My Own Private Idaho
| Year: | 1991 |
| Director: | Gus Van Sant |
| Writer: | Gus Van Sant/William Shakespeare |
| Cast: | River Phoenix, Keanu Reeves, Flea |
I never realised until I look into the background of this movie that it was a modern retelling of Shakespeare's Henry IV (apparently lesser known than Henry V).
And being Shakespeare (and with the language not modernised for philistines like me) I understood little of it and didn't last the distance.
That's not to denigrate Gus Van Sant, who's one of the most interesting directors we have today - swinging as he does between obsure arthouse films like this and much more accessible crowd pleasers like Finding Forrester, elbowing challenging navel-gazers like Gerry in between them.
Phoenix and Reeves play rebellious gay male gigolos, and apparently all the meat in the story came after I gave up on it. And I was convinced the guy Bob was being played by Brian Cox (he wasn't).
And being Shakespeare (and with the language not modernised for philistines like me) I understood little of it and didn't last the distance.
That's not to denigrate Gus Van Sant, who's one of the most interesting directors we have today - swinging as he does between obsure arthouse films like this and much more accessible crowd pleasers like Finding Forrester, elbowing challenging navel-gazers like Gerry in between them.
Phoenix and Reeves play rebellious gay male gigolos, and apparently all the meat in the story came after I gave up on it. And I was convinced the guy Bob was being played by Brian Cox (he wasn't).