The Rum Diary (15)

Your support helps us to tell the story

Support Now

Find out moreClose

My recent work focusing on Latino voters in Arizona has shown me how crucial independent journalism is in giving voice to underrepresented communities.

Your support is what allows us to tell these stories, bringing attention to the issues that are often overlooked. Without your contributions, these voices might not be heard.

Every dollar you give helps us continue to shine a light on these critical issues in the run up to the election and beyond

Eric Garcia

Washington Bureau Chief

Bruce Robinson was allegedly lured out of retirement once Johnny Depp agreed to sign on for this adaptation of a Hunter S Thompson novel, though heaven knows why.

The book, written in the early 1960s, remained unpublished for nearly 40 years, and should probably have stayed that way. Depp plays Paul Kemp, a journo hired by a moribund newspaper in Puerto Rico, 1960, when rich, rum-soaked Americans are enjoying a Caribbean land-grab. Though Kemp is keener on drink and drugs than news gathering he is nevertheless courted by a shady entrepreneur (Aaron Eckhart) who wants him to plant favourable stories on his forthcoming property splash.

Depp strolls through it all, bemused, befuddled, and then besotted by a girl (Amber Heard) who's way too young for him. The writer-director Robinson, trying to rekindle the Withnail embers, seems undecided on what kind of film he's making – a tale of Yankee avarice, a celebration of the Thompson inner gonzo, or, belatedly, a tribute to the crusader spirit of independent journalism. In the end, it's not much of anything, and really takes its time (two hours plus) proving so.