Review of Where the Buffalo Roam (1980) by Hunter D — 10 Apr 2011

I've been told by many-a-Hunter S. Thompson fan that this film is superior to FEAR AND LOATHING IN LAS VEGAS, so I'd always been keen to see it. Now that I have, I wonder if anything motivates those statements other than A) contrarianism, B) irrational Bill Murray fandom, or C) narcotics.

This movie is all over the place, Bill Murray is probably the only thing to like about this movie apart from its eccentric subject matter. His relationship with Carl Lazlo (Peter Boyle), a foil for Thompson's real-life attorney, the late Oscar Zeta Acosta (also known as Dr. Gonzo), is almost non-existant, the themes of Thompson's work are drowned in a zany-yet-boring party atmosphere that seems to be the result of Art Linson having no idea how to direct a film. Linson's background is in producing, and the man has put together many-a-fine film. His directing resume is another matter, it consists only of this, and a Cameron Crowe-penned film that no one saw called THE WILD LIFE. The blocking and pacing of this film is a non-existant, Boyle wanders aimlessly through it, and he has no chemistry whatsoever with Murray, who is left to carry the entire film on his shoulders. I think the only reason people like this film is because of Murray's performance, which is quite good, it's just a shame it's wasted on such lifeless material.

This could all be forgiven if WHERE THE BUFFALO ROAM could've captured some of the essence of Thompson's writing, but it's devoid of any themes or ideas. We spend a lot of time with Thompson and Lazlo turning everywhere they go into a zany party, but it's not very funny, and it says nothing. The only time the movie really gets interesting is when Thompson hits the campaign trail, but the moment Lazlo shows up it turns into a silly slapstick comedy. It all culminates with a random bathroom meeting with Richard Nixon, where he ends the impromptu interview telling Thompson, "Fuck the doomed." It's a lame scene that should've been a climax, instead it comes off as a trip to the urinal, and not even a very presidential one. Terry Gilliam's version of FEAR AND LOATHING IN LAS VEGAS, captures the essence of that novel with near-perfection, it combines the insanity of Thompson's prose with the visual chaos of Ralph Steadman's artwork. I don't see how a Thompson fan could prefer WHERE THE BUFFALO ROAM to FEAR AND LOATHING, save for any of the reasons listed above, or the powerful feeling that is nostalgia.

Aside from Bill Murray though, everything is wrong here. Linson's direction, Bob Kaye's unimaginative script (Thompson himself on the screenplay: "...it sucks â" a bad, dumb, low-level, low-rent script."), and a cast that wanders as though they simply turned on a camera and said "go." Bill Murray makes this worth watching for any Thompson fan, as his performance isn't the insane charicature that is Johnny Depp as Raoul Duke, but feels more like an authentic represntation of Thompson himself. Too bad nothing else about the movie could be described as such.