There are bad trips, and then there are bad trips. Based on famed gonzo-journalist Hunter S. Thompson's book about himself going on a mescaline- and marijuana-fueled trip to Sin City with his lawyer to cover a story, this move offers perhaps the most delirious depiction of crazed genius on a bender from Hell ever put to film. Every inch of it oozes a kind of nauseating style that is as off-putting as it is fascinating. Monty Python alum Terry Gilliam's directorial style here is skewed in the extreme, using enough crazy camera angles and intentionally erratic pacing to create a work as disturbing as the persons depicted. Every bit of the film, from the opening credits to the final fade, feel like an out-of-control hallucination teetering on the edge of unavoidable disaster. It's backed up beautifully by stellar work from Johnny Depp as Thompson, and Benicio Del Toro as his dealer/lawyer. What squirts out of this crazy binge is a piece of cinema both psychotic and unapologetic, sickening and enlightening, hilarious and melancholy, and perhaps as close as we can get to the mind of the madman himself.
9 out of 10.
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (1998)
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1 comment:
Fascinating? Yes. Off-putting? Very much so. I remember watching this movie several years ago and feeling like I had dropped a hit of mescaline and was coming down hard from the trip. And no, that's not a good thing. Maybe I need to watch this movie again, but I'm afraid I'll be arrested if I do.
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