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

Director:

Alex Gibney

Writers (WGA):

Alex Gibney (screenplay)
Hunter S. Thompson (writings)

Genre:

Documentary | Biography

Plot:

A portrait of the late gonzo journalist Hunter S. Thompson.

Plot Keywords:

Journalist

Awards:

1 nomination

US Showtimes:

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Cast

Hunter S. Thompson	...	Himself (archive footage)
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Pierre Adeli
Angela Berliner
Pat Buchanan	...	Himself
Joe Cairo
Eugenia Care
David Carlo
Jimmy Carter	...	Himself
Johnny Depp	...	Himself
Brian Kimmet
George McGovern	...	Himself
Victor Ortiz
Melissa Otero	...	Typist
Gilleon Smith
Jann Wenner	...	Himself
Alex Ziwak

MPAA:

Rated R for drug and sexual content, language and some nudity.

Runtime:

118 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

USA:R

Company:

HDNet Films

The Good Doctor

This is an absorbing doc not only of the good doc but the whole counterculture that he championed in many ways. For all his excessive lifestyle that became almost a parody of the drug culture, he remained a true intellectual and anti-corruption/hypocrisy crusader. He embraced the vision of a new world not ruled by greed and war-mongering, and as early as 1971 proclaimed his great sadness that the movement and the moment of flower power had passed and with it the chance for sane politics. This moment was captured well in "Where the Buffalo Roam" starring Bill Murray as HST, which is given kind of short shrift in this documentary in favor of scenes from "Fear and Loathing Las Vegas" with Johnny Depp as HST. Considering that Depp produced and narrates the film as well as financed the grandiose send-off that Thompson envisioned for himself, it's not strange that Murray's portrayal would be downplayed, as excellent as it was (and Peter Boyle's as the Samoan lawyer.)

All in all, it is a well-balanced account of Thompson's life and work, with many pertinent interviewees like his two wives and son, Jann Wenner of Rolling Stone, Sonny Barger of the Hell's Angels, Jimmy Buffett, George McGovern, Jimmy Carter, Pat Buchanan, Tom Wolfe, and various Aspenites. His passion and wit were undeniable, and his addiction to guns, booze and dope were in many ways forgivable. But his absence in today's disastrous political scene, his voice against war and corruption is sorely missed, and lamented by several of the interviewees. The parallels between Nixon and Bush are easily drawn, and "Gonzo" does this without hammering the point home except to exhort the audience to take up the fight that the Good Doctor waged in a seemingly crazy, but noble and honorable way for most of his life.