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For those not familiar with Hunter S. Thompson and looking to get an understanding of his outsize personality and cult following, I highly recommend watching the 2 movies in which Johnny Depp played his character:

* Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (1998) http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0120669/

* The Rum Diary (2011) http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0376136/

If you are not already a fan of Johnny Depp, these movies should do it.




Yeah, nice movies. But damn, read the books! Adding to those two, I'd definitely read:

* Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail '72 (1973) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fear_and_Loathing_on_the_Campa...

* Hell's Angels: The Strange and Terrible Saga of the Outlaw Motorcycle Gangs (1967) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hell%27s_Angels:_The_Strange_a...

His ability to just push himself into the situations and into what he was writing was outstanding. He saw and he wrote, one of the best writers from U.S.


His collections of letters and journalistic work is way better than his books. He always hated writing books and was much better in short brilliant bursts. He wrote extensively to his friends (some very famous friends like Tom Wolfe and other great writers).

Both the letters and articles were released in 3 book series each. These are my favourite books from each series:

(letters) The Proud Highway: Saga of a Desperate Southern Gentleman, 1955-1967 (The Fear and Loathing Letters, Vol. 1

https://www.amazon.com/Proud-Highway-Desperate-Gentleman-195...

(articles) The Great Shark Hunt: Strange Tales from a Strange Time

https://www.amazon.com/Great-Shark-Hunt-Strange-Tales/dp/074...


Agreed on books over the movies. First time I watched F & L I turned it off. Eventually I read the book which is fantastic. I did go back and watch the movie then and liked it more but the book is much, much better. As for The Rum Diary I'd suggest the book first because there are a few major character changes between it and the movie and it was harder to follow the book after seeing the movie. Unlike F & L the movie for Rum Diary is on par with the book in my opinion.


My plan on this week (thanks to this post) is to dig deeper into the Gonzo Papers. Any recommendations where to start?


> But damn, read the books!

I tried reading it after seeing a lot of recommendations, but gave it up quickly; my sentiments are echoed by this[1] Goodreads reviewer (2nd most 'like'd review there, 1st most liked gives the book 5-stars though):

> I honestly don’t remember the last time I was so bored and annoyed by a book. Barring a massive conspiracy, maybe I just didn’t get this book? This is what I got from the book. Please help me if missed something. We drove more than 100 miles an hour while drunk and high. WAHAHAHA! We ran up a huge bill and fled the hotel without paying it. WAHAHAHA! We picked up a teenage girl and gave her drugs and then left her alone, all scared and paranoid. WAHAHAHA! We nearly strangled the poor cleaning lady. WAHAHAHA!

> [...] This book must have been really cool and hip when it was published in 1971. If anyone writes a book like this these days, the only thing that I have to say is: grow the fuck up.

[1] http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/102994163?book_show_act...


It's about the American dream, not about Hunter doing drugs in the desert (or a bit about that too). It's still not dated and it's very much hitting the target. Read his other work and you'll see that he is very good at picturing the current mood and what's going on around him.


Fear and loathing - my favorite movie, period. I saw it numerous times, and after initial amazement of how deep and wild some people can go with mind-altering substances, there are other thing to marvel on. Acting is beyond flawless - both Johnny and Benicio were born for it (I don't get why Benicio was criticized for his acting - the complex guy is played superbly).

Visual representation is breathtaking, in many ways thanx to Terry Gilliam - for me this is the pinnacle of his career. He managed to get so much spirit of the book and atmosphere of those times into it... Countless little details lying here and there.


Bill Murray's adaptation of Fear and Loathing is terrible in all the magnificent ways Bill Murray movies can be terrible. Highly recommended.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0081748/


I can't shake the feel that Depp has played Depp in all the movie he was "acting" in.




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