What a Long, Strange Trip
Fear and Loathing Finds Humor in '70s Drug Culture

There's something strange about the new film Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. While it is adapted from Hunter S. Thompson's true account of a drug-enhanced road trip from Los Angeles to Las Vegas in 1971, the whole thing seems too surreal to be real. With camera work that shifts angle and depth more often than a television commercial, director Terry Gilliam (Brazil) makes the audience experience -- in some small part -- the oddity of Thompson's trip.

There isn't much of a plot, per se. The story centers around a writer (Johnny Depp) who uses a code name of Raoul Duke and his attorney/traveling companion, Dr. Gonzo (Benicio Del Toro). At the beginning of the movie they are on the desert road between LA and Las Vegas, and -- as Depp tells us in the narration -- the drugs have just started to kick in. In a short series of flashbacks, Raoul explains to the hitchhiker that they have picked up that they are on a search for the American Dream. The odd assortment of drugs they have collected are merely a tool to be used to find it.

The truth of the matter is, Raoul is supposed to be covering a desert motorcycle race for a magazine. Once the drugs begin to take hold, however, there is nothing he can observe that is worth reporting. His drug-induced hallucinations turn the hotel bar patrons into walking lizards, and he sees conspiracies at every turn. He also must deal with Dr. Gonzo who is even less stable than himself. At various times, Raoul has to talk Gonzo out of murder, suicide, statutory rape, and other assorted mayhem.

With a plot so heavily weighed down with horrible ethics, one would expect to be horrified rather than amused. Gilliam does not turn this into a dark tale, however. There are moments of revulsion, when the most steady soul must look away. Nevertheless, Gilliam focuses on Raoul and his insane perspective of the universe to give us someone to cheer for. We are amused by him for the same reason we laugh at a drunk or the village idiot: it makes us feel superior. When he complains about bats flying around, we understand that they are only an hallucination. The fact that these men are harming their minds and bodies -- flirting with disaster -- doesn't enter the picture.

There are other moments, particularly in Depp's narration, when something more comes through. I wish I could begin to quote some of the commentary on America in the 1970s. The perspective is probably not unique, but it shows that even in the depths of his madness Thompson found something worth saying. There are flashes of brilliance in his words.

None of this, however, could have been carried off had it not been for an outstanding performance by Depp. As I've said in the past, I believe he is one of the most underrated actors alive today. While people with pretty faces seem to star in all the high-profile Hollywood roles, Depp has continually chosen more challenging ones (i.e., Donnie Brascoe, Don Juan DeMarco, Nick of Time). He has proven himself a true actor time and again.

Assisting Depp is Del Toro, who has an amazing knack to vacillate between madness and sanity in the middle of a conversation. At one point, Gonzo pauses in his telephone conversation to have an argument with someone who is not there. Only afterward does Raoul (and the audience) understand that it was for the benefit of the person on the phone. Del Toro plays it perfectly, making us fear Gonzo's terrible temper and his drug-induced craziness.

There are also a number of cameo appearances by a wide range of supporting actors. Penn Jillett (of the comedy/magic team Penn and Teller) plays a carney barker at a circus-themed casino. Veteran quirky guy, Harry Dean Stanton, appears as a judge during one of Raoul's dreams. Ellen Barkin plays a waitress, Gary Busey is a highway patrolman, and Lyle Lovett (yes, really) plays a man selling LSD in one of Raoul's flashbacks.

There's a point, later in the picture, when Raoul realizes that he and Dr. Gonzo have gone over every line there is in Las Vegas. They've harassed the locals, belittled the hotel staff, and made a general mockery of everything (including Debbie Reynolds). But in this moment of complete despair, Raoul holds onto the hope that anyone who hears what they've done will dismiss it as fantasy because it is too bizarre to be real.

In a way, the audience will dismiss much of the movie. The hateful, frightening, and even disgusting side-effects of their marathon drug binge are forgotten. When it is all wiped clean, only the parody of the freaked-out drug user remains -- like a stereotypical hippie from some situation comedy. It's the humor that is remembered after one leaves the theater.

MY RATING: 4 out of 10.

RATED: R
RUN TIME: 119 min.