Customer Reviews

One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest

5 star:		(290)
4 star:		(37)
3 star:		(17)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

Milos Forman has always had a knack for assembling great ensemble casts. This is particularly true in his most critically acclaimed releases (Taking Off, Amadeus and this film). It would be difficult indeed to come up with actors and actresses who were better suited to fill the roles in OFOTCN. This is true in terms of both the stars, Jack Nicholson and Louise Fletcher, and the secondary characters. Who could have been a better Harding than William Redfield? A better Billy Bibbit than Brad Dourif? A better Cheswick than Sydney Lassick? And most especially, a better Chief Bromden than Will Sampson?

I rank this movie as the best of the best of what I consider to be American Cinema's golden decade, the 70s. It certainly won the widest acclaim, with its sweep of the major Oscars for 1975 (Nicholson also won best actor from the New York Film Critics voters that year).

Not to be overlooked is the fantastic job performed by the film's adaptors, Bo Goldman and Lawrence Hauben, who also won Oscars for their screenplay. True, they did have a fairly decent stage version (by Dale Wasserman) to work with. I remember seeing an excellent production of the play, with a terrific cast, in San Francisco circa 1972. Just as an aside, I read in the Norton Critical edition of the novel, a review of a NY production of the play by Walter Kerr that was an absolute pan. Suffice it to say that the movie is much different than either the novel or the play. Those familiar with Kesey's great novel understand how difficult a transfer from page to screen would be; about a third of the story is Bromden's delusional interior monologue. The final script, quite rightly, focuses almost exclusively on Randal P McMurphy's struggle with Nurse Ratched for the hearts and minds of the inmates.

This is truly a gut and soul-wrenching movie, with many moments of high maniacal comedy interspersed. Though many of his other films are top-notch, this is Forman's masterpiece. If you haven't read the book, read it. It you don't own this movie, buy it. There are few works in the history of American literature and film that are superior.

One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975)

The film One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest is adapted from a novel of the same name written by Ken Kesey. The movie carries with it symbolism through color, sounds, and images and the casting could not have been more proper. Jack Nicholson is cast in the lead role as Randle Patrick McMurphy, a ne'er-do-well who goes into a mental institution to finish off his jail sentence. He figures it will be more slack than the work farm. His nemesis is Nurse Ratched, cast and played extraordinarily by Louise Fletcher. The movie does well in incorporating feelings and colors that surround the viewer with the mental institution's atmosphere. And the sounds and images put forth by director Milos Forman add to that ambiance. One of the film's biggest successes lies in the cinematography (or lack thereof). Virtually all the scenes, even when the inmates go outside, are bleak and dreary. The lighting in the institution is the fluorescent, white-out type of lighting. Every slippery hospital surface is revealed and the viewer can almost smell the hospital cleaning fluids emanating from the screen. The hospital has no bright happy colors, either. It is filmed in the dim blues and greys of the ward that resemble the patients' despair. The patients are dressed in dim grey as well and the nurse, as always, wears stark white. The nurse's appearance also holds symbolism in it. Her uniform is always perfectly pressed. And her hat is always on straight. She represents order and authority, and her uniform is one symbolic affect of that order. It totally contrasts the patient's mien - always disheveled, wearing demeaning hospital robes. The director uses wonderfully disenchanting sounds to relate to the audience the pain and helplessness of the patients. One patient is constantly remarking how tired he is and other characters are constantly stuttering and "acting weird." Random yells echo throughout the halls. The echo allows for the hospital's feeling of emptiness and loneliness and gives it a cavernous feel. Its halls are never ending and escape from this institution is futile. The echoes bounce off every surface, trapping each patient in their own madness. The use of hospital noises and colors add to the realistic scenery of the film. It is masterfully done, and each audience member is forced to go through the pain and despair of the patients. The subject matter has always been one I like. The ragamuffin character comes in and saves all the horribly despondent people from pure emotional distress. As if those patients didn't have it bad enough, they are constantly being controlled by the Big Nurse. She represents order, authority - the Establishment. And these poor souls are putting their lives in her hands, only for her to take advantage of them. Milos Forman puts this story in perfect visual form, not using too many film techniques to take away from the story at hand. Colors, images, and sounds carried from the novel to the screen are constant and well-done. The feeling one gets from the movie is delicously horrible, as most asylums surely are. A phenomenal story by Kesey and direction by Forman, and an uncanny portrayal of McMurphy by Nicholson, allow the story to live on in visual form.

