Jack Can Act!
Added 2/21/2010
Is Bobby Eroica Dupea a complicated person with a bunch of issues? Yes, is he one of the most important characters in American films? I do not think so, but Jack Nicholson's performance IS one of the best in American film.
Bobby can boil over and explode at any minute (and does a few times). He has many issues, he: does not treat his girlfriend well; likes to have some drinks and the fun associated with that; and does not have a good relationship with his father.
Most of the characters in this film are eccentric and I found some of their interactions forced. Meeting Palm and Terry on the road did not add much except too much talk of filth and the infamous "chicken salad" scene in the restaurant. Jack's brooding, transcendent performance overcomes all of this.
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Introspective, moody
Added 2/14/2010
Here's your chance to see Jack have a sentimental moment.. well, almost. "He's the moodiest guy I've ever gone out with," says his unappreciated, attractive yet ditzy girlfriend. It's a movie of the times, 1970, and reads like a 'dark side' theme narrative of the end of the 60s, dawn of the 70s. It's not a superfast movie, though does slowly generate interest. The filmography is beautiful, richly colorful, with the occasional understated symbolic shots (windshield wiper wiping away rain) and incredible views which range from oil fields in South Cal to beautiful northern pine country in Canada. They don't make movies like this anymore. There's not much of a soundtrack outside of a few country numbers. Silence speaks louder than words. Camut couldn't have done it better. You're in the presence of art with this movie, albeit art that leaves a bitter taste and which you could write off as BS in the final analysis, which I partly do, but you gotta hand it to the film-maker and the times for letting something as oddball and irreverent as this to get out. Since I've been watching "All in the Family" lately, I noticed a younger 'Gloria' (Sally Struthers, aka 'Little Goil') also has a small part in here (hot stuff). Come to think of it, there are a lot of hot chicks in this movie. No wonder Robert Dupea (Nicholson) doesn't want to settle down. His general aimlessness though could perhaps be larger than his inability to settle for one girl. It's arguable.
For fans of the nihilistic, I also recommend "Dirty Mary, Crazy Larry" (1974) which weilds a similar kind of existentialism but with a lot more octane.
1 out of 2 people found this helpful.
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Father Knows Best
Added 2/9/2010
This 1970 film is one of discovery. It concerns one personality and his view of the world. Right from the beginning you are mislead as to the true nature of the character and indeed it represents a lot of people who don't rise to meet expectations either from family or the world. Robert Dupea is intelligent, but the introduction leads us to think he is a poor oil rig wanderer, living the trailer trash lifestyle and seeking entertainment values equivilant to people who, not having much hope, live paycheck to paycheck.
Because Dupea is intelligent, frustrations mount dealing day to day with people he seems to be tolerating for unknown reasons. His girlfriend, played very well by Karen Black is extremely sexy but is an "airhead", emotionally dependent and prone to be embarassing in public situations with idiotic comments that make Dupea mad and violent.
His best friend seems to be a fellow employee, also an "Airhead" and beer buddy. The turning point is subtle. He gets into an argument with his beer buddy when he reveals that Dupea's girlfriend is pregnant. Dupea wants to dump her but his buddy insults his manhood. This is the breaking point in the film. He suddenly rises and re-asserts himself, acknowledging that he can't believe he is taking advice from "these people" telling him how to run his life and what the "good life" is about.
He quits his job and wanders after a few days to a place where his sister is recording a piano performance solo album. This is our first surprise as we know nothing about his family or his past. His appearance has changed, he is in a suit and everything from this point shows us that Robert Dupea is much more than meets the eye.
His sister reports that his father has become very ill and suggests that he visit the family estate before he passes away. Dupea has been missing almost 3 years after a falling out with his father, but we are not sure why.
He returns to his girlfriend to inform her that he is leaving but guilt over her "condition" forces him to bring her along. The film then becomes a temporary travelog with a great scene in a restaurant over a chicken salad sandwich which you will remember for the rest of your life.
Dupea leaves his girlfriend at a local hotel because he does not want his family to meet her and has little intention of staying. Upon arrival he is struck by his brother's fiancee', and quickly gets involved emotionally and physically. We then find out that our central character was a child prodigy in the field of classical music, and everyone in the family are musical performers, obviously at the hand of a dominant father who seems to have been a conductor/music director before he suffered a dehabilitating stroke. The father cannot speak and now cannot even recognize his family or where he is.
