Kill Your Darlings

In 1944, Allen Ginsberg arrives in New York City to begin his freshman year at Columbia. He quickly meets Lucien Carr, a charismatic, anti-establishment figure who pulls him into a tight-knit circle of ambitious young writers. The group is poised to reshape their world through literature and rebellion.

Ginsberg learns that Carr’s stay at Columbia depends on Kammerer, a janitor-turned-professor who writes Carr’s term papers. Kammerer is deeply obsessed with Carr and exerts pressure on him with both mentorship and coercion. Carr’s continued presence at Columbia hinges on Kammerer’s favor.

Ginsberg meets William S. Burroughs and Jack Kerouac, two eager outsiders drawn to experimentation and drugs. The trio imagines a new literary movement called The New Vision that defies rules and institutions. They position themselves as rebels against campus order and against professor Steeves.

As the circle tightens, Ginsberg begins developing romantic feelings for Carr. The attraction complicates the dynamics of their intense, improvisational creative partnership. The shifting emotions pull him deeper into the group’s risky lifestyle.

Carr tells Kammerer he is done with him and recruits Ginsberg to write his term papers. The arrangement binds Ginsberg to the behind-the-scenes power plays shaping Carr’s academic future. The move marks a turning point, exposing Ginsberg to Kammerer’s influence and the group’s fragile bonds.

In retaliation, Kammerer is involved in an act against Kerouac by placing Kerouac’s cat in the oven, prompting Kerouac to rescue it in the middle of the night. The incident underscores the volatile, dangerous nature of their circle. This event foreshadows the escalating conflicts surrounding Carr.

A confrontation between Carr and Kammerer ends with Kammerer being stabbed and killed. Carr is arrested as the central figure in the death, thrusting the group into a sudden crisis. The case becomes a focal point for the campus and the press.

Kammerer’s death leads Carr to ask Ginsberg to draft his deposition. Ginsberg hesitates at first, but discovers new evidence that reframes the motive and alleged self-defense. He composes a piece titled The Night in Question that emphasizes Carr’s emotional experience.

Carr’s mother reveals that Kammerer had seduced Carr when he was younger in Chicago, adding another layer to the relationship’s power dynamics. The testimony from family sources influences the trial’s narrative. The revelation deepens the prosecutorial and personal tensions surrounding Carr.

During the trial, Carr testifies that the attack occurred in self-defense against a predatory Kammerer. He is not convicted of murder and receives only a short manslaughter sentence. The verdict allows Carr to return to a constrained life while the others’ reputations are left in tatters.

Ginsberg submits The Night in Question as his final term paper. The controversial piece raises the stakes of his academic future and his potential expulsion for deviating from the norm. The campus weighs the consequences of his writing against the call to conform.

Facing possible expulsion, Ginsberg chooses to resist establishment values and to pursue his writing instead. He leaves his manuscript behind at Columbia as part of the decision. The aftermath foreshadows his future path as a working writer rather than a conventional student.

A week or two later, Ginsberg receives the Night in Question manuscript by mail, accompanied by an encouraging letter from his professor urging him to continue writing. The moment vindicates his resolve and seeds his future literary career. The professor’s faith helps him step into a broader literary world.