The 88th Best American Film Ever Made

Yesterday I attended a screening of the film Easy Rider. Peter Fonda, the star, producer and co-writer of the film was there.

Going to this screening, I could not help but wonder if Easy Rider has stood the test of time. After all, it is ranked by the American Film Institute as 88th in its list of the greatest American movies ever made. But Easy Rider debuted in 1969, over 40 years ago. To say that times have changed would be a gross understatement. And so, in the end, the short answer is “no.” Easy Rider is a good but not great film.

As everybody knows, Peter Fonda and Dennis Hopper are the anti-heroes in Easy Rider. They play two young drug-dealing potheads who have made a big score. Now they are making a cross-country excursion from California to Florida where they intend to retire. Along the way they meet a variety of characters, some interesting, some not and some simply strange.

But the music is very good and the cinematography is actually outstanding. Particularly compelling are the scenes of Fonda and Hopper driving their choppers on two-lane blacktop often oblivious to the majestic beauty of America, which serves as a spectacular backdrop to their journey.

On the way they meet a farmer with a large family. They make some small talk over dinner about a man doing his own thing in his own time. Next they visit a commune, but it is the kind of place where I wouldn't last for even an hour. They are given a tablet of LSD to quarter and to use at the right time with the right people.

Next they crash a parade and wind up getting arrested. Apparently the cops don't discover the tablet of acid or the money that has been hidden in the tank of Fonda's motorcycle. But it is at this point that a young Jack Nicholson appears and a very mediocre film is suddenly elevated to something meaningful. Later, Nicholson gives a remarkable speech about how many Americans embrace the word but not the concept of freedom. This is actually the best part of the film. Unfortunately Nicholson's time in the movie is much too short.

Thereafter Fonda and Hopper arrive in New Orleans for Mardi Gras, and visit a brothel that Nicholson had told them about. While there, Fonda receives a premonition about his death.

Next Fonda and Hopper head to a cemetery with two prostitutes where they all drop acid and experience a bad trip. In my opinion, the bad trip is unnecessary and takes much too long. If it happened earlier in the film, you would go out to buy more popcorn.

Fonda and Hopper then resume their pilgrimage towards Florida. But before reaching their destination, Fonda announces to Hopper at a campfire, "We blew it." Hopper seems to wonder what Fonda is talking about, and frankly, so did I. Perhaps Fonda was suggesting that there are more important things in life than money and that one shouldn't sell drugs to get rich. Or perhaps this statement was supposed to suggest that these bikers represented a corrupt corporate culture in which money, however obtained, reigns supreme no matter the human casualties. Or maybe it simply means that Fonda and Hopper should have stayed at the commune.

But for me, the poignant part of the evening was the presence of Peter Fonda himself. A table was set up for him in the lobby of the theater. He sat there, indoors at night, wearing aviator sunglasses. Signs indicated that anyone wanting to meet Peter would have to (a) buy a ticket to the screening and (b) purchase a photograph from another table (for $20.00), which Peter would then autograph. For another $20.00 you could get a picture taken with Peter while standing behind a motorcycle.

Many of the autograph seekers appeared to be in their 60's and were dressed in motorcycle regalia. Some came with Easy Rider DVD's for Peter to autograph and one man actually had a miniature model of the motorcycle that Peter rode in the film. One sensed that if Easy Rider ran at midnight every weekend like The Rocky Horror Picture Show, many of these folks would be in attendance.

Prior to the film starting, it was announced that Peter was not feeling well. And so he would address the crowd after the film rather than before. He did so for a few minutes.

By the time we left the theater, Peter was back in the lobby signing autographs. And I remembered that he had once been nominated for an academy award for his performance in Ulee's Gold, an outstanding film.

Unfortunately there will not be any special screenings for that.