Reading gonzo journalist Hunter S. Thompson's works, one might think his whole life was a blur of reckless behavior and drug abuse.
But for all of the mescaline-induced tales of ambiguous lizard-like forms slithering about in seedy Las Vegas showrooms, his insight into the cultural and political landscape of his time gave him the torch to write about the American Dream.
"Gonzo: The Life and Work of Dr. Hunter S. Thompson" is playing today and Friday at the Guild Cinema at 3405 Central Ave. N.E.
In detailing the claims of Thompson's promiscuity and substance abuse and examining the facets of his far-reaching literary career, the film takes a deeply personal approach to his life. Several surprise cameos from Jimmy Carter, Tom Wolfe, Johnny Depp, both of Thompson's ex-wives and his son give a detailed account of who he was and what he wasn't. His private audio and video recordings, ranging from his proudest moments to his darkest, match these personal accounts.
The film documents his days among the Hell's Angels. Video clips, personal audio notes and photographs illustrate how deeply he became involved with the group. Violence, sexual indecency, crime and murder were only the beginning of the mystique that Thompson sought to unveil.
The scenes of his campaign to become the sheriff of Aspen, Colo., are remarkable. Posters of a two-thumbed fist holding a peyote button advertising his political bid were a shot in the face to the political status quo of the '60s, but Thompson fell short of winning the seat by a handful of votes.
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His political aspirations soon led him to report on presidential elections for Rolling Stone magazine in the late '60s and early '70s. His writings of the time are abundant and absurd, and the film underlines well his hatred of the status quo. As former presidential nominee George McGovern put it, "he gave the most accurate and least factual account" of the election trail. "Gonzo" reminds us that politics has everything to do with winning elections and nothing to do with running a government.
Through all the hardships Thompson faced, it was Bush's winning of the 2004 election that sent him into his deepest depression.
After years of threatening to do so, Thompson ended his life in 2005.
To look at his life as a whole, rather than just the brief clips of drug-induced frenzy, is to see a man who had no regrets about living in the moment. He had no worry of what his words would say to readers, just that he had infused them with all the energy he could afford. He constantly fought to experience everything that life could offer to him, and there is scarcely a moment where he's seen without a cigarette and glass of Wild Turkey in hand.
"Gonzo" has a wealth of unseen footage, firsthand audio recordings and interviews with the people who knew him best. From the most well read of his followers to the completely unacquainted, there is something to take away from the life of a man who lived every moment on the edge.
