‘The Rum Diary’ and Johnny Depp are a good mix

I have a bit of a confession to make, and it can be embarrassing at times.  I am a huge Johnny Depp fan.  Not a stalker kind of fan, but I'm fairly certain that I would marry the guy if I got the chance.  That being said, I will try my best to not infuse this article with too much Johnny Depp love.  So here goes.

"The Rum Diary" opens this Friday, and I don't know whether to be really excited about it or just let it fall by the wayside.  This film is based on the novel of the same name written by Hunter S. Thompson, who was responsible for the acid trip-inducing story that was "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas."

I'll admit that I was a bit excited to see "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas."  Maybe that was because I didn't have any idea how the movie would pan out, or because it had Johnny Depp in it.

It was awful in my opinion.  I realized copious amounts of drugs were involved, as the main character so calmly stated "We had two bags of grass, seventy-five pellets of mescaline, five sheets of high-powered blotter acid, a saltshaker half-full of cocaine, and a whole galaxy of multi-colored uppers, downers, screamers, laughers ... Also, a quart of tequila, a quart of rum, a case of beer, a pint of raw ether and two dozen amyls."

There was still no concrete story line.  You'd have to be on acid yourself to make heads or tails of any of it, and even then you'd probably kill yourself just to end the madness and get rid of the bats.    

"The Rum Diary," however, looks like it will be a little bit better.  For one, there's only rum involved, which can get you pretty drunk but won't be able to mess you up nearly as bad.  I do find it funny that the screenwriter, who was a recovering alcoholic, had writer's block that he eventually cured by drinking heavily until the movie was finished.

Anyway, this film looks to have a comprehensible plot line, and the movie as a whole looks interesting.  

It's about the art of journalism before anyone really knew what journalism was.  Johnny Depp looks like he's great for the role as the wondering journalist/rum connoisseur, and the supporting cast look like they know what they're doing too.  This has just the right mix of hilarity and peculiarity to make this movie much more successful than "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas."

Am I going to see this movie?  Yes, I more than likely will and not just for the Depp factor. 

Anyone could have taken this topic of a journalist with a big scoop and turned it into some run of the mill, cookie cutter script that we've all seen a thousand times.  

Thanks to the talents of the late Thompson and the great cast and writers involved, we are seeing something unique for our time—something with a message that will make you think, while also confusing the hell out of you and making you laugh along the way.  

I suggest that you find a drinking buddy and go see "The Rum Diary."

He can't drink it all by himself anyway.