David Lipsky, as a Rolling Stone reporter, accompanied author David Foster Wallace on the last leg of the book tour for Wallace’s unexpected 1996 bestseller Infinite Jest. In this insightful film adaptation based on Lipsky’s chronicle of those five days, filmmaker James Ponsoldt (The Spectacular Now) portrays the struggles that the creative genius had with life, success, expression, and socialization.
Jason Segel is surely to garner an academy award nomination for his surly, confused, grappling characterization of author David Foster Wallace. The admiring reporter is dryly played by Jesse Eisenberg, and the intimate back-and-forth between the two characters is like an intricate dance. Overall respect for the author’s brilliant voice of the millennial generation comes across poignantly in The End of the Tour.
In the film, Wallace is reluctant to meet or reveal himself to the Rolling Stone reporter. A prolific writer – his tome Infinite Jest is a mere 1,104 pages in paperback – he remained a single, reclusive guy devoted to his dogs in rural Indiana. Yet, his novel is replete with unfiltered meaning-of-life questions and worldly observations. In his brief time with Lipksy, David Foster Wallace attempted — with difficulty — to clarify and vocalize his thoughts and intentions.
The fact that David Foster Wallace committed suicide in 2008 motivated the journalist to revisit his time spent with the author on the book tour in the 90s. It inspired him to review the subtle signs of the genius at work and uncover how Wallace fought depression, yet longed to communicate through the written word.
The film inspired me to go purchase the book (on Kindle, since I might not be able to lift the hard back version!). The book is rambling, but full of millennium observations. I’m still reading…
The End of the Tour is screening in select theaters now.
Karen Henry is an Associate Editor at LA YOGA who volunteers in a variety of capacities for nonprofit organizations and artists around Los Angeles. She practices yoga as a counterbalance to her daily impact sports and is a mother of four grown children who also practice yoga . Now, she’s working on teaching yoga and joy of life to the grandkids!