Disappointment for a huge fan!

A brilliant film that helped define a genre

The movie turns out to be a little better than the average. Starting from a romantic formula often seen in the cinema, it ends in the most predictable (and somewhat bland) way.

One of the most extraordinary films you will see this year. Take that as you want.

This famous 1960's cult movie made by some drug loving hippies at the height of their movement has somehow managed to stay baffling, entertaining, and surprisingly relevant in modern day America despite it containing various elements that are (quite obviously) outdated. "Easy Rider" is not only a historical artifact, it is an important and breathtaking work of cinema that is artistic, comic, tragic, and witty all at once.In recent years, "Rider" has faced its fair share of backlash from modern audiences and with good reason; despite my comments about its surprising relevancy, "Easy Rider" still very much is a product of its time...like, really, if this film were made today it could be considered some sort of subtle parody of the hippie movement because of how it is able to incorporate almost all of the hippie stereotypes into a 95 minute runtime and essentially verifying them. Many other complaints about the film deal with everything from it seemingly being pro-drug use to its bland characters, plot less approach, and overall loose, awkward structure and pacing. One could argue all of these points and be quite valid, but I have no choice but to disagree fiercely on all of these accounts (except maybe the pro drug one, but I'm the type of guy that has listed "The Birth of a Nation" among his favorite films of all time so evil intentions behind the screen do not remotely affect my opinion on a film a vast majority of the time). As a mater of fact, I believe that, despite its loose plot, this is one of the most well structured and paced films ever made. The way the episodic tale is told is brilliant in both its simplicity and overall engaging approach. Various characters are met and parted, fascinating discussions are had, amazing music is blasted, and tragedy almost always seems to strike. The characters are also pretty great, and, having rewatched this film a few times now, I find myself appreciating them more and more. Peter Fonda's character Wyatt works well as the lead, he is the sensible and sensitive partner of Dennis Hopper's unforgettably quirky and somewhat crazy (of course I use this term with lightheartedness) character Billy, and Jack Nicholson's George Hanson has become something of a legend. His performance is not only hilarious but essential in terms of the film's stability among the greatest of all time. Without Nicholson's character and performance, the movie would still be excellent but much less memorable, iconic, and...good! The weird, wonderful, and wacky George Hanson is the reason that this movie has received a 10/10 overall rating from me rather than a 9, he adds a whole new layer of comedy to the film, which helps increase the entertainment value as well as the weight of later, more tragic sequences (such as the *sniffle* ending) . He also spews much of the movie's finest lines, from the funniest quotes ( "Neh! Neh! Neh! Fuh! Fuh! Fuh! Indians."; at least, that's how the Quotes page on IMDb spells it!) to the most deep (I hate that word, but it applies here, no question about it) and brilliant ones ("I mean, it's real hard to be free when you are bought and sold in the marketplace. Of course, don't ever tell anybody that they're not free, 'cause then they're gonna get real busy killin' and maimin' to prove to you that they are. Oh, yeah, they're gonna talk to you, and talk to you, and talk to you about individual freedom. But they see a free individual, it's gonna scare 'em."). Of course, this film is FULL of amazing dialogue from everyone involved. The diner sequence is made both funny and intense due to the witticisms and insults thrown around, any sequence taking place around a fire at night is bound to have something quotable (everything from quotes like "I'm from the city... Doesn't matter what city; all cities are alike." to others such as "You're stoned out of your mind, man." (which is a line that pretty much applies to everyone involved in making this movie, not at all excluding those behind the camera)), and so on and so on. Even the various words that fly around and intersect throughout the famously trippy LSD sequence create something of a bizarre poetry. The LSD scene within itself is among the greatest and most surreal American movie moments of all time. I don't know whether it makes me want to do or avoid drugs, but what I do know is that it makes them seem like an...interesting experience. The camera angle and music and off screen dialogue create a collage of imagery and words that is disturbing, weird, and flat out AMAZING all at once. If that one segment were a standalone short film, I would probably give it the highest rating possible, it's just that good. Of course, practically EVERY scene in this movie is good! From the opening credits to the ending credits, everything is made unique and watchable all thanks to the incredible amount of effort and talent used by all of those involved. This radical and rebellious road trip across 1969 America is one of those films a movie buff cannot afford to miss, even if they'd probably hate it, it is something of essential viewing (not only is it a part of U.S. counterculture history, but it is also one of the films responsible for the great American New Wave movement that would continue throughout the seventies and early eighties). Personally, I find this movie to be absolutely astonishing and near perfect on every single level possible. It provokes thought, laughter, tears, and feeling, it is, simply, a miraculous masterpiece and, despite its outdated elements, it is ultimately one of those movies that, for me at least, never gets old.

Expectations are high when watching a much acclaimed cult movie for the first time, maybe too high for an immediate love affair but it does not take very long to sense the special atmosphere of this artwork.At first sight, it is the mixture of a fabulous soundtrack together with the beautiful landscapes of a road movie and the coolness of the two protagonists, which stand out, although in my eyes, it seems to be quite a risky thing to have two drug dealers as the popular figures of the movie. Is it possible to identify with their search for freedom if this freedom is bought at the cost of harming others? Or is this meant to be already the first indication that the trip will have no good ending! Then there is the moral aspect of the movie, which is perfectly analyzed by the great side character given by Jack Nicholson: People are afraid of too much freedom and it makes them dangerous towards its representatives. How dangerous becomes clear already in the very same night that these words are spoken out and at the uncompromising end of the movie. The performance of Jack NickNick Nicholson is really striking and it appears to be only logical that this was the starting point of a great career.The film is also special because of some unusual shots, like the drug-selling scene just underneath the flight path to LA airport or the drug money hiding in the tank scene. I also appreciate the quick and bewildering cuts of the New Orleans LSD trip. I could imagine that this is a good cinematic approach to a real LSD experience (though probably not) and builds a nice contrast to the otherwise slow pace of the movie, which in some comments is even described as having no plot at all. This may be a bit exaggerated but it is true that the movie is mostly a sequence of little connected encounters along Fonda's and Hopper's road trip from LA to Mardi Gras, including the rather elaborate portrait of a hippie commune in the middle of nowhere. This may be also a reason for not falling in love with the movie immediately but in the end, it is the sum of all these occurrences, which result in a well-balanced overall picture of the portrayed society in its time.

