In my attempt to delve into the Godfather of Gonzo Journalism, I tried finding as much as reference, biopic, his works and stories all over the internet. I am fascinated with the way he writes, thinks and his rebellious way of seeing establishment. To me, he was a strange mix of an anarchist but more importantly it was quite difficult to put him into those political charts. Maybe he didn’t need to put into a box and perhaps for him, morality is subjective too. I don’t know. But after reading The Rum Diary, I got even more immersed into the peculiar world of Hunter S. Thompson. I have heard of Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas and read it briefly but apparently, there is a biopic based on one of his bizarre experience running for a Sheriff and this was even published or known as the Battle of Aspen.

Fear and Loathing in Aspen (2021) was about his experience running for a Sheriff in a beautiful county called Pitkin. There are many exaggeration and fictional aspects of it but there are some truth about the story. In this movie, viewers will get an intimate look into his life. Thompson was a comedic, bizarre, and loved his cigarette a little bit too much. In the movie, it was shown he sold his story to the magazine for $500 and experienced everything to run for a local Sheriff position. Throughout his campaign, he targeted the “freak”, the misfits who at first didn’t want to vote but eventually, Thompson convinced them that if He wins the campaign, Pitkin county would be in favor of the “freak” and they will not be expelled from the place just because the Mayor wanted to attract more affluent visitor to that beautiful country. Perhaps for Thompson, that would made a good story and given he was paid $500 for pitching that story, whether he wins or not, I am sure it didn’t really matter. Do you think he eventually became a sheriff?

I highly recommend this unique movie that was injected with grainy documentary footage and a narrator’s voice that exactly sounded like Thompson. His campaign was utilizing the power of media and it was so intriguing to see how media could be so influential. On the other hand, it definitely was a Thompson movie despite being only based on his experience running for a Sheriff. Here's the trailer of this "freak" movie.