event In Deppth Series: Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas

Terry Gilliam’s surreal adaptation of Hunter S. Thompson’s Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas bombed at the box office and was either dismissed or derided by most critics when it came out in 1998. Now it’s widely regarded as one of Gilliam’s best films. It’s easy to understand the lag: Fear And Loathing is a rough ride, with Johnny Depp mumbling his way through a stylized lead performance as a Vegas-bound druggie journalist and Gilliam illustrating the hero’s vomit-streaked hallucinations of disgusting Americana in vivid style. But while Gilliam clearly enjoys making everything look ugly, he also anchors the movie in Thompson’s wistfulness for lost ideals, beautifully translating the soul of the original piece.

Terry Gilliam’s surreal adaptation of Hunter S. Thompson’s Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas bombed at the box office and was either dismissed or derided by most critics when it came out in 1998. Now it’s widely regarded as one of Gilliam’s best films. It’s easy to understand the lag: Fear And Loathing is a rough ride, with Johnny Depp mumbling his way through a stylized lead performance as a Vegas-bound druggie journalist and Gilliam illustrating the hero’s vomit-streaked hallucinations of disgusting Americana in vivid style. But while Gilliam clearly enjoys making everything look ugly, he also anchors the movie in Thompson’s wistfulness for lost ideals, beautifully translating the soul of the original piece.