Easy Rider

Name: Easy Rider
Genre: Drama, Crime
Released: July 14, 1969
Duration: 95 min
Rating: 85
Cast: Dennis Hopper, Peter Fonda

1969

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Universal acclaim based on 18 Critic Reviews

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USER SCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 102 Ratings

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7.5

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7.5	User Score Generally favorable reviews based on 102 Ratings

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Easy Rider

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Movie Details & Credits

Columbia Pictures | Release Date: July 14, 1969 | R

Starring: Dennis Hopper, Peter Fonda

Summary: An alcoholic attorney (Nicholson) hooks up with two part-time, drug-dealing motorcyclists (Fonda and Hopper) in search of their "American Dream." Heading from California to New Orleans, they sample the highs and lows of America the beautiful in a stoned-out quest for life's true meaning. (Sony Pictures)

Director: Dennis Hopper

Genre(s): Drama, Crime

Rating: R

Runtime: 95 min

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Metascore

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Critic Reviews

100

TV Guide Magazine Staff (Not Credited)

A finely observed film but insufficiently developed as a satire of middle America. [Review of re-release] Read full review

100

Marjorie Baumgarten

Fonda and Hopper’s now-classic film hit the old guard with the force of a rifle shot to the head. [Review of re-release] Read full review

100

Christopher Machell

Not only emblematic of independent American cinema, but, released in 1969, is the definitive statement on the death of the 60s. Read full review

Gene Moskowitz

Fonda himself has given this a fine production dress, with associate Bert Schneider, and the brilliant lensing, excellent music background ballads, especially Bob Dylan's "Easy Rider," are fine counterpoints to this poetic trip along Southwest America. Read full review

Chuck Bowen

This legendary tale of a motorcycle odyssey gone wrong remains timeless for its diagnosing of the early stages of a social ennui that has now fully bloomed. Read full review

Staff (Not Credited)

Tune in, turn on and drop out with Dennis Hopper and Peter Fonda as two down-and-out motorcyclists in this classic road film about the 1960s counterculture. Joining them on their cross-country trip is a young Jack Nicholson, whose charismatic performance keeps the movie rolling through some of its more experimental moments. [22 Jun 2012, p.C6]

Robert Rothenberg

Looked at from the vantage point of more than three decades later, the movie is frequently incoherent; the dialogue sounds like it was being made up on the spot; and the acting is spotty in many cases. [01 May 2004, p.70]

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User Reviews

alejandro970

Jun 3, 2018

An essential of late 60s that established a new mode of stories: the road movie. Outstanding and young Fonda, Hooper and Nicholson as the outcasts, half-heroes in a road to nowhere. Somewise is a reflexion of the prejudice and intolerance that prevails at South of USA. Ride your HarleyAn essential of late 60s that established a new mode of stories: the road movie. Outstanding and young Fonda, Hooper and Nicholson as the outcasts, half-heroes in a road to nowhere. Somewise is a reflexion of the prejudice and intolerance that prevails at South of USA. Ride your Harley Davidson and enjoy.… Expand

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MAMUS

May 25, 2022

Easy Rider is a classic of the world cinema of the late 60's, with only 340 thousand dollars, the film has grossed over 400 million dollars. It is a pioneer of the Road-Movie and Acid-Western genre. It was directed by Dennis Hopper, who was young at the time, and also invited such actors as:Easy Rider is a classic of the world cinema of the late 60's, with only 340 thousand dollars, the film has grossed over 400 million dollars. It is a pioneer of the Road-Movie and Acid-Western genre. It was directed by Dennis Hopper, who was young at the time, and also invited such actors as: Peter Fonda, Dennis Hopper, Jack Nicholson, Karen Black, Tony Basil, Luke Askew, Phil Spector. The very concept of a plot is not present here. 2 hippie guys Wyatt (nicknamed Mr. America) and Billy trade a shipment of drugs for 2 choppers and head from Mexico first to Los Angeles and then to New Orleans for the Mardi Gras Festival, in search of "Real America" under "real" is suspected government abandonment with the war in Vietnam, with free love, acid trip, etc. The whole film is saturated with issues and tensions about the youth of the '60s, such as the heyday of the hippie movement, the communal way of life. One of the strongest pluses of this picture is the soundtrack. It's got all the gold in folk-rock and psychedelic music from the '60s. From the Jimi Hendrix Experience, The Byrds to Steppenwolf and Bob Dylan. Also on the plus side is the acting (front and background), what is only Hopper or The Advocate. The movie really wasn't made to order, which is nice. However, I want to note that not everyone will understand this film, because, as I have already said, there is no plot, but at the same time, this picture has a lot of meanings, thoughts. And one of the thoughts for me: "To be a hippie means to be a free man, to escape from the democratic ideas of the capitalist world. To reconnect with nature, to become nature, as Jim Morrison sang in one of the songs. I definitely recommend the film.… Expand

