One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest DVD > Reviews > Life in an institution

Author's product rating:   

Did you enjoy it?	Loved it
Story	Outstanding
Characters / Performances	Outstanding
Special Effects	Standard
How does it compare to similar films?	Outstanding

Advantages:	Excellent acting, thought - provoking
Disadvantages:	Could be distressing for some

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

Introduction
Based on the book by Ken Kesey, this is a film that looks at the state of mental health services in the USA in the 1970s. Apparently, Ken Kesey wasn't too impressed by the film - the book told the story through the eyes of Chief Bromden, but the film tells the story from a less personal point of view - and he actually sued the producers because of this. Despite this (I usually hate the artistic licence that producers take when converting a book into a film), this is an excellent film that criticises the American approach to authority and has some of the top US actors together in one film.

The director
Czechoslovakian Milos Forman, real name Jan Forman, became orphaned at a young age when his parents died in Aushwitz. Having studied film direction, he began his career in his home country, moving to the US in the 1960s. Apart from this film, other well-known films that he directed include Hair (1979) and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1984).

The story
McMurphy, a man with a criminal record, is facing prison once again, this time for statutory rape. He manages to convince those in authority that he has psychiatric problems and is placed in a mental institution. Once there, he finds that life is not as easy as he thought it would be. The institution is operationally run by Nurse Ratched, who rules with a rod of iron and refuses to let any of her patients change the hospital routine.

Although McMurphy fits in well, he is clearly shocked by the treatment of his fellow inmates and starts a one man campaign to change some of the rules. Although Nurse Ratched initially puts McMurphy in his place, he begins to win over the other inmates, who begin to rebel and at one point, they even stage a breakout. But will McMurphy be able to maintain his winning streak, or will Nurse Ratched and the other hospital staff be able to win back control?

The actors/characters
There are a number of excellent actors in this film, all of whom do a stunning job. The main character, McMurphy, played by the brilliant Jack Nicholson. To my mind, Nicholson's best role will always be that in The Shining, but this is a close second. In some ways, it is a similar role in that I recognised some of the expressions, although they weren't quite as natural as in The Shining (but then he was acting crazy this time, so that's understandable). He made the role seem effortless and was completely at home in the role.

Danny DeVito, in his first film role, played Martini. He rose to the occasion superbly and it is not hard to see why he is the famous actor that he is today. Acting mentally ill is probably the hardest thing to do well, but having been involved with patients with mental health problems, I think he did it flawlessly. Scatman Crowthers as Orderly Turkle and Christopher Lloyd as Taber also did superb jobs.

There were also a number of actors that I had never heard of who were also superb. Louise Fletcher as Nurse Ratched did a great job - I have never seen such an impassive face - except when McMurphy drives her mad! Brad Dourif as Billy brought just the right amount of youthful innocence to the role. Last, but definitely not least, is Will Sampson as the pokerfaced Chief Bromden, who was the most influence by McMurphy. Superb. I can tell why Ken Kesey was so annoyed that he was sidelined in the film, whereas he was a key character in the book.

Conclusion
I'm clearly not alone in my praise for this film - it won 5 Oscars, as well as another 27 wins. It attacked the treatment of the mentally ill, ground-breaking for the time. My experience is that things have improved, at least in the UK, since then, although there are still problems in the way that patients are treated. The ending is particularly good (if that's the right word), I won't say why, because it will give too much away, but it was so shocking that it made my hair stand on end.

Technically, there are some great examples of camera-work in the film. I'm not an expert, but the way the camera zooms in on just the right thing really added to the atmosphere of the film. It was a long film, at about 2 hours in length, but then this is not a topic that can be covered well in much less time.

This is not a fun film. There are some light-hearted moments, but the overall tone of the film is tragic and it has a strong message. It is distressing at times and it is worrying that just 30 or so years ago, people were treated in that way (and I don't doubt that institutions like that existed). However, if you are prepared for that, then the acting will win you over - it is so rare to see a film where everyone, including the more minor characters, does a stunning job. I think I would have preferred it to be more closely aligned to the book, but to be honest, had I not known that the book featured the Chief in the main role, I wouldn't have missed it. Highly recommended - but make sure you're in the right mood.

I watched the film version, but the DVD is available from Amazon for just £7.97.