The subsequent days are filled with music, strong emotions and failed relationships. His brother, a concert violinist is a "square". His sister is obviously going to screw up by getting involved with her father's rehab therapist and Dupea himself is rattled by the presence of his brother's fiancee'. Adding to the problems, Robert's girlfriend shows up and puts him in an embarrassing position, because he never mentioned anything about her to his family and her presence interferes with his desire for his brother's fiancee'.
A climatic dinner and after dinner philosophical discussion with a houseful of guests has his girlfriend asking for ketchup (a no=no back then among the rich, who enjoyed the best of sauces, wines and cuisine) and asking if there is a TV in the house (rich people never have time for TV, back then, the richer the household the smaller the TV or none at all.) This makes Dupea reach the breaking point and he gets into a fight with everyone. He attempts a reconciliation scene with his father but it is a one sided affair.
Upon leaving, he is returning with his girlfriend but upon stopping for gas at a local station, he disappears, leaving everything behind, headed north to Canada!
0 out of 1 people found this helpful.
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Nothing "easy" about it...
Added 2/1/2010
How you feel about 'Five Easy Pieces' might depend upon why you watch movies in the first place...or at least why you watch some of the movies you watch. The reason is easily different for each genre; such is true for me. If it's important to feel better after watching a movie, or to actively like the characters involved, this selection might not be your cup of tea. It's an uneasy character study of Bobby Dupea (Jack Nicholson). As the story opens, he works in the oil fields of California. I couldn't help but see some vague similarities between Bobby Dupea, and the character Nicholson played in 'Easy Rider' the year before. They are both seemingly rustic, living on the fringe, in spite of higher pedigree and employment, or former employment. Both characters reject an easier, more comfortable life. They are conflicted, and searching in all the wrong places. But the story of Bobby Dupea goes much further than the thumbnail sketch of the alcoholic attorney in the gold football helmet.
Five Easy Pieces shifts gears at least twice, and the end is far from its origin. The first act reveals the oil field worker, volatile and dirty. The second act reveals transitions. Bobby visits his sister at a recording studio. She's an accomplished pianist, and offers one of many hints that Bobby's roots are very different from current appearances. The second act continues, with a road trip home after his sister tells him about their father's illness. The third act is the homecoming, and it's as awkward as any you might imagine. There doesn't seem to be a central truth about why Bobby is at war with life. Perhaps it's just Bobby. But there is a heart wrenching scene that must be witnessed, where he tries to explain his life to his father, who is too ill to respond. Five Easy Pieces is not an easy story. There are no slick resolutions. The dialogue is truthful, if harsh, and it's a tour worth taking, of life lived on a hard, tragic edge.
2 out of 2 people found this helpful.
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A pessimist dream...
Added 1/3/2010
A pessimist dream of a movie. Maybe back in the seventies it was something to behold (I was in my thirties in the seventies so I don't remember it as so) but it certainly wasn't then and is not now, entertainment. The script is something the critics should have torn up and thrown in the proverbial fire pit. However, critics being what they usually are, negative on all sides, this was a dream movie for them. Suffice to say, you're on your own if you watch this film.
0 out of 2 people found this helpful.
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Jack Can Act!
Added 2/21/2010
Is Bobby Eroica Dupea a complicated person with a bunch of issues? Yes, is he one of the most important characters in American films? I do not think so, but Jack Nicholson's performance IS one of the best in American film.
Bobby can boil over and explode at any minute (and does a few times). He has many issues, he: does not treat his girlfriend well; likes to have some drinks and the fun associated with that; and does not have a good relationship with his father.
