My Own Private Idaho (15)

American indie god Gus Van Sant's most iconic moment was this giddily rich revisionist road movie-cum-western, which unfolds like Midnight Cowboy in an early '90s "new queer cinema" style. River Phoenix plays a narcoleptic hustler, superbly; Keanu Reeves is the hunky hustler he pines for. The rest mixes Shakespearean wordplay with dazzling neon decor and documentary grit, which should normally be a mess. Miraculously, Van Sant and co focus it with art and a lot of heart.

DVD Extras:

Frustrating. Sure, the Making Of boasts an insightful commentary from production staff, while another fascinating feature has an academic probing Idaho's references. The downside is disc two's "conversations". Rain Phoenix's video eulogy of her bro River is fine, but the unfocused audio gushing between Van Sant and Todd Haynes should've been a gab-track and the natter between writer JT LeRoy and Jonathan Tarnation Cauoette rambles. Plentiful, but not as well-realised as the film.

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