In Patricia Arquette’s “Gonzo Girl” (2025), a young writer takes up a job as an editorial assistant for an old, established author. Unlike him, she hasn’t found her own voice. So, this job is also her way of discovering it. That’s particularly difficult considering his strange working discipline. Besides, he holds more power in their toxic relationship. Yet, the film wants us to escape the usual perils of judgment about his character and expects us to reject a moralistic lens to scrutinize their dynamic. So, what follows is the young writer learning to be ‘gonzo’ like her boss.
“Gonzo Girl” marks Arquette’s feature directorial debut, which adapts Cheryl Della Pietra’s eponymous novel inspired by her experience of working with American journalist and author Hunter S. Thompson. The film offers a fictionalized account of their experiences through Alley Russo’s (Camila Morrone) eyes, who starts working for reputed author Walker Reade (Willem Dafoe). Set in 1992, it introduces Alley as an aspiring New York writer who makes ends meet with a bartending gig. One day, she attends one of Walker’s book-reading sessions as a long-time admirer of his work. So, she can’t help from being honest about her first impression.
Alley’s unfettered sincerity lands her a gig in Walker’s freewheeling gang of who’s who that resides somewhere quiet and charming. However, her introduction to his troupe is the farthest thing from quiet or charming. Walker revels in every possible indulgence under the sun. He is brash and spontaneous. One moment, he will drink a complete bottle of liquor, and the next moment, he will start shooting at random targets around his farmhouse, whether it’s day or night. It quickly puts Alley at odds with him since she is far more concerned about doing her job well. She means business, and considering where she stands in her life, it is hardly unfair, let alone shocking.
Walker does not want to be disciplined and is satisfied with his irreverent lifestyle. He trusts it with his whole heart and believes it helps him write. As his assistant, Alley is left with no other option but to do everything he wants them to do, even if it’s against her usual nature. He forces her to be braver and more adventurous without being tied to social impositions. While agreeing to his every demand, she also needs to take care of him. So, while hired as an editor, she has to blur the lines between their personal and professional relationships. At times, she feels like his close friend, sometimes his lover, and some other times his surrogate mother.
Rebecca Thomas and Jessica Caldwell’s screenplay hinges on Alley’s self-discovery. While working as his associate, Alley starts writing for herself, detailing her absurd experiences with him. She describes his behavior and demeanor in vivid detail, more than he can at the time. That leads them to further complications about craft and originality. While trying to find her voice, she seemingly lends him her own. Yet, instead of confronting their power imbalance, it focuses on how this experience helps Alley grow as a writer and an individual.
Considering the author’s reputation as an idiosyncratic literary figure, Willem Dafoe seems like the perfect choice to play the part. He seamlessly steps into the author’s shoes and portrays Walker’s buffoonery with zeal and reverence. Dafoe walks the tightrope in making Walker seem charismatic and obnoxious, often at the same time. He captures the appeal of Walker’s riotous personality that marches to the beat of his own drums. However, Dafoe’s performance is not enough to turn the film into a profound experience.
“Gonzo Girl” feels like a cross between hallucinogenic films like “Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas” and soaring true-life dramas like “Into the Wild” about life-altering experiences. It relies far more on the trippiness of Walker’s lifestyle and its outward appearances to give a similar ‘life-altering’ experience while giving barely any insight about him beyond his reckless abandon. It shows Walker struggling with his writing and resorting to any form of escapism for creative inspiration. However, it doesn’t delve enough into what makes him a revered creative genius. So, its emotional beats do not land how they should.
The script uses supporting characters as mere extensions of Walker’s personality, who often act as catalysts in his journey. It develops none of them beyond the bare descriptions of who they represent in his life. That’s particularly unfortunate considering the acting talent at hand. Unlike Dafoe or the supporting cast, Morrone’s performance feels rather one-note and ingenuine. She looks the part but lacks the dramatic chops to convince us of Alley’s transformative arc. So, what should be a profound experience of self-discovery comes across as a diluted and broadly forgettable nostalgic trip.
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