Oooh, Ass-shots!
On a purely shallow level, FYI: On the Road features shots, plural, of Garrett Hedlund's fine ass. And it follows the book pretty well, which is to say Dean Moriarty (Hedlund) is the most magnetic character of the bunch but also the biggest asshole. (And poor Ginsberg Carlo. If only you could control who you like, then all these people would steer clear of that brightly burning flame that is Dean Moriarty. That guy's got problems. But, alas, here come the moths!)
But, still--BUTT! Multiple times! Also, lots of laughter, including Hedlund's weird ass chortle! Lots of drugs and alcohol and meaning, like the Beats.
One of my favorite lines is there. Dean to Sal: It's good to have family--isn't it? And in the film you can tell Dean has no fuckin' clue what "family" is and will likely never figure it out. He runs through all his friends and pushes away and alienates the women who love him, and he's "burning up." That's also the scene in Sal's family home, where instead of talking about his newborn child, Dean describes the foursome (and before that confesses he spent 14 hours sitting in a car trying to shoot himself in the head--but couldn't do it). Sal is disappointed he missed the orgy.
Then there's the, uh, "scene of transaction" between Dean and the salesman (played by Steve Buscemi). Yeah, that was uncomfortable to watch in a group. But, it's not like the audience didn't know by that point. There are hints throughout the whole book and the film's even more obvious about it.
Overall, I really liked the film. It hurt but hurt so good. And it's an open ending, where I can imagine Dean being picked up off the street by Sal or even Carlo and finally fixing the broken parts of himself and they all live happily ever after, and no one dies alone and sick. :(
But, still--BUTT! Multiple times! Also, lots of laughter, including Hedlund's weird ass chortle! Lots of drugs and alcohol and meaning, like the Beats.
One of my favorite lines is there. Dean to Sal: It's good to have family--isn't it? And in the film you can tell Dean has no fuckin' clue what "family" is and will likely never figure it out. He runs through all his friends and pushes away and alienates the women who love him, and he's "burning up." That's also the scene in Sal's family home, where instead of talking about his newborn child, Dean describes the foursome (and before that confesses he spent 14 hours sitting in a car trying to shoot himself in the head--but couldn't do it). Sal is disappointed he missed the orgy.
Then there's the, uh, "scene of transaction" between Dean and the salesman (played by Steve Buscemi). Yeah, that was uncomfortable to watch in a group. But, it's not like the audience didn't know by that point. There are hints throughout the whole book and the film's even more obvious about it.
Overall, I really liked the film. It hurt but hurt so good. And it's an open ending, where I can imagine Dean being picked up off the street by Sal or even Carlo and finally fixing the broken parts of himself and they all live happily ever after, and no one dies alone and sick. :(