fear and loathing in las vegas

[dean]

Just watched this crazy film the other day for the first time and after checking the room extensivley for bats, i came to the conclusion that this is a very rarely mentioned film that deserves a place as one of the best movies to be made in the last few years.

any other opinions?

Is it just me or did Johnny Depp deserve an oscar for his work on that film?  did the film even get a mention?

maybe i've been a little to much into the ether but not many people seem to know much about this film.  it wasn't even released on dvd here [australia], and i had to get it imported in, as part of the excellent criterion edition series.  its easily the best looking dvd case in my collection.  though thats not saying much.

quite an excellent purchase.  it certainly makes up for the complete crap that i've been watching lately ['wrong turn']

[Scott]

I rented this film once an found the first 10 minutes unbearable with the psychedelic dream like images. I just stopped and returned the film. Is the whole film like that? Actually after watching the very long exagerated heroine drug scene in PULP FICTION I just stopped it and hit the rewind button and have yet to see the ending.

[dean]

well yes the film is pretty much like that.  it is quite disturbing and is pretty hard to watch, though it doesn't have too much more psychedelic dream images like the lizard orgy at the start.

it is quite a wierd trip i must say, and is an acquired taste [when i was watching it for the first time i found myself wanting to turn it off, but i have yet to do that to a film  and i thought it was well worth pushing onwards]

and you haven't seen the end of pulp fiction? that, scott, is a true crime.  its a great movie and the ending ties everything together nicely.  

is it the fact that it is drug induced craziness that makes these two movies seemingly unwatchable for you?

Anyway, it's always worth watching the end of a film you initially don't like, just in case it pulls out some good stuff in the end which makes the rest worthwhile.  

that being said, many films don't actually make it worthwhile, but thats why we are fans, i guess; we sort out the good from the bad.  

i give both pulp fiction and fear and loathing my personal thumbs up, but what you watch is your own business not mine, and i'm not going to try and force feed them down your throat: if you can't stand the film, by all means don't watch it, there's nothing worse than watching a film you don't want to, there's no way you can get a positive out of it in that case.

[barstow]

This film is bloody great, no more needs to said.
Except Scott sounds like a big time pansie.

[Vermin Boy]

I'll never forget the time I showed this movie to a good friend who was just in a car crash. He was on massive amounts of painkillers, and I'd been sucking down caffiene all day, so our rections sounded a lot like the characters in the film.

Him: "Whaaaaat? WhAt'S gOiNg oN??"
Me: "Quietyoufoolthisisthebestpart!!"

Great film, though. Depp is amazing, and Gilliam's stuff is always fun to watch. Also, if you haven't yet, listen to Hunter S. Thompson's commentary on the DVD. Dude is INSANE.

[Ash]

I agree with Scott.

I had so many friends tell me, "Dude you gotta see this movie!"

After about 10-15 minutes, I got up and left.  (I eventually did see the rest of it)

There is a reason Roger Ebert called it, "a horrible mess of a movie, without shape, trajectory or purpose--a one joke movie, if it had one joke. The two characters wander witlessly past the bizarre backdrops of Las Vegas (some real, some hallucinated, all interchangeable) while zonked out of their minds. Humor depends on attitude. Beyond a certain point, you don't have an attitude, you simply inhabit a state. I've heard a lot of funny jokes about drunks and druggies, but these guys are stoned beyond comprehension, to the point where most of their dialog could be paraphrased as "eh?"  
"The movie goes on and on, repeating the same setup and the same payoff: Duke and Gonzo take drugs, stagger into new situations, blunder, fall about, wreak havoc, and retreat to their hotel suite. The movie itself has an alcoholic and addict mind-set, in which there is no ability to step outside the need to use and the attempt to function. If you encountered characters like this on an elevator, you'd push a button and get off at the next floor. Here the elevator is trapped between floors for 128 minutes."

Go here to read the entire 1 star review:  http://www.suntimes.com/ebert/ebert_reviews/1998/05/052201.html

I'm sorry but this movie is a piece of s**t....



Post Edited (11-27-03 11:42)

[Scott]

It kinda naseated me just watching FEAR AND LOATHING IN LAS VEGAS, but I do want to give PULP FICTION a second go and possibly FALILV.

Useally films with drug content and drug use are a turn off for me. If that makes one a  pansie then so be it. :) I fear no person.

[Neville]

Certainly it is not a film for audiences but it is so dark, twisted and wild everybody should try to see it at least once. Both Depp and Del Toro are great, and there are los of amusing cameos, Gary Busey included.

[mr. henry]

i myself loved FEAR AND LOATHING and hunter s thompson's life as a whole is a damn interesting thing to behold. there are some good biographies out there.

if you like FEAR AND LOATHING then check out WHERE THE BUFFALOS ROAM starring BILL MURRAY as hunter s. thompson. the scene where he plays football in a hotel room with midgets is pretty unforgettable.

[Scott]

WHERE THE BUFFALOS ROAM is a good one that I've seen a few times on TV not long after it came out. I liked this film.

[Scott]

After reading ASHTHECAT's ebert review. I don't think I'll be watching FEAR AND LOATHING IN LAS VEGAS, but I've been wanting to see the rest of PULP FICTION.

[Susan]

When will depp ever really be acknowledged for being a talented guy?

[jmc]

I enjoyed FEAR AND LOATHING a lot, but I wonder what someone would make of it who wasn't familiar with the book....I really should try to find that criterion disc, since I've been a big HST fan ever since high school.  

I view it as being a lot like Cronenberg's NAKED LUNCH, though FEAR AND LOATHING has source material that is a little bit easier to make into a film.  
Each is an interesting effort to make a film out of material people have said was impossible to make into a film.

[wickednick]

For those of you who liked this Fear and Loathing, you are going to love Were the Buffalos Roam.This movie is also about Hunter and goes and tells another one of his crazy adventures, plus it has Bill Murray playing Hunter, hows that for cool.

[Dunners]

Couldnt get past the first 25 minutes of this plotless wonder :(

great acting though.