Many moviegoers would already know who the film was about even if the film was not subtitled The Life and Work of Hunter S. Thompson, because the phrase was first used to describe Thompson’s writing style; journalism written subjectively, that often includes the journalist as part of the story via a first person narrative.
Thompson first gained notoriety with the 1966 publication of Hell’s Angels: The Strange and Terrible Saga of the Outlaw Motorcycle Gangs, and up-close and uncompromising look at the famous motorcycle club, during a time when they were deeply feared and accused of various criminal acts. The book began as an article first published in The Nation on May 17, 1965. After the article prompted several book offers, Thompson spent the next year researching the book by forming relationships with members of the gang. Thompson spent much of his time with members of the San Bernadino and Oakland chapters of the club and their president Ralph “Sonny” Barger.
“We were somewhere around Barstow on the edge of the desert when the drugs began to take hold,” is the opening line of one of Hunter S. Thompson’s greatest books. Published in November 1971, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas was the result of Thompson’s failed attempt to cover a motor race in “Sin City.” His 60 pages of drug addled prose was angrily rejected by Sports Illustrated, but became a novel published in two parts, on the pages of Rolling Stone. Rolling Stone welcomed Thompson’s offbeat style and worked with him for years, no matter how exasperating he could be.
Thompson’s third book, Fear and Loathing: On the Campaign Trail ´72, is a collection of the gonzo journalists articles written for Rolling Stone while covering the 1972 presidential race. A self-described political junkie, Thompson decided early that his candidate of choice was South Dakota Senator, George McGovern. Hunter dismissed 1968 Democratic nominee Hubert Humphrey as a “hopeless old hack” and presumed nominee Senator Edmund Muskie of Maine, whose campaign he said exuded a “stench of death.”
Alex Gibney´s (Taxi to the Dark Side, Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room) Gonzo – The Life and Times of Hunter S. Thompson, deals largely with the period of time Thompson spent writing those three books. During that period, Hunter was at his literary best, before his excessive use of drugs and alcohol interfered with his ability to write effectively.
To make a documentary, the filmmaker has to find something compelling, or fascinating about his subject. After all, if you’re going to spend months or even years immersed in as particular subject, it needs to feel worthwhile. There is no doubt that Alex Gibney admires Hunter S. Thompson a great deal. The film is filled to the brim with gushing celebrities–including Tom Wolfe, singer Jimmy Buffett, and politicians such as former president Jimmy Carter, presidential candidate George McGovern, and even conservative commentator Patrick J. Buchannan. Johnny Depp reads the narration and does a few on-screen readings of Thompson’s writings.
Unfortunately, the constant flow of glowing tributes is ultimately the downfall of Gonzo. No time is given to opposing points of view or the drug and alcohol problems that crippled Hunter S, Thompson from the mid-seventies on. If the film purported to exam just Thompson’s work, it would be easier to understand Gibney’s apparent reluctance to dig deeper into the darker side of Thompson’s life. Since Gibney did such a thorough job onTaxi to the Dark Side and Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room, I tend to believe that his admiration for Hunter S. Thompson made it impossible for Gibney to leave his skepticism at the door, and instead mythologize his lifestyle of excess.
One interviewee says of Thompson’s excesses: “You saw the stuff go in and there was no discernible effect.” Oh, come on now, I don’t think they even believe that one. He haunted in the woods with sub-machine guns and went for days without sleeping. On February 20, 2005 Hunter S. Thompson died at his self-described “fortified compound” known as “Owl Farm” in Woody Creek, Colorado, at 5:42 p.m. The cause of death was a self-inflicted gunshot to the head.
By telling only one side of the story, Alex Gibney has denied viewers the chance to gain a full understanding of one of America’s most interesting and complex authors. While Gonzo – The Life and Work of Hunter S. Thompson isn’t a bad film, it does feel woefully incomplete.