It has taken me nearly 30 years to get round to watching this film, and I genuinely think I appreciate it more for being that much older. It has had accolades for everything -- plot, direction, filming, casting, acting. It deserves them all. It is nothing short of compulsive. The bad guy who has not lost his soul (much less his spirit) is pitted against the embodiment of sanctimonious righteousness who never had a soul to lose.

I wonder whether Nicholson has even yet had full recognition for the truly great actor he is (how many people have even seen The King of Marvin Gardens, for instance?) His screen presence is enormous, magnetic and menacing. He combines outsize testosteronic individuality with the ability to get inside a character, and an electric sense of threat with a real power to tug at the heart-strings. Bad he may be, but unsympathetic never. He is a very big little guy, but he is still the little guy against the system. It must be impossible, surely, to upstage that?

Incredibly, no. The ultimate star in a film that has no shortage of up-and-coming luminaries as well as Nicholson (D de Vito for one) is Louise Fletcher as Nurse Ratched. I am never going to forget that mask-like expressionless face and that ever-rational, implacable, ever-modulated voice mouthing those soulless, uncomprehending, the-system-is-right banalities. Above all, I am never going to forget that hair. Among the many touches of genius in this production, that hairstyle is the ultimate. I simply could not take my eyes off it. The name is effective too, and I shall continue to believe until someone proves me wrong that it was an inspired borrowing from Jane Eyre -- the dreadful and sadistic Miss Skatcherd brought up to date and given a 20th-century twist.

This film is never going to become dated as long as these polarities continue to repel each other. I saw it at all only because my son showed it to me. It is relevant to my generation, it is relevant to his, and I can't foresee when it is not going to be relevant.

5 stars for the film, 1 star for the DVD:

There are a lot of reviews that discuss the movie itself, so I will keep this one short and talk about the DVD.

The DVD is a bit of a disappointment. The film itself is very dirty; it looks like the transfer was done from a copy of the film that's been shown a few hundred times in a theater. It's hard to believe that the master itself has deriorated this much.

There are no interesting extras on this DVD. No deleted scenes, no commentaries, no behind the scenes footage. Just some text screens talking about awards the film received, etc.

The are no audio options. You're just stuck with standard sterio. And the menu is bland and static. Basically, you are getting the movie, as you would have experienced it in a theater nearly three decades ago, and nothing else.

I love this film however, especially the ending, so I still recommend buying it if you are a Jack Nicholson fan. Just don't expect the DVD to actually take advantage of the medium.

If I had to pick any three DVDs to take with me to a desert island, "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" would for sure top the list. It is an electrifying and compelling story of one man against the system, and unlike a lot of other 70's dramas, never seems dated.

Since most people interested have already seen the movie, it would be pointless for me to give a synopsis. But what cannot be over emphasized is the strong performances from both Jack Nicholson in the lead role as a petty crook commited to a mental institution, and Louise Fletcher as the cold and blunt nurse. Much of the movie centers around the duality between them, and it makes for some great dialogue. Nicely rounding out the cast is a young Danny DeVito and Christopher Lloyd, obviously in the springtime of their careers.

I held off from getting this movie on DVD because the earlier version was bare-bones and was a mediocre transfer. This newly released 2 DVD set is a fantastic buy, with a whole new video and sound transfer that makes you forget that 25 years have passed since it was made. This is by far the best print ever released. The extras also add good measure, such as the documentary (which is a shorter version of the one found on the laserdisc edition) and full-length commentary from the Director and Producers. While the extras aren't exactly overflowing in this edition, they are worth the price of admission.

"One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" remains one of the most entertaining and important films ever made, and like other classics such as "Citizen Kane" and "The Godfather", will stand the test of time. It is funny, moving, and tough-provoking, which is a rareity in modern cinema. This new DVD edition is what movie buffs have been waiting for, and is so far the only thing coming close to a definative version.

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One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest is not your ordinary movie. But it is one of the finest films ever made. Jack Nicholson stars as R.P. Macmurphy, a former prisoner, has been sent to a mental hospital for evaluation. He has been charged with brutality and rape, making the doctors believe there may be signs of mental illness. What ensues is an incredible movie about one man's struggle to survive in a mental hospital and the effect he has upon the other patients. Jack Nicholson won his first lead actor Oscar for his performance in Cuckoo's nest. He is simply unbelievable. He was very due for an oscar. This was his 4th nomination. Fellow nominee Walter Matthau, upon hearing Nicholson's name announced, was said to have leaned over to his wife and said "It's about time." Louise Fletcher won an Oscar for best actress in her unforgettable turn as Nurse Ratched, the stern facilitator of the mental ward. There are many patients and people who would soon become big stars, such as Danny Devito, Christopher Lloyd, Louis Gossett Jr., and an amazing performance by Sydney Lassick. The real deal is Milos Forman, the winner for best director, and the man behind such films as Amadeus(His 2nd Oscar for Direction), The People V. Larry Flynt, and Man on the Moon. He even used real mental ward patients to add realism to the film. This film was produced by a young Michael Douglas, earning him his first Oscar. Gripping, funny, terrifying, and ultimately fulfilling, Cuckoo's nest is one of the best movies ever made.

