Film Review: Jack Nicholson in Five Easy Pieces
Landmark Drama Helped Define the New Hollywood of the 1970s
Sep 8, 2009
It's hard to believe the film is nearly 40 years old, because it remains as fresh and vital as when it premiered in September, 1970. Even more impressive, according to author Peter Biskind, is that this movie, nominated for four Oscars including Best Picture, was made for just $876,000. (Easy Riders, Raging Bulls, by Peter Biskind, Simon & Schuster, 1998.)
Jack Nicholson Brilliant as Drifter Bobby Dupea
If you only know Jack Nicholson from showy star turns in films like The Witches of Eastwick, Batman or A Few Good Men, you're in for a treat. He demonstrates a remarkable range -- blue collar bluster to quiet reflection, snide cynicism to love-struck loneliness -- in creating the indelible anti-hero Bobby Dupea.
As Biskind observed, "Five Easy Pieces was a small, personal film, European in sensibility, character-, rather than plot-driven." When Nicholson earned his first best actor Oscar nomination for the role, the subtext was clear: indie movies were to be taken seriously. And they were here to stay.
Pieces was written by beloved Hollywood eccentric Carole Eastman, under the name "Adrien Joyce." Biskind described her as one of Nicholson's discoveries: "She broke in as an actress, then turned to writing, making a specialty of working-class characters. She has a great ear for the lilt and humor of blue-collar dialogue."
Schizophrenic Cinema
This really is two films. The first half shows us a world of rural California oil fields, trailers, shanties, polyester, blue collars and red necks. Existing in-- but not really of -- this working class world is oil rigger Bobby Dupea (pronounced doo-PEE).
It's no coincidence Tammy Wynette's Stand By Your Man plays over the opening credits. The unliberated woman's anthem perfectly defines the milieu in which Bobby is slumming.
(The second half unfolds at the Dupea family's dreamy estate on a lush, idyllic island off the Washington state coast. More on that later.)
Oscar Nomination for Co-star Karen Black
Co-star Karen Black earned a supporting actress nomination as Bobby's live-in girlfriend. Rayette Dipesto is the kind of hot-looking, Wynette-lovin' trailer trash waitress who was born to dot her i's with happy faces.
She may be a babe, but Rayette also is unchallenging, ignorant, clingy, submissive, weepy and in constant need of attention.
She bores Bobby to death.
Bobby and Rayette's social life consists of bowling (and watching TV) with Bobby's fun-lovin' oil rig buddy Elton (Billy Green Bush) and his wife Stoney (Fannie Flagg, long before she turned to writing novels including Fried Green Tomatoes).
When Elton is suddenly hauled away to prison after being revealed as a fugitive, the transitory nature of all their lives is underscored.
Susan Anspach as Nicholson's Love Interest
The film's sensibility shifts 180 degrees in the second half, after prodigal son Bobby is lured home to the Dupea estate. In this setting, we finally see who Bobby really is: an insecure, emotionally scarred drifter estranged from his prominent musical family. Bobby has reluctantly returned to visit his aging father, left mute and catatonic after a stroke.
At the Dupea house is Bobby's sweet but marginally musical sister Tita (Lois Smith). We also meet his strange, cerebral brother Carl (Ralph Waite), whose recent car accident requires him to wear a neck brace. (Carl's immobility is a metaphor for his personal stiffness, and that of the family's overall relations.) And there's Carl's sexy, snooty fiancee, Catherine (Susan Anspach).
Drifter Bobby has dreaded the visit for years, because it means brushing up against the failed expectations the Dupeas once held for him as a concert pianist.
Complicating matters are the sparks that fly between Bobby and the brainy Catherine, who claims to be "moved" by his rendition of a Chopin piece. (He curtly dismisses the compliment.)
Famous "Chicken Salad Sandwich" Scene
Early in his career Nicholson was the master of the explosive, in-character raging fit. He's especially effective at it in Five Easy Pieces. There's something almost refreshing in seeing Nicholson completely let loose, which reminds you of his dominating screen presence.
His best trantrum here comes in the justly famous, often parodied coffee shop scene. In it, a bitchy roadside waitress hassles Bobby as he tries to order a simple omelet, toast and coffee. The scene, representing social defiance of meaningless rules, is a genuine classic. It ends with Bobby urging the waitress to "hold the chicken between your knees." He then sweeps the table clean of dishes with one gesture, as he snarls at the stunned waitress, "See this sign?"
Another scene, late in the picture, shows the other side of Nicholson's power. In it, a chastened Bobby tries in vain for a heart-to-heart with his silent father. The old man's stoic face serves as a mirror, reflecting Bobby's tearful acknowledgement of his failure to live up to the family name.
As Bobby unravels, we begin to see a fully-rounded, wounded character reaching the end of his rope. In those moments, a callous heel becomes human.
Sally Struthers as Bowling Alley Slut
The fine cast includes Sally Struthers (billed as "Sally Ann Struthers") as one of Bobby's dumb-as-a-post bowling alley pickups. Their sex scene is memorable for its wild abandon, achieved with a hand-held, verite camera style. (Four months after the film's premiere, Struthers became a TV star as Gloria on All in the Family.)
Also due special mention are Helena Kallianiotes and Toni Basil as lesbians who add some welcome comic relief in the film's transitional scenes between Bakersfield and Washington State.
The film came out of bbs productions -- the team of producer Bert Schneider and director Bob Rafelson, who rode the crest of the New Hollywood Wave of the 70s.
Five Easy Pieces stands up beautifully as a timeless character study. It's among the best films of Nicholson's storied career. It also helped open doors to a new generation of filmmakers whose movies would dramatically reflect the changes going on throughout American society.
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