Review of One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975) by Victor T — 02 Feb 2015

By 2015, only three films have earned the "Big Five" Academy Awards (Best Picture, Director, Actor, Actress and Screenplay): the 1914 romantic comedy "It Happened One Night", the 1991 thriller "The Silence of the Lambs" and, my favorite, the 1975 drama "One Flew Over the Cuckoo´s Nest".

Randall Patrick McMurphy is criminal who served a short sentence on a rural prison, eventually he pretends to be mentally ill in order to be transfer to a more comfortable environment. Everything seem to be going as he planed but once he arrives to the mental institution until he meets the unyielding Head Nurse Ratched, who makes Randall change his objective to liberating all the inmates from his tyranny.

The 70´s was a decade that provide numerous classics but still "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" is widely consider to be one of the best films of said decade and trust me when I say it's not for nothing. Milos Forman created a film that literally has everything: Incredible acting by all the cast (I mean, it's no easy task to portray a mentally ill character but the actors that were given this cast fulfill it perfectly) with the best being Nicholson delivering his best performance to date as a free spirited, likeable, memorable and charismatic man, and Fletcher creating an unforgettable villainess; the supporting characters are loveable and memorable (my favorite being Christopher Lloyd), gorgeous cinematography that perfectly captures the isolated feel of being inside the mental institution, a beautiful score that enhance the narrative, Forman´s directing is precise and perfectionist, it has a perfect pacing, perfect doses of lighthearted and actually funny comedy, a well written screen play that adapts perfectly the source material, intriguing character relationships, especially the "chemistry" between McMurphy and Ratched; well handled themes that everyone can connect to, it transitions from a loveable drama to suspense vibe in a natural way, it manages to touch your heartstrings with using cheap tricks, and finally, but not less important, it has one of the most beautiful, simple and memorable stories I´ve seen on the silver screen that will make you feel a variety of emotions (sadness, depression, happiness, inspired and cheerful) that culminate on a perfectly executed bittersweet ending.

"One Flew Over the Cuckoo´s Nest" is one of those films that are close to perfection, it deserves all the acclaim it has received since its release, I mean, not every film can stand the test of time and still have the same power it had on its release. One of my all time favorite films (quoting Chief, this film makes me "feel big as a damn mountain") and a must see for any lover of the seventh art.