Having made a decent amount of money on a drug deal two Californian friends, Wyatt and Billy, take their motorbikes and set off from Los Angeles and head for New Orleans to attend Mardi Gras. Along the way they meet a group of hippies in a commune in the South West where they are struggling to grow crops in the arid soil, an alcoholic young lawyer in a town jail, threatening southern rednecks and a pair of prostitutes in a New Orleans bordello.This classic film is almost fifty years old now but still feels surprisingly fresh. There isn't really much in the way of a story; it is all about the journey and the contrasting people that our protagonists meet. Peter Fonda and Dennis Hopper do a fine job as Wyatt and Billy; characters who spend much of their time getting stoned. Jack Nicholson also impresses as lawyer George Hanson a man who in introduced to American counterculture when he meets Wyatt and Billy. The film certainly isn't bogged down with excessive dialogue; in deed quite a lot of the film is dialogue free as the protagonists ride through some spectacular scenery. This scenery, and some of the characters they meet, contrast with the bigotry and brutality of some of the people they encounter. This brutality isn't bloody or prolonged but it is shocking in its suddenness and the pointlessness of it. The soundtrack is also great and fits in perfectly with the story being told. There is of course a lot of drug use; which is almost certainly the main reason for its UK '18' certificate; without this it would probably be a '15'… but it would also have been a very different film. Overall I'd certainly recommend this to any fans of classic films or those fascinated by '60s culture in America.

Saw this in passing in its day and fobbed it off as the product of those with too much time and money to idle away. A bunch of movie nutters who just wanted to do drugs and play at making movies. This lot really had very little to say and seemed to care even less. From their previous movie work experiences they were armed with the knowledge that film making of the day had been given over to those who could make money from shoddy ultra cheap product. Many of these movie styles were carried over from TV. Producers simply transferred the quick writing and production techniques to Cinema. IE: 'Beach Blanket Bingo' ~ Beach Party ~ Beach...etc,etc, ~ 'Sergeant Deadhead' ~ 'Hells Angels on Wheels' ~ The Wild Angels ~ the list is endless.So, how do they go about making a movie like this? simple: get a few like minded pals, give em endless booze 'n drugs then set off without a script - make up some sort of story... anything that rebellious youth and bikers will pay money for. It just can't loose. Then troublesome producer/so-called "writer", the drug-fueled Dennis Hopper, decides he wants to turn it into the '2001' type epic of biker movies. He starts editing the footage to run for over four (4) whopping Hrs!. To get him out of the way the motley crew send him off on a paid 'holiday'. Enter a new writer and editor in an attempt add some sort of form to the endless waffling footage. Next they create a few new scenes in an attempt to tie it together - then pad it out with LOTS of hit parade tunes of the day and 'presto' anyone can have a modern classic!.What's it all about? why of course, a couple of nice young American blokes who just happen to lack drive but want to be very rich. How do you achieve that? DRUGS man! gather them cheaply from all the low lifers - sell it at quadruple the cost to the crims - who sell on to the kids - who end up rotting away but hey, that's not any fault of ours, well, is it?. But still there's something missing - what about adding some women? - easy, head off to the local Mardi Gras, add a graveyard sex scene with drugs 'n booze filmed as cheap and scungy as it can get. It looks most likely to be around-about these scenes the second unit starts working - shooting on hand held 16mm and using what looks like out of date super grainy film stock. Now add more of that corny 'flash frame' editing (belonging to the pop clip genre) and it's lookin' good, or is it?. What's missing now? - every movie must have some real mean villains - so create some red neck Southerners, write them up as super bad guys that kill off our 'nice' young blokes. Hell man, every teen 'n biker will be in tears with this. Too easy! Columbia Pictures went along for the ride and made a killing. They all got rich by spending relatively nothing. So what would you expect the Motion Picture Academy to do next? of course, heap on the awards - this is good for the wealth of the industry. Sure was, spurned a schlock of copycat follow-on's. The bored drug fueled public willingly gave up what was left of their 'hit' money for a ticket to ride. On the strength of this, Hopper would next be given an open budget to make the aptly named: "The Last Movie" it's this movie that would go on to show them up for the no-talents they really were. Easy Rider may just not have been as 'timely' as it's often lauded, it simply went to prove if you dumb down society enough they will buy anything. At least Monument Valley sure offers a good location and those machines make for 'nice' bikes. Peter Fonda and Laszlo Kovacs (the main unit cinematographer) went on to better things as they matured.Why does it take so long for us to learn to be discerning?. If the US National Film Registry can find anything 'cultural' in this mess, then have to agree with the US Vice President of the day Spiro Agnew, who called it for what is was...exceedingly unhealthy. Not so much a sign from the times but a sign of the times. Forgettable. Instead, you just might be better off watching a re-run of another classic about survival and freedom 'The Life of Pie'....Yeah man!