Very interesting movie. I got to see it at Dobie in Austin on its second day, and I was pleasantly surprised with it.
One thing I liked about Around the Fire was that the movie had a very balanced view of drugs. Not preachy like an afterschool special, but also not sugarcoating their effects either.
WARNING - The next few paragraphs have a spoiler. - WARNING
One of my criticisms is that there was not much that indicated _why_ Simon had a major change in his life. Most people who get out of drug addictions have some kind of spiritual experience, or encounter with God that changes them. (AA would be a good example of this approach.) I find it hard to believe that he would change so quickly. It seems like one minute he is in rehab with all of these internal demons, and the next minute he is all cool again and is willing to stir rice and not sell LSD.
Other than that though, I really dug this movie and will be seeing it again. For me, it is an interesting look at a world that I have been intrigued by, but have not gone into. (I especially liked the LSD trip scenes that let the audience member see what an LSD trip is like.)
One thing I liked about Around the Fire was that the movie had a very balanced view of drugs. Not preachy like an afterschool special, but also not sugarcoating their effects either.
WARNING - The next few paragraphs have a spoiler. - WARNING
One of my criticisms is that there was not much that indicated _why_ Simon had a major change in his life. Most people who get out of drug addictions have some kind of spiritual experience, or encounter with God that changes them. (AA would be a good example of this approach.) I find it hard to believe that he would change so quickly. It seems like one minute he is in rehab with all of these internal demons, and the next minute he is all cool again and is willing to stir rice and not sell LSD.
Other than that though, I really dug this movie and will be seeing it again. For me, it is an interesting look at a world that I have been intrigued by, but have not gone into. (I especially liked the LSD trip scenes that let the audience member see what an LSD trip is like.)