Monday 25 April 2016

Blind Spot Review: One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975)

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I’m back! I missed last month’s Blind Spot due to a wedding-related meltdown, but then the beauty of sharing this blog means that Jenna reviewed Terminator 2 still. I did watch about half an hour of it, but certainly not enough to comment! We’re back as a pair this month to review a movie we both loved, One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest (1975).  I had this downloaded on my iPad and spent an evening watching it while on holiday abroad, I should have been out partying but I got so into it, I had to stay in and finish it!

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Despite it being one of my choices for the year, I actually had no idea what it was about, I’d just heard the title so many times, it sort of stuck with me. In fact I was on the verge of dragging my heels about watching it, until Jenna told me what it was all about and I literally watched it the very next day. McMurphy (Jack Nicholson) pleads insanity after getting into trouble with the law to avoid prison, and is sent to a ward for the mentally unstable. Whilst there, McMurphy meets a variety of patients, each with their own stories, and rallies them together to stand up and rebel against Nurse Ratched (Louise Fletcher).

I think the reason I loved this movie so much was the characters. There are so many of them, and yet the movie explores each one perfectly. We find out what their story is, what their quirks are, we witness their highs and their lows, and we just can’t help but root for them. Chief (Will Sampson) in particular was one of my favourites, I thought the basketball scene was brilliant.  There wasn't a single character I didn't love (Nurse Ratched excluded) even the scary guy from Ghost was loveable.  Mostly though it was all bout McMurphy, what a character, he couldn't have been played better by anyone, Jack Nicholson was so perfect. Nurse Ratched was eerily creepy all the way through and bloody terrifying at the end.

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One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest is such a feel-good movie. It’s also hilarious for all the right reasons. I think when mental illnesses are portrayed in movies, it’s too easy to fall into the ‘depressing’ category or ‘mocking’ in its humour, and this isn’t like that at all. My favourite scene is early on when the gang are playing cards and betting with cigarettes, and Martini (Danny DeVito) tries breaking cigarettes in half to ‘bet a dime’. It doesn’t sound funny in written words, but I was crying whilst watching it!  I laughed out loud countless times and I found myself smiling all the way through, up until the end of course.  The same as Allie the basketball scene was the one of the bestscenes but for me it was all about the ending with McMurphy and Chief, my heart absolutely broke and it stuck with me for days afterwards.

It’s so easy to see Nurse Ratched as a simple villain, but I couldn’t help but feel sorry for her at the same time. I mean, she was looking after that peaceful ward for goodness knows how long, and literally the moment McMurphy shows up, it all goes to hell. I actually felt a bit sorry for her until the last 20 minutes or so, when she showed her true colours. Ugh, just thinking about the ending leaves me feeling cold.

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With a runtime of over 2 hours, this was just a bit too long for my poor attention span, but it felt too short at the same time. Poor movie, right? Just can’t win with me! What I think I mean though is that I’d love for One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest to be a TV Show, similar to Orange is the New Black, just to spend more time with each of those characters. That would be awesome, right?! I would only want a TV show if it was the same actors, if they tried to reboot it I would just be pissed!!  This felt to me like the shortest movie in the world, I just wanted it to go on and on and learn more about the characters and what happened to them after the movie ended.

I’m so glad I watched this. I’ll happily see it again.  Loved loved loved, it have already watched it again and it will have a permanent place on my re-watch list!!






9 comments:

  1. This film never fails to disappoint. Nicholson is amazing, as you said. Really, the whole cast is wonderful. And every part of the movie works. Glad you both loved it.

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    1. I want to watch it again and again, with such a big and brilliant cast there is bound to be stuff I missed the first time around.
      - Jen

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  2. I love this movie it was on my Blind Spot list this year too. Great review.

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    1. Ooooh Brittani, will have to have a nose at your review :-)
      - Jen

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  3. Glad you gave it a go. It's amazing how often this movie is referenced!

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  4. Pleased to see you both loved this film so much, it's one of my all-time favourites. First time I saw it I had no idea what I was about to watch either, it's a great title for a film as it catches your attention but gives nothing away. Close to perfection for me, also that music at the end is just amazing. The director Milos Forman made very few films in his career, before this he was making very low budget films in Czechoslovakia (his film The Fireman's Ball is hilariously ridiculous, recommended!), then he suddenly made one of the best American films ever. Jealous you've only just seen this for the first time though, guess that's the great thing about doing blind spots.

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    1. Ooh thanks for the recommendation, will have a look into it. I'm so glad that I watched this for the first time since we've had the blog, I think I appreciated it so much more than I would have a few years ago! Blind spots rule!
      - Jen

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  5. I missed last month's Blindspot too, ladies. Great pick, I haven't seen this one, but I should give it a shot. Mine was also an acclaimed classic that won many awards, but while I appreciated it, it's not something I'm keen on seeing again.

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    1. What was your blind spot Ruth? Love to hear other peoples so we can keep them in mind fr the next list :-)
      - Jenna

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