 Tagline: If he's crazy, what does that make you? When free spirited petty crook Randle P. McMurphy (Jack Nicholson), arrives at the state mental hospital, his contagious sense of disorder jolts the routine. He's on one side of a brewing war, soft-spoken, coolly monstrous Nurse Ratched (Louise Fletcher) on the other. At stake is the fate of every patient on the ward. This electrifying adaptation of Ken Kesey's bestseller swept all five major 1975 Academy Awards: Best Picture (produced by Saul Zaentz and Michael Douglas), Actor (Nicholson), Actress (Fletcher), Director (Milos Forman) and Adapted Screenplay (Lawrence Hauben and Bo Goldman). Raucous, searing and with a superb cast that includes Brad Dourif, Danny DeVito, Christopher Lloyd in his film debut, it soars. Storyline: McMurphy has a criminal past and has once again gotten himself into trouble with the law. To escape labor duties in prison, McMurphy pleads insanity and is sent to a ward for the mentally unstable. Once here, McMurphy both endures and stands witness to the abuse and degradation of the oppressive Nurse Ratched, who gains superiority and power through the flaws of the other inmates. McMurphy and the other inmates band together to make a rebellious stance against the atrocious Nurse. Written by Jacob Oberfrank Reviewer's Note: Reviewed by Greg Maltz on August 12, 2008 -- Continuing its BD book editions of classic catalog titles, Warner issues a Best Picture Academy Award winner on Blu-ray disc. While the packaging of One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest is beautiful and the film is legendary, Warner is still cutting corners in production, opting for a Dolby Digital track instead of high-resolution audio. The sound is not bad and the video isn't either--far surpassing previous DVD versions. A low-budget production, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest was never going to win any awards for cinematography or sound engineering, audio or video, anyway. So one can argue, "what's the point of HD?". The point is to make the best presentation possible. However, Warner's standard definition approach to audio can be forgiven and, in fact, the DD track appears to have been produced with at least some focus on quality and attention to detail. More importantly, the film is to be celebrated in 1080p for the sheer power and depth of the characters and story. If ever there was a character in American fiction who perfectly suited Jack Nicholson, it was Randle Patrick McMurphy from Ken Kesey's One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. Kesey's bestselling novel explored the theme of freedom against confines of society by taking a close look at the characters in a ward at a mental institution. The story is essentially Foucaultian. It is a commentary on the social structures that exert order and discipline on us all, and how the human spirit--in danger of being snuffed out by rigid structure and the threat or practice of discipline--can triumph and free itself. Defying authority embodied by the manipulative nurse Mildred Ratched (Louise Fletcher), McMurphy is the champion of freedom. His spirit may not survive the harshest disciplinary action, but McMurphy's drive to escape his confines is infectious and lights the fire of freedom in others. Sent from a penitentiary to the institute for observation, McMurphy's mischievous antics lead the authorities to keep him in the ward rather than discharging him back to prison. But McMurphy doesn't immediately realize that his court sentence is meaningless at the institute. When he finally discovers he could be held indefinitely, he confronts other inmates who didn't warn him, and discovers they are there voluntarily. His horror at this discovery is even greater than his concern about his own plight. McMurphy's association with his peers and his drive for their freedom as well as his own places him at odds with Nurse Ratched and the two opposites head for an inevitable showdown. The booklet BD release of One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest is a gorgeous package and, while one may argue about the technical benefits over the previous DVD release, it is an easy recommendation. I do find myself feeling increasingly ambivalent about the film, especially compared to Kesey's novel. While Nicholson is successful in embodying the boisterous McMurphy character, he never rises to the mythological level achieved in Kesey's masterpiece. And one can argue that his trademark overacting does not fully work in some scenes. Nevertheless, there is good reason the film won an Oscar for best picture. It is essential viewing. And I'd much rather be viewing the Blu-ray version than any previous release. Cast Notes: Michael Berryman (Ellis), Peter Brocco (Col. Matterson), Dean R. Brooks (Dr. Spivey), Alonzo Brown (Miller), Scatman Crothers (Turkle), Mwako Cumbuka (Warren), Danny DeVito (Martini), William Duell (Sefelt), Josip Elic (Bancini), Lan Fendors (Nurse Itsu), Louise Fletcher (Nurse Ratched), Nathan George (Washington), Ken Kenny (Beans Garfield), Mel Lambert (Harbor Master), Sydney Lassick (Cheswick), Kay Lee (Night Supervisor), Christopher Lloyd (Taber), Dwight Marfield (Ellsworth), Ted Markland (Hap Arlich), Louisa Moritz (Rose), Jack Nicholson (R.P. McMurphy), William Redfield (Harding), Philip Roth (Woolsey [as Phil Roth]), Will Sampson (Chief Bromden), Mimi Sarkisian (Nurse Pilbow), Vincent Schiavelli (Fredrickson), Mews Small (Candy [as Marya Small]), Delos V. Smith Jr. (Scanlon), Tin Welch (Ruckley), Brad Dourif (Billy Bibbit). User Comment: pyrocitor from Ontario, Canada, 14 January 2005 • I went into this film with the knowledge that it had been the second film in history to win the 'top