Breakfast with Hunter

I'm a total junky for the guys writing, but I also really enjoy watching his antics and if possible see a bit of his real personality. There aren't too many legends around these days, and most have gone completely soft. Hunter to me is not as much of a put-on as some seem to suspect. He is obvious very intelligent and he takes writing seriously, exactly as it should be. People make a terrible mistake in assuming that he is some sort of comedy act, or even a outright liar. In all of his writing he dares people to have some imagination, and to not look at the world through a normal set of sense organs. His version of the truth works better for me than CNN ever will, and I have great pity for anyone who believes otherwise.

He has written of a distrust of movie-people, in particular the Hollywood bunch so it is pleasant to get a good couple of hours of him on film. I tend to agree that Hunter deserves a well executed movie, but there are some pretty obvious reasons why that may not be practical. No one wants a camera in their face all the time, HST least of all. It isn't accidental that an Aspen resident ended up compiling/recording this movie, because I get the impression that the only thing which would make him comfortable enough with the idea is chillin' with the locals.

The 1980 BBC documentary was alright. It covered a slightly different era, and some of their research was a little weak. Until breakfast came out however, it was certainly about as candid as I was able to find in one place.

It really was a collage of footage with very little keeping it focused. It didn't appear to be as a result of a deliberate editing technique but more just having to work within the available footage and whatever Hunter was going to allow to be used. There is little bad to say about it from a freaks point of view.

I have enormous respect for him.

I'm still waiting for some more books, do you hear that Hunter!? Forget ESPN.com, write another novel. I hear Afganhi hash is pretty cheap these days.

Not as insightful as I thought it was going to be. It pretty much covered Hunter S. Thompson's life from 1996-1997. There were a few flashbacks but they weren't very long. I think his race for Sheriff of Aspen should have been covered more. I'm not saying I hated it, but at times it dragged while HST gave meaningless mumbles of insight. At times he p***ed me off (when he wouldn't sign autographs at the book signing and his argument with Alex Cox), but at other times made me laugh and cheer for the outlaw. He's probably my favorite American author but he is sure one hell of an asshole. I guess it's a Kentucky thing lol. I was let down by the fact that it didn't give the viewer what the lifestyle and point of HST is. For that, I suggest reading Kingdom of Fear, which I consider the best piece of reading material I've read in a while. And as mentioned above, his argument with Alex Cox and Tod Davies about putting cartoons in the Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas movie was sometimes unbearable but other times just flat out funny. I like Alex Cox and all, but I sort of agree with Hunter. It was his material and he didn't want it interpreted as a cartoon! Maybe Terry Gilliam was for the better. All in all an average documentary, but did have a noteworthy soundtrack (all songs have been mentioned by Hunter sometime or another) that included "Spirit in the Sky", "American Pie", "The Weight", "Mr. Tambourine Man", and many other. But where was "Sympathy for the Devil?" Worth checking out if you're a fan of HST's work. I don't if it was worth the $29.95, but still a good addition to my HST collection.

The documentary is a thinly veiled attempt to "break into" the life of the famed Gonzo fiend and shed light on his inner madness. Many funny scenes throughout the film, especially when Hunter is berating glib English director Alex Cox. The film itself comes across slightly amateur-esque in its editing and presentation, but is certainly a must-see for Hunter fans.

Hunter S. Thompson is a cultural icon, this isn't news. What is, is a real inside view into his life in this film. The documentary is a collage of Hunter and some of his antics as filmed by friend and neighbor Wayne Ewing over the past twenty years. A rare look into life at his "fortified compound" and the tribulations of making "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas" into a movie are just some of what makes this film an absolute must for any fan of The Good Doctor. This is real life Gonzo, from The Legend himself, the writer who changed American Journalism and the way we read it.

of the topics and the time span covered. It includes old bbc footage from the sheriff election from the early seventies to 1996. Hunter's mumbling is very clear for mumbles and it does not have that dark documentary look weh they shoot at night (most of the film) great DVD ad ons as well. Don johnson (another lucky neighbor of Owl Farm) reads along with pj o'roarke and some other sot and it is interesting to hear hunter's words with others voices. The insanity it tempered with a visible devotion to his work and it is too bad this was not filmed post 9-11 since i believe some of his best work has come about since. In the end it is the difinitve (to date) piece on the Good Doktor.