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Reviews of Recent Independent, Foreign, & Documentary Films in Theaters and DVD/Home Video
With his newest film, Alex Gibney has become one of the best documentarians working today. He engrosses the viewer solely and completely in his subject matter, even if one is only casually familiar in the topic, without the slightest obfuscation and only minimal Michael Moore-esque sensationalism. (Both Gonzo: The Life and Work of Hunter S. Thompson and Taxi are already high up on my best-of-’08 list.) In the case of Gonzo, it’s a searing, hilarious, and touching look of a man who was, as one interviewee describes, almost “like an action figure.” Thompson was many things to many people: cultural icon; rock star journalist; a freak who slipped through the cracks of legitimate journalism; as well as a man of a split mind-set—he could be caring, generous, loving, and also a total psychotic with lots of guns and drugs at his disposal. He ran (unsuccessfully) for sheriff of Aspen, CO, on the “Freak Power” ticket, advocating for looser drug laws. For someone like me, who places such a twisted work of journalism-cum-post-beat-psychedelic-mayhem like Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas and Hell’s Angels on par with the greatest books ever written, the film provides fresh insights and classic tidbits. Gibney tells his story from the end to the beginning and then the in-between, starting with the writer’s 2005 suicide (at age 67), then going back to his childhood and delinquent adolescence in Kentucky. He shot to semi-prominence with his first published book, Hell’s Angels (1966), chronicling the meteoric rise of the notorious biker gang, which he turned into a semi-autobiography as he put himself, often, into the story. He thrust himself, more or less, into his writing, mixing pure objective journalism with the brio of a fantasist—from his deranged coverage of the crowds at the 1970 Kentucky Derby, as opposed to the race; to the classic Las Vegas scenario with himself as “Raoul Duke,” an alter-ego for the sake of dramatization; and to the highly-charged saga of the 1972 presidential campaign. All of this is presented with incredibly compelling storytelling, fueled by a wealth of recently discovered audio clips, video footage, photographs (with permission from Thompson’s family), music that was essential to Thompson’s life and work (Dylan, the Stones, the song “Spirit in the Sky,” even, oddly enough, Jimmy Buffet), and some fascinating interviews from the likes of Tom Wolfe, Pat Buchanan, and George McGovern. It’s hard to say if it will completely satisfy all of those who are looking for the most comprehensive documentary on the late, great writer. (It does leave out some choice bits, even in its two-hour running time, like some other notorious stories from the ’80s and ’90s.) However, it captures the essence of this man’s wild, crazy, and somehow satisfying journey. It’s still very sad that the man is
gone following his long prophesized (to his family and friends) suicide,
but he’s wonderfully revealed in Gonzo as one who broke the mold
of traditional journalism and shook the cage, if only for a little
while. And this, dear readers, is as near a perfect testament as one
could ask for. Jack Gattanella
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It should be mentioned that as a die-hard fan of Dr. Hunter S. Thompson,
the legendary pioneer of “gonzo journalism” where
the writer throws himself into the story, I was anticipating this
documentary very much—though not simply for the late Dr. Thompson. Its
writer (or rather, the one who is responsible for the bits of
reenactment) and director has been on a hot streak lately, coming into
prominence with the savagely funny exposé Enron: The Smartest Guys in
the Room and the recent Oscar-winner Taxi to the Dark Side.