Hunter S Thompson was a great writer/journalist who loved to play with words and structure but who maybe liked to play with drugs even more. Terry Gilliam's screen version of this book is so uncompromising from the very start that some (like me!) will find it difficult to get into. For me it was only the fantastic colours and surreal happenings that intrigued me enough to stay with the worrying antics of Johnny Depp, as the writer, and Benico del Toro, his assistant, as this whirlwind of psychedelia unfolds. Eventually I was won over by the underlying charm of Depp's performance and able to enjoy this incredibly worrying and exciting ride. An absolute one off with possible nods to Naked Lunch.
