Five Easy Pieces (1970)

(Criterion Streaming, December 2019) The most distinctive aspect of Five Easy Pieces is that it’s a pure undiluted example of New Hollywood filmmaking: Unlikable protagonist, aimless dialogue, not much plot, filthy sets and gritty cinematography all feature heavily here at the expense of just about any classical Hollywood virtue. Yeah, so I don’t really like New Hollywood, which I see as a necessary but transitory period between the restrictions of the Production Code era and the more entertainment-driven era of filmmaking that followed Star Wars. The best I can say about Five Easy Pieces is that it’s relatively short and, as such, doesn’t completely overstay its welcome despite trying really hard. Jack Nicholson deservedly stars as a manual labourer trying to escape the burden of his upper-class childhood as a musical prodigy. He rebels against … well, he rebels, anyway. He meets women, sleeps with them, or at least tries to get a breakfast according to his exacting preferences. Nothing works. He leaves. The end.  Relief.