A Theater Near You
Five Easy Pieces
Bob Rafelson (U.S., 1970)
- When
- Thu Jul 22, 2010
- Where
- Pacific Film Archive (PFA)
- Time
- 7:00-8:40 PM
- Cost
- $5.50 - $9.50
- Tags
- Movies, Classic
Description
7:00 Five Easy PiecesBob Rafelson (U.S., 1970)
New Print
“Keep telling me about the good life, Elton, because it makes me puke,” rages Jack Nicholson in one of the defining films of the 1970s, a portrait of American existentialism and untethered machismo that seems even more revelatory now as during its original release. Nicholson is Bobby Dupea, a blue-collar oil rigger in dusty Southern California, drinking whiskey while driving to work and living with his waitress girlfriend (a dazzlingly coiffed Karen Black). An alcohol-soaked lifetime of Patsy Cline and poorly decorated trailer homes stretches before him, but Bobby’s not made for that world, or even the world he’s actually escaping from: a wealthy family of classical musicians who may be his blood, but, as a trip “home” proves, isn’t in his soul. The infamous “chicken salad sandwich” diner scene has made Five Easy Pieces legendary, but it’s Nicholson’s raw performance as a man willfully out of tune wherever he goes that truly anchors this understated, minor-key masterpiece.—Jason Sanders
• Written by Adrien Joyce. Photographed by Laszlo Kovacs. With Jack Nicholson, Karen Black, Susan Anspach, Sally Struthers. (100 mins, Color, 35mm, From Sony Pictures)
More Info
- Link
- http://bampfa.berkeley.edu/filmseries/
- Call
- 510.643.2197
- Call
- (510) 642-5249 (Box Office)
- Contact Form (account required)
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