Occupy The Rum Diary

Went to see The Rum Diary with a friend.  Wasn't expecting to head to the theatre for it; wasn't expecting to like it.  Some of the dialogue is wickedly funny.  The references are fast and furious, and the cynicism refreshing. 

And...this is the car I want - Fiat 500 - with Johnny Depp driving, of course!

What suprised me most about it, though, was how timely it is.  Kemp's (Hunter S. Thompson's alter-ego played by Johnny Depp) crusade to expose entrenched corporate greed in Puerto Rico in 1960 is a screeching echo of the rage (no, not frustration) people are feeling right now in 2011.  The crisis is tailor-made for our lifetime - a few greedy men conspire to ruin beautiful beachfront property with massive hotels - stealing the landscape to make money.  Kemp is enlisted to help them sell it to the public.  His willingness to fight this corruption, bite the hand, and name it rage is not noble; it's necessary.

Hunter S. Thompson's social commentary and x-ray vision to ferret out hypocrisy is all over the script and the chewy dialogue.  The actors seem to have a good time delivering these lines and playing with each other. 

Go see it.  Remind yourself that this particular struggle has been going on for decades, really centuries.  There is a legacy, and we can learn from our losses.