Rating of
3.5/4
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest review
Daniel Corleone - wrote on 09/13/11
The year 1963 in Oregon, Randle Patrick McMurphy (Jack Nicholson) was transferred to a mental institution because of having fights, statutory rape and laziness. The cold blooded Nurse Mildred Ratched (Louise Fletcher) heads the institution that performs daily therapy sessions and medications for the patients. McMurphy befriends Charlie Cheswick (Sydney Lassick), a man who has childlike qualities in terms of needing security and temper; Martini (Danny DeVito), who is delusional; Dale Harding (William Redfield), an intellect who overanalyzes too much and thinks his wife is cheating on him; Taber (Christopher Lloyd), a cantankerous and profane individual who enjoys picking on Harding; Billy Bibbit (Brad Dourif) who stutters and has fears about letting his mother down, and "Chief" Bromden (Will Sampson) who people believe is dumb and deaf.
One of the best cast on film during its inception in 1975. The only qualms I had were the minute details such as the film’s score,the name of the institution, the character background of Maritni, Taber and Chief. The screenplay and dialogue were effective since it brought out the color of the characters. Its humor and drama was mixed well and cinematography in the outdoor scenes was gorgeous. The themes of suspicion, nurture, friendship, camaraderie, peer pressure, expectations and hope were evident based on the each individual’s case. Nurse Ratched is a prime symbol for pressure, cruelty and acting on what she thinks is best with detrimental results. In the words of RP McMurphy – “Jesus, I must be crazy to be in a loony-bin like this.” We tend to likewise be one of the few who flew over the cuckoo’s nest. The movie as a whole was entertaining, sad, funny and thought-provoking. One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest has landed one of the best male talents onscreen and delivers its provocative message clearly.
