Smartorhypo
Highly Overrated But Still Good
Odelecol
Pretty good movie overall. First half was nothing special but it got better as it went along.
Mandeep Tyson
The acting in this movie is really good.
gavin6942
In Venice, California, the leader of Hell's Angels Heavenly Blues tells his friend Joe "Loser" Kearns (Bruce Dern) that he had located his stolen motorcycle in Mecca. While trying to retrieve the bike, Loser is shot on the back by a police patrol end goes to the hospital.This film's pedigree is amazing: Dern, Peter Fonda, Diane Ladd, Nancy Sinatra, Roger Corman, Arkoff-Nicholson, Peter Bogdanovich... even if it was a terrible film, it would be a must-see for all those interested in film history.An, of course, it is darn entertaining. I would love to see a special edition of this with commentary and the whole nine yards. Maybe one exists, but not the one I saw.
dryheat5267
I thought the movie was OK, but just that. Nothing special. I understand why they chose Nancy Sinatra and Peter Fonda; they were bankable. But the rest of the cast, including that overweight middle-aged woman biker Mama Monahan- the way she looked was completely wrong for a biker chick. Good camera work, though. Good job for most of the extras. They looked, acted, and sounded authentic, for the time. Can figure out why a laid-back beach town like Venie would have a Hell's Angel's chapter...Rent it for a good time at home when you can do something else while watching it.
jeremy3
The ideals of the 40s and 50s are collapsing in 1966. "Misfits" join biker gangs, because they are bored with society. This movie couldn't be made today. The swastika is fully displayed, not necessarily for "white supremacists", but as a message to the older generation that they may have fought in a war but the younger generation doesn't feel that it has anything to do with their realities.Peter Fonda stars as the leader of a biker gang, who is shrewd, but having trouble accepting the death of his best friend, Loser (Bruce Dern), whom he feels to blame for his death. However, as gang leader he can't show any doubt or weakness. In the end, he mourns for his friend in his own way. The movie was interesting, because it showed that a lot of people were "lost", and looking for anything to identify with and belong to that was different from what they were raised to. In the end, the movie is inconsistent. The bikers become totally out of control, and persecute a preacher for trying to say words at the funeral of Loser. Fonda's character basically shows that he is a coward by selling out to the mob over reason. Then, we are supposed to believe that he would rather go to jail than not bury his friend. 1966 was a very interesting time. It was probably the last time in American history anyone could react with pure angst and rage at what was happening. Today, people are too divide and too propagandized to really believe in anything real. It reminds me that the 1960s was probably the last time people could really be enraged and protest in a way that wasn't completely marred by self-interest, cynicism, and parochialism.What I liked best about this movie, being born after this film was made, is that these bikers were the original punk rockers but with more of a clear cause. The Dern character showed how sick the younger generation at the time was of these World War Two movies, which glorified the war and distorted the reality of World War Two. The younger generation was bored, jealous, and alienated by the Post War Years that they grew up in. Yes, the Baby Boomers were often spoiled, but also grew up in a conformist time when their parents just worked all the time. In the Depression, there were real challenges to survive. In the 50s it was still a time when racism was all around. Dern's character wears a Nazi helmet to the constirnation of a middle aged oil rig worker who was a WWII Vet. It as if Dern's character cannot explain why he is being this provocative, but it is apparent he is alienated. Some people may not like the provocativeness of this movie, but 1966 was a time when there was still honesty left. As time went by, the late 60s and onward, the reactions by younger people became harder to figure out and to follow. This movie does a good job explaining how many young people felt at the time.
graham_525
The opening title shots of Peter Fonda riding along the California coast to the sound of some very cool music gives the false hope that this is a classic film. If you could stick Dennis Hopper along side it could almost be the opening to Easy Rider. However it quickly goes down hill.By the closing shots in the graveyard the only thing keeping me going was the hope that the locals would beat the crap out of Peter Fonda and his hideous friends. They had just attended the funeral of one of their friends at which they smashed up the church, raped his girlfriend, pulled the dead guy out his coffin, stuck a cigarette in his mouth and pushed the preacher into the coffin instead.I've rarely seen a film that made me feel such contempt for the main protagonists. I think the closing shot of Fonda standing alone in the graveyard was meant to be deep and meaningful. It wasn't.The only reason I would recommend this film is for the same reason I watched it. To see the film that Primal Scream sampled for their classic hit Loaded. Having seen it I can't for the life of me imagine why they did.
