Review of Easy Rider (1969) by Harry W — 31 Mar 2013

Easy Rider is consistently slow and is dated, but it's look at 1960's counterculture is exquisite.

As a low-budget road movie, Easy Rider is a largely strong story of the hippie uprising and their futility against america and human corruption. It really captures the feel of the Vietnam War time and is brutal in many areas, most notably the ending.

Easy Rider gains strength from Dennis Hopper's direction and the distinct style of the drug induced scene that leaves the audiences mesmerised. But the thing that's so memorable about Easy Rider is the series of extended shots of Peter Fonda and Dennis Hopper riding their choppers through the American south as the cinematography follows them, which really makes the whole idea of riding across America look awesome, and I had left the film wanting to apply for a motorbike license.

Dennis Hopper and Peter Fonda make good leads, embodying the 1960's hippie uprising very well and a sufficient screenplay is provided to ensure the strength of their characters.

Jack Nicholson gives the standout performance as the American Civil Liberties Union lawyer who's lost faith in the system, and his youth and southern accent are his main talents here.

But Easy Rider is just so strong because of it's brutal depiction of a once great country and how it has affected people who wanna fight for freedom without being forced into Vietnam to do so. The ending of Easy Rider is unforgettable, and is just massively shocking.

Easy Rider is difficult to understand if you're from my generation, but having watched Easy Rider at a point where I was studying the 1960's for literature, Easy Rider became a lot more apparent to me and I enjoyed it more as a study of the culture than as a film which was an interesting experience. Plus, now I wanna get a motorbike.