Rebel with a cause - McMurphy vs. Nurse Ratched

Rating: 10/10 (16 March 2012)

Very few great films are just simple and straightforward, require no brain-twisting abilities from the viewer, can be enjoyed by practically anyone and have an inevitable impact that resonates deeply. Also one rarely finds films that are entertaining, dramatic, humorous, tragic and poetic all at the same time and on top of that have something to say which doesn't sound moralising. If you're looking for a picture which meets all those requirements "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" fits the bill.
Awarded in 1975 with the magic five Oscars covering all main categories (Best Picture, Director, Actor, Actress, Screenplay) it is one of the most effective anti-establishment parables which takes place in a mental hospital, where sane but rebellious Jack Nicholson as R.P. McMurphy fights Nurse Ratched's (Louise Fletcher) authoritarian regime. The two main characters play so well off each other that one almost forgets the rest of the brilliant cast, among them Christopher Lloyd, Danny DeVito or the young Brad Dourif, but also not to forget the Native American Will Sampson. All of these inmates work well, because the actors were cast to play roles cut out for them. A flawless screenplay guarantees to be instantly drawn into the world created by Czech born director Milos Forman, and our sympathies soon lie with these characters, especially free spirit McMurphy. Yet sometimes the fight for the right thing is a lost cause from the get-go. We might even be aware of it. However, we learn from characters like McMurphy that - flawed as we are - we can have the heart at the right place, even against the odds. And that there's hope in every failure.