Afouotos Although it has its amusing moments, in eneral the plot does not convince.

Curapedi I cannot think of one single thing that I would change about this film. The acting is incomparable, the directing deft, and the writing poignantly brilliant.

TrueHello Fun premise, good actors, bad writing. This film seemed to have potential at the beginning but it quickly devolves into a trite action film. Ultimately it's very boring.

Zandra The movie turns out to be a little better than the average. Starting from a romantic formula often seen in the cinema, it ends in the most predictable (and somewhat bland) way.

Wuchak Biker films came into vogue after the 1966 release of the infamous "The Wild Angels;" they remained popular for the next 5-7 years or so. This time in history was the era of the "counter culture," people who rebelled against the status quo of the culture at large (and with good reason). The counter culture was comprised of three basic groups. The two extreme groups were the hippie flower children, who believed in peace, "free love" & drug experimentation and the bikers who were similar except they believed in brawling and had shorter hair, not to mention their drug of choice was alcohol. The third group was comprised of everyone in between."Hell's Angels on Wheels" was released in 1967, one year after "The Wild Angels," and it's a pretty decent biker flick. You'll see some clips of famed Angel Sonny Barger near the beginning of the film; Barger also assisted as the technical adviser.THE STORY: Jack Nickolson loses his job as a gas station attendant and hooks up with the Hell's Angels as "Poet." The bikers ride, revel and brawl throughout the story while Poet takes an interest in the leader's girlfriend (Adam Roarke and Sabrina Scharf respectively)."The Wild Angels" (aka "All the Fallen Angels") is a cult masterpiece for numerous reasons despite its obvious shortcomings: It takes the subject of outcast bikers seriously, it's truly shocking, its story is refreshingly original and it tackles real-life issues that every viewer can relate to, specifically the nature of grief and how different people respond in different ways (see my review for details). Although "Hell's Angels on Wheels" is good for what it is -- a late 60s low-budget biker flick -- it fails to even come close to the greatness of "The Wild Angels." It's slightly more goofy, not at all shocking and has little depth.Yet, it's worthwhile for numerous reasons: It's great to see Jack Nicholson when he was so young, there are numerous beautiful 60's babes and the California photography is exceptional, in particular in the last 30 minutes of its 95 minute runtime, not to mention all the bikes.However, throughout the almost pointless story various questions kept coming to mind: -- How do the bikers get money to support their lifestyle of continuous riding, revelry and "free love"? (work is never mentioned as it is in "The Wild Angels") -- In light of the numerous brawls (with fists, chains, clubs, etc.) why do none of the bikers ever show any injuries, bruises, etc.? -- If the bikers "party" this much this often, what are they gonna look like (and feel like) when they're 35? 40? 45? 50? -- If these guys don't actually work, have very little money and don't take baths, why are these gorgeous babes riding with 'em? -- The leader's supposed girlfriend is shown to be a very loose woman who believes in "free love," getting it on with any dude as the whim strikes her. She also shows a loyalty to the leader, which I fail to understand in light of his infidelities. So why is Poet so fascinated with her to the point of wanting to marry her? Is he nuts? Marrying such a woman would last about a week, or less.Some complain about the quick ending, but it would have worked if they had worked out the kinks in the death scene. I don't want to say anymore because I don't wanna give anything away.GRADE: Borderline C+ or B-

MartinHafer I found "Hell's Angels on Wheels" on a disc containing three Jack Nicholson films. However, the print quality on "Jack Nicholson: Cult Classics" was pretty bad and I assume there must be better quality prints available somewhere--especially since at least two of the films (perhaps all three) are widely available from many different distributors.The plot of "Hell's Angels on Wheels" is amazingly slim and it looks as if most of the movie was unscripted and the filmmakers just filmed these folks doing all kids of things--some illegal, some just annoying. At one point, an angry young guy (Nicholson) gets in good with the gang and is soon allowed to ride with them. During the course of the film there are quite a few fights and a lot of making out--though the level of violence and amount of skin you see is very, very limited and the film is pretty tame compared to some of the latter biker films. Now this isn't to say it's a family film--as there are a couple murders along the way. As for Nicholson, eventually he gets tired of the scene and it ends with a face-off with the leader of the pack. How it all ends is really stupid--so stupid you need to see it to believe it."Hell's Angels on Wheels" isn't a very good film but it is watchable. Directionless much of the time, of course, but oddly compelling in a voyeuristic sort of way. An odd glimpse into the 1960s, that's for sure and definitely NOT a film for the average viewer.

whpratt1 Always like Jack Nicholson and some how missed this picture when he was very young and starting on a great career of acting. For some reason I did not feel like he fit very well in his role as a recruit of the California Hell's Angels. Jack gets roughed up and beaten by a bunch of swabbies in a carnival, who made the fight a Three Against One sort of battle. When his newly acquainted friends of the Hell's Angels find out, an all out war gets into progress. As you can expect, there are plenty of hot to trot sexual gals with the gang who seem to go from one guy to the next in order to please and make them comfortable, no one woman for each guy. However, there is an exception, a couple wants to make there love making official and practically drive their bikes right into a church near Las Vegas, Nevada. Just remember, this film was produced in 1967 and it was a big shocker in those DAYS !

eht5y This one is shelved in the 'cult' section of my favorite independent video rental shop, and for good reason. It's ludicrous!Jack Nicholson is 'Poet,' a bad-ass gas-station attendant who gets fired after mouthing off at a customer and then rides off with the Hell's Angels, chasing after a piece of the macho life and a shot at making it with Shill (Sabrina Scharf), who rides bitch behind club chapter president Buddy (Adam Roarke), the king bad-ass of them all.A confessed example of the B-movie 'exploitation' genre, 'Hell's Angels on Wheels' plays on every possible cliché: chair-smashing barroom brawls, bikers harassing carnival-goers and helpless drivers, cops harassing the bikers, heavy drinking and smoking of the evil weed by the violent Angels, etc. It's all too hilarious to be believed. The acting is adequate--Jack is great as Poet, making the most out of the stilted, silly dialogue, and Adam Roarke, a B-movie leading man if there ever was one, seems to be relishing every bit of his character's corny, macho posturing. Sabrina Schraff as Shill is a tough, sexy leading lady, though her hip outfits and perfectly coiffed bouffant don't much fit the look and style of an actual biker chick, even in 1967. As a matter of fact, the whole gang is a little too clean and well-groomed to resemble actual motorcycle outlaws, and the soundtrack consists of some of the most hilariously bad sixties-era 'muzak' you'll ever hear. Real Angels wouldn't be caught dead listening to such crappy pap.The film is most interesting for its trivia value: Included are brief appearances by a host of actual Hell's Angels led by Sonny Barger, who to this day remains President of the infamous motorcycle gang. Apparently the Angels traded the use of their name and insignia for a cameo and a mention in the credits (though one wonders if they would have agreed to do so had they seen the film's final cut beforehand). Sabrina Schraff, the main love interest, was a former Playboy Bunny and later appeared in 'Easyrider', which, of course, also featured Jack Nicholson in his breakout role. Schraff, interestingly enough, went on to become a California state senator.This is a silly little time capsule--a nice example of the sixties-era exploitation flick and a reasonable indicator of the widespread paranoia surrounding the motorcycle gang phenomena popularized in the early sixties. The Angels obviously enjoy being romanticized as fun-loving but fierce rebels against mainstream culture in the tradition of the frontier outlaws of the nineteenth century and the gangsters of the roaring twenties, but trust me, this movie is no history lesson.