9) Easy Rider

Easy Rider (1969)

Director: Dennis Hopper

Starring: Peter Fonda, Dennis Hopper, Jack Nicholson


Kate decided that she’d like to watch Easy Rider, to see what all the fuss was about, so I thought I’d sit down and rewatch it with her.

After smuggling cocaine into LA from Mexico, Wyatt (nicknamed ‘Captain America’) and Billy ride their motorcycles from California to New Orleans so as to celebrate their new found fortune at Mardi Gras.

The completely left-field success of this film (it grossed $US19 million after being shot for a budget of less than half a million dollars) shook Hollywood. Easy Rider’s success was attributed to the fact that it spoke to Americas counter-cultural youth, a demographic previously ignored by Hollywood. The film’s tagline, “A man went looking for America and couldn’t find it anywhere...” echoed the sentiment of a youth disillusioned with their government and the establishment. The executives in charge of the major studios didn’t really understand the film’s success but wanted to replicate it, so started employing young filmmakers and giving them previously unheard of levels of creative freedom to make low-budget films targeting the youth audience. It was this youth policy that opened the doors for the next generation of filmmakers to enter Hollywood. Among the filmmakers to get their start in the aftermath of Easy Rider were Francis Ford Coppola, George Lucas, Martin Scorsese and Brian De Palma.

Also worth noting is that it was Easy Rider which really made a star of Jack Nicholson. His role, George Hanson, is not a huge part, but he’s the most likable character in the film and Nicholson really makes him jump off the screen. In his time on screen Nicholson demonstrates a star power and screen presence which Peter Fonda and Dennis Hopper don’t possess.

Easy Rider is a really key film in terms of the period of film history that I am looking at for my thesis, but I must confess that I don’t particularly like it. I can appreciate why it was so significant at the time and I can appreciate why it was so influential, but I just don’t think it’s a brilliant film. It isn’t seeking to be a narrative film as such, rather a drug fuelled exploration of the American psyche, but the pacing of events is a bit inconsistent with some scenes seeming to take an eternity and others flying by. It’s not a particularly well shot film and the editing is quite jarring (if anyone can explain to me the logic behind the flashing/blinking cuts between scenes it would be much appreciated). It spoke to a particular generation at a particular time, and if you have an understanding of that context you will find it an interesting film to watch. If you don’t have an understanding of that context, you really won’t see what all the fuss is about.