Where the Buffalo Roam

1980
18
1h 39m

IMDb RATING

6.5/10

13K

YOUR RATING

Bill Murray in Where the Buffalo Roam (1980)

Semi-biographical film based on the experiences of gonzo journalist Hunter S. Thompson.

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Biography Comedy

Semi-biographical film based on the experiences of gonzo journalist Hunter S. Thompson.Semi-biographical film based on the experiences of gonzo journalist Hunter S. Thompson.Semi-biographical film based on the experiences of gonzo journalist Hunter S. Thompson.

Director
- Art Linson
Writers
- Hunter S. Thompson
- John Kaye
Stars

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

6.5/10

13K

YOUR RATING

Director
- Art Linson
Writers
- Hunter S. Thompson
- John Kaye
Stars

See production info at IMDbPro

Harris
(as René Auberjonois)

R.G. Armstrong

Judge Simpson

Danny Goldman

Porter

Rafael Campos

Rojas

Leonard Frey

Desk Clerk

Leonard Gaines

Super Fan

Otis Day

Man #1
(as De Wayne Jessie)

Mark Metcalf

Dooley

Jon Shear

Billy Kramer
(as Jon Matthews)

Joseph Ragno

Willins

Quinn K. Redeker

Pilot
(as Quinn Redeker)

Lisa Taylor

Ruthie

Danny Tucker

Narcotics Agent

Jon Acevedo

Hippie

Phillip L. Allan

Kid #2

Director
- Art Linson
Writers
- Hunter S. Thompson
- John Kaye
All cast & crew
Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

More like this

6.1

The Rum Diary

7.5

Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas

7.6

Gonzo: The Life and Work of Dr. Hunter S. Thompson

6.2

Continental Divide

6.8

Stripes

6.2

Meatballs

5.7

Fear and Loathing in Aspen

6.9

I Married a Strange Person!

6.1

7.2

6.9

5.7

Storyline

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Did you know

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Trivia
To get into character, Bill Murray spent time with Hunter S. Thompson by drinking, shooting and generally having a great time at Thompson's Colorado ranch. After filming ended, Murray continued to act "Gonzo" through the beginning of the next season of Saturday Night Live (1975), to the annoyance and consternation of cast and crew members.

Goofs
During the courtroom scene, 21 minutes and 5 seconds into the film, Thompson sets down his glass which is almost full. A second later, a close-up on the glass shows it sitting on the floor, empty. All further scenes in the courtroom show the glass once again almost full.

Quotes
[Thompson is speaking to a crowd of college students]
Questioner: I was just wondering if you could tell me, um, if you thought drugs and alcohol would make me a better writer.
Dr. Hunter S. Thompson: That's a good question. Let me see...
[the audience cheers as Thompson lights a joint. A few people throw joints onto the stage]
Dr. Hunter S. Thompson: In my case, you know, I hate to advocate drugs or liquor, violence, insanity to anyone. But in my case it's worked.

Alternate versions
The 2017 Blu-ray release from Shout! Factory restores the original soundtrack. Making this the first home media release since the original VHS release to feature the original unaltered soundtrack.

Connections
Featured in Sneak Previews: A Small Circle of Friends, Where the Buffalo Roam, Nothing Personal, Foolin' Around, Ffolkes (1980)

Soundtracks
Keep on Chooglin
Written by John Fogerty
Performed by Creedence Clearwater Revival (as Credence Clearwater Revival)

User reviews59

Review

Featured review

7/10

Not for the casual Fear and Loathing Fan

I finally watched this movie after watching Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas about 50 times and reading almost all of Hunter S. Thompson's books. I have to say that while I enjoyed the movie, most people won't. Unless you have a pretty thorough knowledge of HST's work, it won't make much sense, and its comedic value will not be enough to make it worthwhile. However, if you have read FNL on The Campaign Trail and Strange Rumblings in Azatlan, then the movie will probably be of interest to you. One area where this film is far superior to FNL in Las Vegas is in its depiction of Oscar Zeta Acosta, the attorney who is the basis for Carl Lazlo here and Dr. Gonzo in FNL. Acosta was actually a prominent civil rights attorney in the 60's and 70's, especially in the Chicano community in Southern California. He also was a notoriously hard partier by most accounts. This movie does a much better job of capturing his odd duality than FNL does, and Peter Boyle is quite sharp in the role - interesting to watch for those of you who only know him as the father on Raymond.