If, for some reason, you’re not at all aware of David Foster Wallace‘s lasting legacy, The End of the Tour looks like an awfully simple proposition. The new film from James Ponsoldt (The Spectacular Now) adapts Of Course You End Up Becoming Yourself, a chronicle of journalist David Lipsky‘s time on the road with the legendary writer as the (ahem) tour for his magnum opus, Infinite Jest, was winding down. The book caused a minor sensation: at long last, people could get further into the mind of a man whose words had practically become part of the fiber of their being, the mind who created them now available unfiltered. Inhabiting the Wallace role is Jason Segel, while Jesse Eisenberg takes on Lipsky, and neither seem to be breaking from their screen personas too strongly, despite all the baggage that former role carries. For those close to the now-deceased author, this has all been a controversial topic — whether they’re family members who feel this film’s very existence goes against his wishes, or film-critic friends who take exception with the finished product. (For what it’s worth, we happened to be fans of it at Sundance.)
Now, again, if you’re not aware of his legacy, whatever is being sold here seems simple enough: genius enlightens guy just trying to do his job, yet both learn from one another, life’s great mysteries continue to elude us all. Fine! As someone who’s merely interested in the subject, it’s a compliment when I say the trailer, despite those not-insignificant objections from parties who should be heard, piques my interest. But that resentment does stick, and — as much as I always strive to be an objective, impartial viewing party — I can’t help but wonder how it’ll affect my own viewing. The rest is entirely in your hands.
Watch the trailer below:
Synopsis:
THE END OF THE TOUR tells the story of the five-day interview between Rolling Stone reporter (and novelist) David Lipsky (Jesse Eisenberg) and acclaimed novelist David Foster Wallace (Jason Segel), which took place right after the 1996 publication of Wallace’s groundbreaking epic novel, Infinite Jest. As the days go on, a tenuous yet intense relationship seems to develop between journalist and subject. The two men bob and weave around each other, sharing laughs and also possibly revealing hidden frailties – but it’s never clear how truthful they are being with each other. Ironically, the interview was never published, and five days of audio tapes were packed away in Lipsky’s closet. The two men did not meet again. The film is based on Lipsky’s critically acclaimed memoir about this unforgettable encounter, Although Of Course You End Up Becoming Yourself: A Road Trip with David Foster Wallace, written following Wallace’s 2008 suicide. Both Segel and Eisenberg reveal great depths of emotion in their performances and the film is directed with humor and tenderness by Sundance vet James Ponsoldt from Pulitzer-Prize winner Donald Margulies’ insightful and heartbreaking screenplay.
The End of the Tour enters limited release on July 31.