five' Oscars (for Best Picture, Best actor, Best actress, Best director and best screenplay) and has been praised as "one of Jack Nicholson's finest roles" and "one of the classics of the 70's". Naturally, after hearing all this, I had high expectations for One Flew over the Cuckoo's Nest. But nonetheless, I was surprised at how easily the film surpassed my expectations and easily led me to understand how it merited all that praise. Based on the novel by Ken Kesey, the story follows Randle Patrick McMurphy (Jack Nicholson), who, in an attempt to get out of spending more time in prison, pleads insanity for his crime, and is therefore sentenced to time in a mental institution. This was McMurphy's intention, as he believes the conditions in a "crazy house" will be significantly easier to contend with than another harsh stay in prison. However, he quickly finds out that surviving the institution with it's desolate patients (including Christopher Lloyd, Danny DeVito, Vincent Schiavelli and an absolutely brilliant Brad Dourif as the stuttering Billy Bibbit) and the monstrously repressive Nurse Ratchet (Louise Fletcher, in a career defining role) is considerably harder than he imagined. McMurphy plays pranks, horseplay, and is generally defiant to the rules of the institution in an attempt to raise spirits. His constant optimism and reckless defiance to the out of date rules in the institution can be very uplifting, and often quite funny as well, but much of the movie can be very depressing - the generally decrepit state of the institution is a consistently (and intentionally) bleak background to a superb story with a truly bittersweet ending. Jack Nicholson is at his best here, head and shoulders above other excellent performances such as in 'Chinatown' or 'As Good as it Gets'. McMurphy is an apparently unquenchable optimist, refusing to succumb to the defeated spirit of all the other patients. His livewire antics, inspiring the patients are generally uplifting, and when his indomitable spirit is finally broken, we really feel for him and his fellow patients. Nicholson conveys the essence of McMurphy to perfection, demonstrating his excellent understanding and interpretation of the character. When McMurphy announces that he is going to lift a huge stone fountain and hurl it through the window to escape, the other patients are so caught up in his intoxicating spirit of freedom that they honestly believe he can do it, despite the fact it would be impossible for a man much stronger than him. When McMurphy finally discovers that despite his best efforts, he cannot lift the fountain, he is so openly crushed that we can't help but feel for him. Beneath the frequent profanities and livewire antics, there are real human emotions, which come across as truly touching. What can be said about One Flew over the Cuckoo's Nest which hasn't already been said? It has an excellent storyline, top notch acting, painfully bleak visuals, perfectly setting the tone for the movie, and alternates between being truly uplifting to devastatingly depressing. It features perhaps the most memorable film ending ever, next to a man on his horse riding off into the sunset, and leaves the viewer beaten down by the conflicting emotions, unaware what to think of the picture next to reveling in it's glorious entirety. It's hard to produce a final outcome any better than this. 10/10 Summary: Both uplifting and disheartening, sometimes both at once. User Comment: Grann-Bach (Grann-Bach@jubii.dk) from Denmark, 3 July 2004 • Jack Nicholson is a great actor. No, not a great actor, a spectacular actor. This is a film from fairly early in his career, as well as it is for several other actors in this film, who later have had long, great careers too, including Danny DeVito, Christopher Lloyd and Brad Dourif. The film has some unforgettable moments... who could forget Louise Fletcher's icy stare, Jack Nicholson's smart-aleck remarks or Will Sampson's impressive, almost entirely silent performance? The film portrays the horrible truth about how patients were treated in mental institutions back then, and tells the story of someone who desperately wanted to break out, to rebel, to change things, for himself and for the others. I was compelled by this film, from the very first frame. I never took my eyes off it, and I will definitely be thinking about this film for a while. I thought it was great the way one of the very first frames depicted the institution as something far more similar to a prison than a hospital. Milos Forman did a great job of making that contrast very powerful to the viewer. The film is very moving and a truly beautiful cinematic experience. Every single actor gives a stellar performance, every single character is perfectly written, every single line, every single frame is absolutely perfect. I wouldn't change a thing in this film. It has a great pace, you never lose interest, but it never seems to be rushing to get through it, either. It's simply perfect. I have not read the original book, but if I ever come across it, I might check it out. I have only seen this film once, but I will definitely watch it many times in years to come. I recommend this amazing piece of great cinema to anyone who has at least a slight interest in the drama genre, or any fan of any of the actors, as they are all in their absolute prime in this film. 10/10 Summary: Touching and moving, a great cinematic experience. IMDb Rating (06/01/13): 8.8/10 from 407,530 users Top 250: #13 IMDb Rating (09/07/12): 8.8/10 from 347,259 users Top 250: #12 IMDb Rating (10/15/07): 8.8/10 from 122,757 users Top 250: #9 IMDb Rating (06/02/01): 8.7/10 from 25,709 users Top 250: #11
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