Gonzo: The Life and Work of Dr. Hunter S. Thompson (2008)

Gonzo: The Life and Work of Dr. Hunter S. Thompson (2008)
Directed by: Alex Gibney

A well crafted, but slightly drab account of the rock ‘n’ roll journalist's life. Narrated by Johnny Depp.

I was in the process of reading Hell's Angels when I heard about the death of Hunter S. in 2005. At the time I was on a study exchange at Uniwersytet Śląski in Katowice, Poland. There was snow on the ground and I was thoroughly enjoying my first real insight into Thompson's neurotic journalism. I had of course seen Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas by that point but my knowledge of the man's journalism was limited.

After catching up on the Fear and Loathing novel and Rum Diary I began to generate a great interest in the man, and I hoped that Gibeny's film would quench my thirst for a deeper insight into the life of this prolific writer.

The film certainly does that, and it is entertaining in parts. The footage of Thompson running for Sheriff is particularly dear, as are the final sequences of the aging writer in the midst of an Elton John binge. Aside from that, the film couldn't possibly be any more 'text book'. Sobering accounts from Thompson's subjects, peers and employers juxtaposed with old interviews and shots of Depp reading from Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail '72 are bland and incapable of maintaining the rapid, exciting and surreal aspects of the man's life.

As a filmmaker, a documentary on the life and and work of Dr. Hunter S. Thompson whispers all sorts of wild strategies into my ear; it is a project with promise and risk that could be achieved using all sorts of mad angles. Unfortunately though, this film should be strictly reserved for those who have no immediate interest in Thompson. For others, sincerely curious about the man and the legend, the chronicle of material he left behind is where the excitement is to be found.