Most of the characters in this film are eccentric and I found some of their interactions forced. Meeting Palm and Terry on the road did not add much except too much talk of filth and the infamous "chicken salad" scene in the restaurant. Jack's brooding, transcendent performance overcomes all of this.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
|
Introspective, moody
Added 2/14/2010
Here's your chance to see Jack have a sentimental moment.. well, almost. "He's the moodiest guy I've ever gone out with," says his unappreciated, attractive yet ditzy girlfriend. It's a movie of the times, 1970, and reads like a 'dark side' theme narrative of the end of the 60s, dawn of the 70s. It's not a superfast movie, though does slowly generate interest. The filmography is beautiful, richly colorful, with the occasional understated symbolic shots (windshield wiper wiping away rain) and incredible views which range from oil fields in South Cal to beautiful northern pine country in Canada. They don't make movies like this anymore. There's not much of a soundtrack outside of a few country numbers. Silence speaks louder than words. Camut couldn't have done it better. You're in the presence of art with this movie, albeit art that leaves a bitter taste and which you could write off as BS in the final analysis, which I partly do, but you gotta hand it to the film-maker and the times for letting something as oddball and irreverent as this to get out. Since I've been watching "All in the Family" lately, I noticed a younger 'Gloria' (Sally Struthers, aka 'Little Goil') also has a small part in here (hot stuff). Come to think of it, there are a lot of hot chicks in this movie. No wonder Robert Dupea (Nicholson) doesn't want to settle down. His general aimlessness though could perhaps be larger than his inability to settle for one girl. It's arguable.
For fans of the nihilistic, I also recommend "Dirty Mary, Crazy Larry" (1974) which weilds a similar kind of existentialism but with a lot more octane.
1 out of 2 people found this helpful.
|
Father Knows Best
Added 2/9/2010
This 1970 film is one of discovery. It concerns one personality and his view of the world. Right from the beginning you are mislead as to the true nature of the character and indeed it represents a lot of people who don't rise to meet expectations either from family or the world. Robert Dupea is intelligent, but the introduction leads us to think he is a poor oil rig wanderer, living the trailer trash lifestyle and seeking entertainment values equivilant to people who, not having much hope, live paycheck to paycheck.
Because Dupea is intelligent, frustrations mount dealing day to day with people he seems to be tolerating for unknown reasons. His girlfriend, played very well by Karen Black is extremely sexy but is an "airhead", emotionally dependent and prone to be embarassing in public situations with idiotic comments that make Dupea mad and violent.
His best friend seems to be a fellow employee, also an "Airhead" and beer buddy. The turning point is subtle. He gets into an argument with his beer buddy when he reveals that Dupea's girlfriend is pregnant. Dupea wants to dump her but his buddy insults his manhood. This is the breaking point in the film. He suddenly rises and re-asserts himself, acknowledging that he can't believe he is taking advice from "these people" telling him how to run his life and what the "good life" is about.
He quits his job and wanders after a few days to a place where his sister is recording a piano performance solo album. This is our first surprise as we know nothing about his family or his past. His appearance has changed, he is in a suit and everything from this point shows us that Robert Dupea is much more than meets the eye.
His sister reports that his father has become very ill and suggests that he visit the family estate before he passes away. Dupea has been missing almost 3 years after a falling out with his father, but we are not sure why.
He returns to his girlfriend to inform her that he is leaving but guilt over her "condition" forces him to bring her along. The film then becomes a temporary travelog with a great scene in a restaurant over a chicken salad sandwich which you will remember for the rest of your life.
Dupea leaves his girlfriend at a local hotel because he does not want his family to meet her and has little intention of staying. Upon arrival he is struck by his brother's fiancee', and quickly gets involved emotionally and physically. We then find out that our central character was a child prodigy in the field of classical music, and everyone in the family are musical performers, obviously at the hand of a dominant father who seems to have been a conductor/music director before he suffered a dehabilitating stroke. The father cannot speak and now cannot even recognize his family or where he is.
The subsequent days are filled with music, strong emotions and failed relationships. His brother, a concert violinist is a "square". His sister is obviously going to screw up by getting involved with her father's rehab therapist and Dupea himself is rattled by the presence of his brother's fiancee'. Adding to the problems, Robert's girlfriend shows up and puts him in an embarrassing position, because he never mentioned anything about her to his family and her presence interferes with his desire for his brother's fiancee'.
A climatic dinner and after dinner philosophical discussion with a houseful of guests has his girlfriend asking for ketchup (a no=no back then among the rich, who enjoyed the best of sauces, wines and cuisine) and asking if there is a TV in the house (rich people never have time for TV, back then, the richer the household the smaller the TV or none at all.) This makes Dupea reach the breaking point and he gets into a fight with everyone. He attempts a reconciliation scene with his father but it is a one sided affair.
Upon leaving, he is returning with his girlfriend but upon stopping for gas at a local station, he disappears, leaving everything behind, headed north to Canada!
0 out of 1 people found this helpful.
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