For No Good Reason (2012)

Johnny Depp pays a visit to Ralph Steadman, the renown artist and the last of the original Gonzo visionaries who worked alongside Hunter S. Thompson.

Director:

Charlie Paul

Stars:

Ralph Steadman, Johnny Depp, Hunter S. Thompson

2 nominations.

Cast

Credited cast:
Ralph Steadman	...	Himself
Johnny Depp	...	Himself
Hunter S. Thompson	...	Himself (archive footage)
Terry Gilliam	...	Himself
Richard E. Grant	...	Himself
Jann Wenner	...	Himself
Hal Willner	...	Himself
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Francis Bacon	...	Himself (archive footage)
William S. Burroughs	...	Himself (archive footage)
Patrick Godfrey	...	Leonardo DaVinci (voice)
Warren Hinckle	...	Himself (archive footage)
Richard Nixon	...	Himself (archive footage)
Laurence Olivier	...	Himself (archive footage)
Joe Petro	...	Himself
Pablo Picasso	...	Himself (archive footage)

Storyline

Johnny Depp pays a visit to Ralph Steadman, the renown artist and the last of the original Gonzo visionaries who worked alongside Hunter S. Thompson.

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Genres:

Documentary | Biography | History | Music

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language, some drug content and brief sexual images

Details

Official Sites:

Official site Official site [Japan]

Country:

UK USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

8 March 2014 (Japan)

Also Known As:

For no good reason

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$4,516, 25 April 2014, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$67,105, 8 August 2014

Company Credits

Technical Specs

Runtime:

89 min

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Soundtracks

Gonzo
Written by Tyson Ritter & Nick Wheeler
Performed by The All-American Rejects (as All American Rejects)
Produced by The All-American Rejects (as All American Rejects)
Courtesy of Geffen Records Inc.
Under license from Universal Music Operations Ltd.

User Reviews

Ralph Steadman the ArtistGonzo Journalism's Paint and Brush Man

Documentaries about Artist are Not that Common, and they Should be. Most Artist Linger in Semi-Obscurity even if They have Attained a Modicum of Money, Fame, or Admiration and Recognition. A Good Bit of the Time there are Splashes in the Public Eye, but Unless the Work is in a Sort of Popular Culture Saturation, it is Unlikely that Any given Artist, Outside the Bubble of a Particular Field, Comic Books, for Example, a Particular Artist Remains Relatively Unknown.

Documentaries can Flesh Out the Person Behind the Art, at Least a Little bit, and can Shed Some Insight and Light while giving a Platform for the Art to be Exposed in Heaps for Ninety Minutes or so. Aside, from a Coffee Table Book that Includes Pages and Pages of Artwork, a Docu-Film will most Likely be Seen by More People than Buy the Book.

So here is Ralph Steadman. Who, You Say? Exactly. Unless You were a Reader of Rolling Stone Magazine in the Seventies, or a Fan of Gonzo Journalist Hunter S. Thompson, Steadman has Remained in the Aforementioned Obscurity. But that's About the Extent of His Explosion of Exposure.

Not that it is Insignificant, much to the Contrary, He and the Good Doctor, Thompson, Defined Gonzo Journalism, and Tried to "Change the world!", a Phrase that Steadman Utters at Least Three Times in the Documentary and in the End, at Age 76, Seems Disappointed that Most of what He Tried to Change, Remains Unchanged.

The Fancy Film from Director Charlie Paul is Filled with enough Interesting Anecdotes and Surprisingly Rare and Old Archival Footage, a lot with Hunter. It also Includes Interviews with Other Folks who have Worked with Steadman and it is all Anchored with Johnny Depp, Long Time Friend and Fan. Terry Gilliam's Movie, "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas" (1998) is Based on the Book by Thompson that Included Illustrations by Steadman and may be the Artist Link to Moderns with the Most Resonance.

Overall, a Must See Movie for Lovers of Art, the Sixties Counter Culture, Hunter S. Thompson, and to Get an Introduction to One of the Most Bizarre and Powerful Political Artists of Our Time. His Work and Some of His Unique Mystique and Technique, Much on Display Here, can be Admired and Studied.