My Own Private Idaho

A genuinely poetic voice is heard in MY OWN PRIVATE IDAHO. Taking the form of a road movie, blended with elements borrowed from the two parts of Shakespeare's Henry IV, the film chronicles the misadventures of Mike Waters (River Phoenix), a lonesome young hustler who suffers from narcolepsy--he passes out at stressful moments and must literally depend on strangers to protect him. After one such fit at the opening of the film, Mike awakens in a Seattle flophouse, being fellated by a balding, overweight john. Later, he's picked up and taken to the home of a rich matron, where he meets Scott Favor (Keanu Reeves), the rebellious son of the mayor of Portland. Aft...