I have decided to show compassion for Johnny Depp, The Colonel.

Recently I opened up my Criterion Edition DVD of 'Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas', which is not only one of my favorite films of all time, but also possibly the greatest adaptation of book to movie. The effort that every member of the cast put into re-creating this world is extraordinary, Depp included. But the feature that caught my eye was on Disc 2-"The Supplements". It was a fifteen-minute short that displayed Johnny reading a number of letters between him and famed journalist Hunter S. Thompson. The letters show a side of Depp that I had not considered; he is a human, and an excellent writer. His insecurity of making this film show through in his correspondence with Thompson underneath their clashing personalities, which unfortunately comes off as nothing but male posturing.

Despited my deep hatred of his all-too-goofy performance in that trainwreck of a movie based on Stephen King's novella "Secret Window", Depp is actually a respectable actor, even if the role he's become famous for happened to be an irritating character in an overlong Disney production.

Unfortunately, no one really gives the impression that they're looking past his forty-something face, the main culprit being young girls. If they would stop discussing his hair and his legs (which, coincidentally, are promotably [?] displayed in 'Fear and Loathing), they might notice that his most famous roles might actually be his worst. They might also realize that his 'lovably tragic' apperance in 'Edward Scissorhands' is NOT due to his beauty, but rather the genius of Tim Burton, and whoever the hell he had in charge of makeup back in 1990.

The poor fool might not look this good forever. When he doesnt, he'll only have his acting abilities to stand on, and a whole new generation of screaming adolsecents might not give two shits about emotional drama when Jake Gylenhall is two screens over crying his pasty white eyes out.