So... I know it’s well known that FLILV is one of the only mentions of Adrenochrome in pop culture. But there are a lot of weird things about this movie that I’ve noticed upon rewatch (aside from the typical weird things that come from drug induced psychosis in general).
It’s only mentioned by name once, but I noticed that references to kidnapping, murder, and the pineal gland are a running theme through the entire movie.
In the beginning of the movie, when Thompson is trying to check into the hotel while on acid, he passes a man talking on a pay phone. The man is heard talking about someone being murdered, and says that he thinks they were after the pineal gland. That is oddly specific.
Later, Gonzo eats too much acid and has a bad trip. He gets into the bathtub and is begging Thompson to throw the radio in the tub with him during a certain note of White Rabbit by Pink Floyd. (Follow the white rabbit?)
Once he comes down he leaves the hotel and they separate, but he later sends Thompson a telegram to go the another Hotel called “The Flamingo” so he can cover a District Attorney Convention.
When they reunite Gonzo has kidnapped a young girl named Lucy. He has given her acid and alcohol. The girl is in Las Vegas to meet Barbara Streisand because her oddly specific hobby is painting portraits of the singer. (Barbara Streisand is a known acquaintance of the Clintons, who attend her concerts as special guests on occasion)
They get rid of Lucy by sending her to another hotel where Streisand will be, but the movie goes out of its way to emphasize that Lucy was underage.
After this, Gonzo, while on the phone, tells Thompson to try what’s in the brown bottle. That’s when the Adrenochrome line is. Thompson asks what’s in the bottle and Gonzo says it’s what it is.
Thompson takes “too much” and Gonzo morphs into a demon wearing make up, and it’s around this point that they talk about the only place Adrenochrome comes from.
If there is more symbolism in the movie I have missed it, other than one more at the ending.
When Thompson is driving away at the end of the movie, headed back to LA, the song that’s playing is “Jumping Jack Flash” by The Rolling Stones. The opening line of that song is “I was born in a Crossfire-Hurricane”. It is from this song that the “Crossfire Hurricane” FBI investigation into the Trump Campaign got its name.
Could be a big nothingburger, but why do so many things in this movie add up to modern day things that we look into, and why does a movie that seems almost based around Adrenochrome have ties to Hillary?
Too many coincidences...
There is a link between Hunter S. Thompson and the Clintons somewhere. I just can’t find it. The only one I can find is if a question asked as a joke to Thompson: “boxers or briefs” that a young journalist asked Bill Clinton in reference to, also as a joke.
Once you see it... Can't just watch films any more, its like a box ticking exercise.
No such thing...
I guess you never read the book?
The book (and movie) is broadly about the death of the American Dream (illustrated with Gonzo journalism), and how the combination of hippie idealism and Nixon's drug laws were proof that the American Dream was never possible to begin with.
Hunter Thompson was real spook, and sounds like JFK jr. was aware of it.
He had HTs books in his library, and featured him & his friend Johnny Depp in a couple of George magazines, obviously for this time. wish more anons could look through the articles for crumbs. people could search eBay for magazines...
Definitely not a nothingburger. Only bit I'd add is the whole lizard thing that happens after he takes it. Ho Lee Fook.
This movie was definitely comms IMO. I'm just unsure if it comes from the dark side or the light side, to this day.
I never felt this movie was a celebration of debauchery so much as an exploration of where it takes you, which is nowhere good.
To me anyway, HST was a truly patriotic American... he epitomised the energy and love of freedom that was the cornerstone of all American Greatness.... albeit through the lens of a completely deranged but hyper intelligent drug imbibing nut job.
I read Fear and Loathing long ago but lizard references weren't something of interest to me back then. I'm looking for more info. ??
He was a strangely powerful figure back in the day. I think he meant to warn us of this upper crust obsession. Some claim he said his use of it was the biggest mistake of his life. Left warnings to us, when none were prepared to believe. He did it anyway.
When he’s on the Adrenochrome Gonzo’s eyes turn into what look like lizard eyes, and when he starts coming down he’s wearing what looks like a lizard tail
Looked up references to Adrenochrome in movies... Found a quote from "A clockwork orange" that reads: "The Korova Milk Bar sold Moloko Plus. Milk plus Vellocet, Synthemesc, or Drencrom, which is what we were drinking. This would sharpen you up and make you ready for a bit of the old ultra-violence.". Drencrom sounds like Adrenochrome to me.. "There are three types of Moloko plus served within the Milk Bar; vellocet (mixed with opiates), synthemesc (mixed with synthetic mescaline) and drencrom (mixed with adrenochrome and other hallucinogens). It can be served to minors because of its lack of alcohol."
Adrenochrome is written on the wall of the MilkBar. Someone posted a pic of it here, long ago.
The book mentions that one thing HST remembers about the adrenochrome tip is an image of Nixon on the TV and the word sacrifice over and over again.... sacrifice, sacrifice, sacrifice.......
Yeah, that's gotta be HST speaking in code to us, the gentle readers.
To OP, I haven't see the film nor read the book in many years. But the adrenochrome drop was a huge deal amongst druggies when it came out, so it always stuck with me, and I've thought about it more than occasionally in the recent past. Mostly I think about revisiting it for exactly the same reason you wrote this - I'm assuming the comms are THICK in this one. And I suspect they're thick in quite a few Gilliam projects.