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Nesbitt10

May 25, 2013

"A man went looking for America, and couldn't find it anywhere..." With a blistering rock-and-roll soundtrack, a host of trippy cinematic techniques, and dialogue that represented a very unique period in American history ("They're not scared of you. They're scared of what you represent to"A man went looking for America, and couldn't find it anywhere..." With a blistering rock-and-roll soundtrack, a host of trippy cinematic techniques, and dialogue that represented a very unique period in American history ("They're not scared of you. They're scared of what you represent to them.) "Easy Rider" from 1969 is a hallmark American film, and a great independent feature success.

The ultimate counter-culture classic, "Easy Rider" directed by first time director Dennis Hopper, jolted a Hollywood in transition when it became an unexpected hit in 1969, encapsulating the freewheeling spirit of the times, and the divide between the youth culture and the Establishment. This unconventional classic, which Time magazine hails as "one of the ten most important pictures of the decade," continues to strike a chord with audiences of all ages to this day.

After securing a major drug deal in Los Angeles, two free-spirited potheads Billy (Dennis Hopper) and Wyatt, a.k.a. Captain America (Peter Fonda), buy choppers and hit the road, traveling from Los Angeles to Mardi Gras in New Orleans to experience "the real America." Along the way, they encounter rednecks, experiment with LSD, visit a hippie commune, end up in jail, all in the name of living the American dream. While inevitably dated, it remains worthwhile, highlighted by Laszlo Kovacs photography, a great soundtrack, and Jack Nicholson star-making performance as a boozed up lawyer who tags along for the ride. Nicholson earned a Best Supporting Actor nod, while Hopper and Fonda continued to solidify their reputations.

"Easy Rider" was the official U.S. entry at the 1969 Cannes Film Festival, where it won the Best Film by a New Director prize (Hopper). Opened across the country in September 1969, it mesmerized critics with its perspective look at America. The film also received two Oscar nominations-Best Original Screenplay and Best Supporting Actor (Nicholson). Highly influential in its camerawork, storyline, and 60's rock soundtrack--"Easy Rider" endures as the ultimate psychedelic road-trip.… Expand

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kyle20ellis

Mar 30, 2022

Easy Rider is not quite a classic, but what it is is a great movie. It does start off slowly, but when it picks up the film has very few problems if any. The production values are excellent, the soundtrack is inspired, the script is very effective and Dennis Hopper's direction showsEasy Rider is not quite a classic, but what it is is a great movie. It does start off slowly, but when it picks up the film has very few problems if any. The production values are excellent, the soundtrack is inspired, the script is very effective and Dennis Hopper's direction shows perfectly that he was as good a director as he was an actor. The story is also very compelling with a purposefully depressing ending(certainly a refreshing change from the somewhat clichéd riding into the sunset ending) and although the start is slow the pace is solid on the whole. The acting is faultless, the three leads Peter Fonda, Dennis Hopper and Jack Nicholson are superb and work wonderfully together.

All in all, Easy Rider is a fine movie, while just missing out on masterpiece status. What's for sure though, it is one of the best road movies there is. 9/10 Bethany Cox… Expand

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

GregePorter

Aug 31, 2015

Bottom line: Easy Rider is a powerful movie that captures the American attitude and spirit in the late 1960's.

The premise of Easy Rider is rather quite basic; two friends, Wyatt (Fonda) and Billy (Hopper), ride their motorcycles from LA to Louisiana for Mardi Gras. Their drug fueledBottom line: Easy Rider is a powerful movie that captures the American attitude and spirit in the late 1960's.