The performances by the actors and actresses in this movie are really good. The actors actually stayed inside an institute that was still in use at the time, so they spent time with actual patients. The story behind this film is interesting, and the meaning behind it isn't hard to see.

The second disc with special features ACTUALLY HAS special features! There are so many dvd sets that really don't offer anything remotely interesting with the movie. Well, this dvd is certainly an exception. The Making Of is very interesting with interviews with Milos Forman, Michael Douglas, and many of the actors and actresses involved with the movie. It was a bit disappointing that they never talk to Jack Nicholson, but regardless of that.. the Making Of is really an interesting documentary. Paying a little extra to get this extra disc is definitely worth it.

I've had some bad experiences in the past with blu-ray discs and older movies. Most of the time they are just scamming people out of a couple bucks by putting it in a blu-ray box.

This isn't one of those movies, the picture quality and sound quality are above and beyond the original. Definitely a great addition to my blu-ray collection.

Ken Kesey's brilliant novel is perfectly adapted to the screen and expertly directed by Milos Forman. Within these friendly confines Jack Nicholson gave the performance by which I measure all his others. Randall Patrick McMurphy is a rebel. He's anti-establishment. He likes women and to have a drink and to watch baseball. In some ways he represents the absolute worst of men, yet at the same time he also represents much of the best in men, and at ALL times he is definitely a "man's man".

He has been sent to prison for statutory rape, but he's not particularly remorseful about it because the girl looked and acted older and wanted it. We should be appalled by McMurphy's attitude, yet Nicholson plays him pretty much the way Kesey wrote him, and we sympathize with him.

McMurphy has earned a trip to the state mental hospital by acting "a little nuts" and you recognize by watching that McMurphy is the kind of guy who would not hesitate to "act a little nuts" to get off of the hard manual labor of a state pen chain-gang. But at this mental hospital McMurphy runs up against his worst nightmare: Louise Fletcher's Nurse Ratched.

Louise Fletcher earned her best actress Oscar in one of the most methodically unsympathetic roles in silver screen history. Nurse Ratched pretends to have the best interests of the patients in mind, yet she is obviously subtly manipulating not only the patients, but also the remainder of the hospital staff to maintain an iron rod of control over her little corner of the universe. Crossing Nurse Ratched is a certain path to disaster for those who are in her sphere.

McMurphy and Ratched cross swords over and over. It could have become boring or depressing, but we are entertained repeatedly by McMurphy's ingenious or bravura attempts to one-up Nurse Ratched. Yet SHE is the one who has the power in this universe, and I could only marvel at her as she cold-heartedly crushes the life from McMurphy and the other patients.

If ever Academy Awards were given out for "Best Supporting Cast", this one would have taken that one as well.
A film for the ages.

This movie is so superbly done, it is difficult to write down mere words to describe it. A patient,(Nicholson)enters a mental hospital (he's really not mentally ill); he wants to get out of work detail. Nicholson, being a bit of a loser and a con-artist, becomes a gift on the mental ward. One could say, he is the best therapist most of the patients have ever had--organizing basketball games, fishing expeditions,getting card games going, and even bringing women into the hospital!

Enter in----Nurse Ratchett (Louise Fletcher). Oh My! And she plays her to perfection---soft spoken as an angel, a sweet, sugary grin, and completely devoted to the nursing proffesion.....but inside that shell, Nurse Ratchett has no soul or empathy or feeling. She knows every patients' weakness and she uses that power to keep each one physically and emotionally bound around her clawed, devilish fingers.

Another crucial character, Chief, symbolizes freedom and independence. In the midst of so much oppression and dysfunction on the ward, Chief was created as a symbol of hope.

"One Flew Over the Cukoos Nest" is unbelievably layered, lovely, lushious, and lacking in nothing. It is pshycologically ahead of it's time---suggesting that dwelling on the problems of the past is not constructive, but living in the present moment is.

They just don't make films like this one anymore--films that make us think deeply---then go to bed hungry for more of everything all over again!

No amount of stars can measure the depth and substance of this classic!