The Rum Diary

119 minutes • 2011 • 6.2

Stop in for some madness and a drink. Johnny Depp starred in a film by "Whitnail and I" director Bruce Robinson, based on a book by the man behind "Fear and Disgust in Las Vegas," cult writer Hunter S. Thompson.

Journalist Paul Kemp, played by Johnny Depp, takes on a freelance assignment in a tidy and wobbly newspaper editorial in Caribbean Puerto Rico. His private life is, if possible, even more shaky and uncluttered, and he strives to balance the cultural clash between the native's voo-doo and poverty, and the lavish parties of the upper class. He is challenged on many levels as he tries to create a safer livelihood, while brother-in-law offers another bottle. Welcome to the strangest paradise on earth.