Easy Rider (1969)

Through the open country and desert lands, two bikers head from L.A to New Orleans, and along the way, meet a man who bridges a counter-culture gap they are unaware of.

Director:

Dennis Hopper

Writers:

Peter Fonda, Dennis Hopper

Stars:

Peter Fonda, Dennis Hopper, Jack Nicholson

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 8 wins & 12 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Peter Fonda	...	Wyatt
Dennis Hopper	...	Billy
Antonio Mendoza	...	Jesus
Phil Spector	...	Connection
Mac Mashourian	...	Bodyguard
Warren Finnerty	...	Rancher
Tita Colorado	...	Rancher's Wife
Luke Askew	...	Stranger on Highway
Luana Anders	...	Lisa
Sabrina Scharf	...	Sarah
Sandy Brown Wyeth	...	Joanne (as Sandy Wyeth)
Robert Walker Jr.	...	Jack (as Robert Walker)
Robert Ball	...	Mime #1
Carmen Phillips	...	Mime #2
Ellie Wood Walker	...	Mime #3 (as Ellie Walker)

Storyline

Netting a hefty profit from their latest drug deal, hippies Wyatt and Billy decide to outfit themselves with among other things motorbikes - Wyatt complete in what they call his Captain America gear and similar motif on the bike - and chucking any structure in their lives beyond the want to get there for the event, cycle from their home base of Los Angeles to New Orleans for Mardi Gras in just over a week. They don't plan to spend their proceeds on this trip - they saving that for a more carefree life in Florida after the fact - they sleeping in the great outdoors along the way. While Wyatt is more easy going, believing in the karmic nature and practicality of helping others when they can and in turn asking for help when they need it, Billy is a little more suspicious of the people they encounter, especially in hiding their wad of cash that is stuffed into the gas tank of Wyatt's bike, that money their future. They will find that not all counter-culturalists have the exact same ...

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Plot Keywords:

road movie | motorcycle | campfire | montage | road trip | 

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Taglines:

A man went looking for America and couldn't find it anywhere . . .

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Genres:

Adventure | Drama

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Certificate:

R

Did You Know?

Trivia

At the request of Bob Rafelson and Bert Schneider, Henry Jaglom was brought in to edit the film into its current form, while Schneider purchased Dennis Hopper a trip to Taos so he would not interfere with the recut. Upon seeing the final cut, Hopper was originally displeased, saying that his movie was "turned into a TV show", but he eventually accepted, claiming that Jaglom had crafted the film the way Hopper had originally intended. Despite the large part he played in shaping the film, Jaglom only received credit as an "Editorial Consultant".

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Goofs

During Robert Walker Jr.'s t'ai chi scene in the commune the equipment generator can be heard in the background.

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Quotes

Jack: We have planted our seeds. We ask - that our efforts be worthy - to produce simple food - for simple taste. We ask that our efforts be rewarded. We thank you for the food we eat from other hands - that we may share it with our fellow man - and be even more generous - what it is from our own. Thank you for our place - to make a stand.
Commune: Amen.
Jack: Let's eat.

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Connections

Referenced in Polizeiruf 110: Es ist nicht immer Sonnenschein (1983)

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Soundtracks

When the Saints Go Marching In
(uncredited)
Traditional
Heard at the Mardi Gras

User Reviews

A generation-defining counter-culture classic!

'Easy Rider' is much more than a 60s relic - it's still a great movie even today. I find it fascinating that Hopper and Fonda took Roger Corman material and gave it an arthouse approach influenced by Godard and the French New Wave. Combined with breathtaking visuals, a well chosen rock soundtrack and some classic, stoned, improvised dialogue this is still an impressive movie all these years later. Fonda had recently made 'The Wild Angels', Hopper the less remembered 'The Glory Stompers', and Jack Nicholson 'Hells Angels On Wheels', but 'Easy Rider' reinvented the biker movie, and things were never quite the same in Hollywood for the rest of the Seventies. The supporting cast is interesting and includes a great role for the fantastically underrated Luke Askew as the "Stranger on Highway", and cameos from the stars buddies Luana Anders ('Dementia 13') and Sabrina Scharf (Nicholson's love interest in 'Hells Angels On Wheels'), as well Karen Black and Toni Basil's New Orleans hookers, Phil Spector's coke snorting bit part, and a fleeting glimpse of a young Grizzly Adams. You either love this movie or you don't, and I'm most definitely in the former camp. A 1960s generation-defining counter-culture classic!

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Spanish Greek, Ancient (to 1453)

Release Date:

26 June 1969 (Sweden)

Also Known As:

The Loners

Filming Locations:

Santa Monica Mountains, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$360,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$74,448, 14 July 2019

Gross USA:

$123,276

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$123,276

Company Credits

Production Co:

Pando Company Inc., Raybert Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

95 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1