MovieChat Forums > Leaving Las Vegas (1996) Discussion > View of an addict / alcoholic

View of an addict / alcoholic

posted 12 years ago by chunky909
4 replies | jump to latest

Ok : I am 34 , I've been in 'recovery ' for 5 years . I still have my government job (which I'm good at) however I live with my folks (having wasted thousands)have progressively lost my 'friends' and have only my mother. , disabled father , and girlfriend (just) I have a place called the living room in The (UK) that saved my life. I have been through rehab clinics (supported by work ) and had counselling , I've attended AA and completed a step program , but I find fault in the steps that cannot be answered by even the wisest of alcoholics .... For me , a room of variant people , recovering from sex, alcohol, drugs, food. Whatever Is the key ..... Anyho
I've learnt the hard way , but if I can offer 2 bits of advice to the first stage addict
1- it's you , if you have asked for help., are in rehab, doctors , aa etc etc - YOU need help - it took me 4 years of excuses , and blame - I ran out of people to blame -
2- lock yourself away - best thing that ever happened to me was every one telling me no more .... On my final binge I stole from my parents, crashed my car , lied (again) to work and spent 2 weeks on coke and alcohol - I did exactly what cage did in this film - I resided to death , because I'd lost everything.....

So ..... I've seen many films on addiction , I'm not stupid , and that's been my downfall - ultimately I found group meeti gs were my cure .... But cages complete self indulgent destruction in this film is masterfully done ... Addicts are emotional
people .... Cages loss of wife and child is the same catalyst I had before my clinic 5 year ago .... Luckily I had friends and family to help me In that first stage .

I think this film is true if the mind set of an addict who has no more hope ..... However ..... In my experience , most addicts have a lot more fight that cage in this film , if anything , this Is alcoholism Hollywood (or Vegas) style .
This is a great film - but , it represents the
end of addiction , when the fight is over and to that end it is unrealistic .
Addiction is clever and cunning - for cage to have lost his job , and family , and then doing what he did is unrealistic . Addiction , makes you suffer and there is no way your way out would be lime his ....

I've seen people who lost house , job kids , family and ended up on the street .... And now they have it all back ...

Addicts have a lot of fight , because addiction wants to make you suffer - while this is a great film - it represents the end of the battle ---- and cage had years in him , realistically as an addict .

Shoot !

[–] chunky909 12 years ago

But then , in the films defence - the loss of job signifies the final normality to go .....
So the fm prob does represent the final straw ..... Ill leave the post up though - be interesting to see what recovering addicts think of the film.
I think it's one of the best ;
Isolation
Rejection
Fear
Loss of love
Self destructiveness
I've tried what cage did many times ..... But thankfully love saved me and the realisation I was hurting the people closest to me .....
Ill change my above view , I guess it is the final leg of addiction, however , I still maintain I've seen people loose much more, living in a much worse off state , come back and succeeded.

[–] howie99 11 years ago

honestly if you have a girl like Elizabeth Shue? Isn't that worth the fight? That's the unrealistic part about it is that he found love and didn't attempt to fight for it.

[–] BoogieKnight 11 years ago

A lot of people can't seem to understand the overall point of the film and this is why these questions come up. Or they try to put themselves in the Ben character's shoes and say "what would I do if this was happening to me?" The film is about Ben's acceptance of who and what he is and not fighting against it no matter what may try to interfere or tell him otherwise. Zero compromises. That means more than anything else in life and in death. If all the money in the world was offered up along with 20 Elizabeth Shues, it wouldn't change a thing. I guess if one is an addict or not, if they can't appreciate that key concept, it's understandable how they wouldn't like this film as much.

[–] 11 years ago

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