On M List of Movie Reviews
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My Own Private Idaho (1991)
Rate:
8
Viewed:
5/07, 7/20, 3/25
5/07:
If there's any doubt of River Phoenix's greatness in acting, it will go away when you watch
My Own Private Idaho.
Before there was Good Will Hunting, Gus Van Sant started
exploring vagrancy and drug abuse among young adults in
Drugstore Cowboy and then followed it up with My Own Private Idaho.
He wrote the screenplay during the 70's but couldn't secure financing for a long while.
There's a long-standing rumor that goes like this: "One day, Gus Van Sant showed his script of
My Own Private Idaho to Keanu Reeves who agreed on the spot to take the role of Scott Favor. Not being able
to get through River's agent, he rode his motorcycle solo from Canada to Gainesville, Florida, to share the script
with the elusive actor, and they made a handshake deal on it." However, it's not true; both got the script while
making I Love You to Death and took their time before deciding to do it
because of the gay component. As a result, My Own Private Idaho became a successful independent picture
that's a hybrid of Midnight Cowboy,
Easy Rider, and
Drugstore Cowboy.
River Phoenix may have been Oscar-nominated for Running on Empty, but
he gave the most definitive performance of his career in My Own Private Idaho. Keanu Reeves is fantastic as
his sidekick. What I like is the style. It's sometimes strange and hallucinatory that moves in a circle but stays
centered. No answers are proffered to the meaning of it all; characters go through the day in any way they can.
If there's a negative, it's the Shakespearean scenes that throw me off the track.
All in all, My Own Private Idaho demonstrates what a true talent River Phoenix was.
7/20:
The Midnight Cowboy of the 90's, My Own Private Idaho displays
the most definitive performance of River Phoenix's career.
River Phoenix had done a few films like
Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade,
I Love You to Death, and Sneakers
that weren't spiritually right for him. But when he rolled the dice on My Own Private Idaho, it was
the perfect channel to show off his talent. The same thing is said for Keanu Reeves, but he's an all-around
great actor who can dabble in any genre.
Not a lot makes sense, but there's one interpretation that might will: it's the story of two wayward young males
trying to get out of the hole they've dug for themselves, but that's dependent on the kind of upbringing they
had. That's why Scott was able to while Mike couldn't and would probably end up dead within a few years. Ironically,
it's what happened to Keanu Reeves and River Phoenix, respectively, in real life.
All in all, there's no My Own Private Idaho without River Phoenix and Keanu Reeves.
3/25:
My Own Private Idaho still holds up well.