few weeks. But for anyone fascinated by these cultural revolutionaries and their high-flying lives, the film is an enjoyable piece of nostalgia; a kind of ‘50s version of “Easy Rider.”

The movie begins with Kerouac (John Heard) and Cassady (Nick Nolte) taking their famed trip across the country to San Francisco and Kerouac’s long struggle to recount the odyssey in his novel, “On the Road.” In San Francisco, they meet Carolyn (Sissy Spacek), upon whose book the film is based, and both instantly fall in love.

Spacek is alluring, but never gets much chance to act, in the underwritten role of Carolyn Cassady. The film is really about the love between Neal, living every moment like it may be his last, and Jack, intellectual and shy and lost without Neal. Nolte and Heard are perfectly cast, as is Ray Sharkey (most famous for his mobster villain in “Wise Guy”), who plays a fictional version of outrageous poet Allen Ginsberg.

“Heart Beat” seems disjointed and clearly was intended to be a much longer, more developed film. But what’s left are some striking moments recounting two individuals who in many ways institutionalized the lifestyle of alienated youth.

“Heart Beat” (1980), directed by John Byrum. 109 minutes. Rated R.

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