My Own Private Idaho

Beautifully wrought, darkly funny and finally devastating, My Own Private Idaho almost single-handedly revives the notion of personal filmmaking in the United States.

It gets you below the emotional belt in a searing, delicate way. No movie this year approaches such magnificent imagery, such delectable poetry. more

Before this trippy, mesmerizing movie swerves out of control, it delivers an exhilarating and challenging ride. more

Van Sant's sensibility is wholly original, wholly fresh. "My Own Private Idaho" adds a new ingredient: a kind of boho sweetness. I loved it. more

The style is so eclectic that it may take some getting used to, but Van Sant, working from his own story for the first time, brings such lyrical focus to his characters and his poetry that almost everything works. more

There is no mechanical plot that has to grind to a Hollywood conclusion, and no contrived test for the heroes to pass; this is a movie about two particular young men, and how they pass their lives. more

My Own Private Idaho achieves more than most movies dream of attempting. The Shakespearian allusions aside, Van Sant has essentially remade "Of Mice and Men" for the nineties, with Mike as the "mouse," Scott as the "man." It is the mouse who roars. more

Van Sant casts a gently hypnotic spell that is not easily forgotten. more

It's a daredevil's ride that keeps you glued with fascination. more

With a more accomplished script and an actor of rather more technical prowess than Reeves (nabbing the Prince Hal role), this may just have worked. Here, it is just squirmingly embarrassing stuff. more

It's a movie that is certainly not for everyone, but I feel that it is a complete masterpiece. Sure it's odd at times and extremely different from most mainstream cinema, but that's kind've why I love it so much. The cinematography is so incredibly gripping so that even if you don't care for the story, you can bask in it's visual beauty. I feel like it's maybe Gus Van Sant's most personal film, you can sense how much time and energy went into telling this tragic story about the lives of two young men. River Pheonix gives without a doubt his greatest performance on screen. He is completely... more

*gasp* So...Keanu Reeves WASN'T horrible in this?! I'm still reeling from the shock. All sarcasm aside, River Phoenix is a total sweetheart and his awesomeness makes me forget that this wasn't that great of a movie. Plus, he's gorgeous. more

Meh. This movie is slow and a lot of times I just couldn't relate to it, but I can't argue with the beginning: River Phoenix waking up in the middle of a road in the middle of nowhere and yelling at a field rabbit that hops away from him. more

My Own Private Idaho is a film about a damaged man who has no place in the surreal world he inhabits. It's an abstract story about longing for love and a place to call home. One thing that is essential to mention when reviewing this film is River Phoenix's crushing, emotionally resonant performance. Although Van Sant's experimentation could be construed as overwhelming, this is a truly original work peppered with haunting and lyrical moments. There are arguably issues resulting from some of the stylistic choices made, but I think this is a wholly original piece whose out-of-the-box... more

Most people seem shocked when I tell them that "My Own Private Idaho" is one of my favorite movies ever, though I don't see why. One of Gus Van Sant's lower budget films, this melancholic adaptation of Shakespeare's "Henry IV" to the American West (chiefly Portland, Oregon and all around the western states) follows the adventures of a road-tripping prodigal son of wealthy and powerful politician (played to perfection by a reflective Keanu Reeves)and his best friend, a narcoleptic prostitute (a visionary performance by the late River Phoenix). "My Own Private Idaho" is a marvel: dreamlike,... more

When *My Own Private Idaho* hit the rental shelves of the local movie theater way back in the early 90's, its reputation spread immediately among the young and restless of my small, conservative home-town. The consensus was of near-unanimous disgust, with common descriptions including "sick," "depraved," and that age-old chestnut "Confusing" with a capital "C." And yet my opinion was, typically, not that of the consensus. My artist's spirit identified with the wanderlust-yearning and puckish wonder inhabited in the vagabond Scott and Mike - a somewhat-sheltered mind's naïve lust for that... more