The Rum Diary

Eleven years and several false starts in the making, the adaption of Hunter S. Thompson’s 1961 novel finally hits the big screen.
 
Johnny Depp stars as Paul Kemp, an itinerant journalist who moves from New York to Puerto Rico, developing a rum habit matched only by his obsession with a woman named Chenault (Amber Heard).
 
Directed by Bruce Robinson of Withnail and I fame, The Rum Diary encompasses a tangled love story of jealousy, treachery and violent alcoholic lust amongst the Americans who staff the San Juan Star newspaper. The shambolic duo of Kemp and the perpetually drunk Moberg provide many laugh out loud moments while never overstepping the line into slapstick, whilst Heard and Depp’s reckless flirtations portray striking chemistry. Robinson sacrificed six and a half years of sobriety to complete the script for The Rum Diary. It was definitely worth it.
 
Words by Lewis Parker.