Submitted by James Richard Armstrong II  (Mar 10, 2005)I laughed so hard I blew snot! What a film!
How anyone could do all of that and get away with it is just astounding to me! Johnny Depp (Raoul Duke) was like Hep Cat times a thousand! His lawyer Dr. Gonzo (Benicio Del Toro) is completely the opposite, being loud and obnoxious around every mescaline-filled tapestry-ladened backdrop.
Johnny Depp is a sports reporter for the Los Angeles Times and is covering a desert race just outside of Las Vegas, but he gets a bit sidetracked with the pharmaceutical briefcase that he's carrying. If you like to hallucinate this is the film for you.
There's one scene in particular that comes to mind for me. Dr. Gonzo and Raoul are sitting amongst a convention full of cops from all over the country... with the briefcase full of drugs. As the two are talking to one another, there is a funny looking man standing at the podium speaking of "know your addict." A Reefer Madness like propaganda film that is definitely from the fifties! The voice comes over the film, "Know your drug addict! He will be the one wearing t-shades at night, and he will have crusted semen on his trowsers from jacking off all the time." That is absolutely classic!
There is also a somewhat "star-studded" cast in this film. Along with Depp and Del Toro, stars Tobey Maguire, Ellen Barkin, Gary Busey, Christina Ricci, Mark Harmon, Cameron Diaz, Flea (Red Hot Chili Peppers), Lyle Lovett, Laraine Newman, Harry Dean Stanton and a cameo by the late Hunter S. Thompson.
Hunter S. Thompson was a great writer and will be missed by this writer.
-James Richard Armstrong II
|