The premise of Easy Rider is rather quite basic; two friends, Wyatt (Fonda) and Billy (Hopper), ride their motorcycles from LA to Louisiana for Mardi Gras. Their drug fueled journey becomes a spiritual journey as the pair learns about themselves and America. The movie opens with the pair of guys parking cheap motorcycles outside a run down cantina. They are there to meet a cocaine dealer. The pair sample and approve of the powder. The camera cuts to the pair waiting near an airport runway. A Rolls-Royce rolls up and a well dressed man steps out. He, too, samples and approves of the powder before buying it for a large sum of money. The pair has made a fortune and plans to spend the money on a trip to Mardi Gras. They buy new motorcycles and set off into the desert roads.

The acting in Easy Rider is solid. Dennis Hopper’s performance as Billy is great. Initially, I labeled his character as “hippy”: he has long hair and a bushy mustache and uses “man” as punctuation. At one point the two pick up a hitchhiker who is traveling back to a commune in the middle of the desert. The hitchhiker made me realize that there is a complexity to the characters that I missed. Billy is a hippy-like character in appearance but his temper and focus on worldly pleasures differentiate him from the others. Wyatt is a “cool” or relaxed type of guy and is the one that really grows through the journey. Unlike Billy or George or the hitchhiker, Wyatt is not a representative of a 1960’s demographic. As George (Nicholson) explains, “You are change and people don’t like change.”

As Easy Rider is something of a road trip movie, a common artifact is the super long, scenery shots. Denisoff and Romanowski note, the music played during these riding montages, forms a sort of “musical commentary”. The soundtrack, beginning with “The Pusher” by Steppenwolf, continues with the iconic “Born to be Wild” also by Steppenwolf. You can see the progression of the story and tone throughout the rest of the soundtrack. Easy Rider is a perfect example of how music can be utilized to complement the images on the screen. Sure, we might have a great orchestration that provides emotional support but, here, the music provides a political (as well as emotional) support.

Have you ever watched a movie where a particular scene is burned into your memory? Maybe it strikes a chord with you but as you see the shot you know that it is going to stick with you. I'd bet that it usually happens with scary movies. Easy Rider had one of those moments for me. Wyatt rolls the money they earned by selling cocaine into a rubber tube. He hides that rubber tube in his motorcycle's American flag painted, teardrop gas tank. It is a beautifully succinct yet complex statement about the US. One of the best parts is that the movie lets the image speak for itself.

The cutting used at times in the movie is jarring. Instead of a Star Wars-like swipe cut or a fade to black transition, the movie alternates between the two scenes. It is the type of cutting you might expect in an action movie. A character has a gun and points it at his or her target. The camera focuses on the gun, then the target, then the gun, 'bang,' then on the target. This rapid cutting is exciting so we are used to seeing it in an action but in Easy Rider the transitions between scenes aren't exciting. One jump, for example, takes us from the pair sitting around a campfire to Wyatt walking through a dilapidated Church. It felt jarring and don't quite know how to feel about it. I like the idea of using film techniques in unconventional ways but it feels awkward. Yeah, I can dig it. The idea that it is disruptive fits in with the rest of the movie which is socially disruptive.

My only major qualm about the movie is that sometimes it moves away from visual messages to just sitting around a campfire telling us something. Consider the image of the gas tank and money. I know you can show some good stuff, movie, keep going; don’t just regress into telling me something. This isn’t a deal breaker by any means but it is noteworthy.

If, for no other reason, to function as a time capsule, I recommend you see Easy Rider. It is clear depiction of a definitive time in American history. It also illustrates how film can resonate socially and politically. I think for a discussion post I will think about the responsibility of art, if there is such a thing. On a superficial level, or if you saw Easy Rider without actually watching it, it might appear like this film is glorifying a wayward and drug filled lifestyle. From what I hear, that's the message a majority of the original audience left with. In reality, Easy Rider is criticizing this lifestyle. If people misinterpreted its meaning, should it have been more overt?… Expand

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royalguy07

Jan 25, 2023

At least Jack saved this from being one of the most boring and unfulfilling things I've seen. The soundtrack is good but its only staged over some motorcycles driving. The ending was shocking.

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TonyB.

Jun 7, 2008

Overrated claptrap in 1969 and virtually unwatchable now.

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