Five Easy Pieces (1970)Note: Once again, a surprise plot development is revealed in this review.
Five Easy Pieces is best remembered for two things: as the movie that proved that Jack Nicholson was a great actor, and as a transition of New Hollywood from 60's counterculture films to more restrained efforts. It's lost much of its uniqueness now, but it's still a good movie with a great performance.
Nicholson stars as an eccentric and somewhat mean-spirited guy named Bobby Dupree. Bobby works as an oil worker in a field in either Oregon or northern California and lives in a trailer park with his girlfriend Rayette (Karen Black). Their relationship is not good- Bobby verbally abuses Raylette and cheats on her. He seems despises himself and the world he lives in, berating a friend as being white trash even though the friend's situation is no better than Bobby's. Then, there is a surprise turn of events. Bobby is summoned to a recording studio by his pianist sister (Lois Smith) and told that his father (Ralph Waite) is dying. We now learn the truth about Bobby- he was born in an upper class family, but could never fulfill his parents expectations of being a great musician. Bobby does return home to Seattle to say goodbye to his father, but the trip nearly tears him apart psychologically- he is miserable in both white and blue collar worlds.
In his essay on the film, Roger Ebert noted that the movie might be considered the first Sundance film, though I don't think that's really a good thing. It is certainly a forerunner to the popular independent dramadies we've had since the late '90's, with an emphasis on quirky humor (a lot of which is actually funny here, including the famous scene set at a diner) and dysfunctional families. The problem is that I've seen this material so many times that any originality this movie might have had in 1970 is long since gone.
The movie's best asset is obvious- Nicholson's performance. This is the Jack persona we would see variations on in countless future films- eccentric, manic, sarcastic, driven. In addition to the comedy, there is a scene near the end of the film where Bobby addresses his now-mute father that is extremely well played. It is not easy to take what is essentially a light comic character and do serious dramatic material with it, but Nicholson does it effortlessly. I think he probably deserved to win the Oscar for Best Actor of 1970 instead of George C. Scott.
The movie though, is merely good. After the big surprise in the middle of the film, you won't be surprised by much else, though the film is pleasant. But Nicholson's performance will stay with you. His character is more compelling than what happens to him. I wish Bob Rafelson had done a sequel to this movie sometime in the 90's or beyond, a totally dramatic film that would so what happened to Bobby. I want to know whether he fits in anywhere after thirty years.