Five Easy Pieces

I've only seen one of director Bob Rafelson's films. It was called No Good Deed and I thought I was going to die of boredom whilst watching it. Rafelson is an incredibly boring and unimaginative director. With a foreboding sense, I sat down to watch this movie. I got absolutely everything I expected. Actually, there was one thing I didn't expect. Until this movie, I thought Samuel L. Jackson could play absolutely any role. Not so much. I couldn't believe my eyes, but I found Samuel L. Jackson completely bland. His arrogant expression is completely out of place. That's the one thing I didn't expect. But yeah, it’s got a tedious plot and the entire movie left me wondering what it was really about. In the end, I realized that it was actually about nothing, and poorly told at that. Rafelson is an absolute bore, enough to drive one to madness. The short duration of 1 hour and 40 minutes could have either allowed for much more content to be included, but the script didn't permit it, or the film could have been shortened by about 20 minutes, but that would have... Rafelson probably didn't have much choice. It doesn't matter. Bob Rafelson is an incredibly tedious storyteller, and I will be very cautious about watching another film of his. I might even think twice before deciding to. (12/28/2004)

Five Easy Pieces is a proof that Jack Nicholson was insane even back in 1970, before he fully emerged onto the Hollywood scene. The film in itself is quite dull, and the worst comes when Jack is visiting his father. That moment is the starting point when the acting starts to get really boring and Jack stagnates a bit. On the contrary, Jack’s journey to work, when he ends up on the deck of a truck playing the piano, or the scene where he orders a toast in a restaurant are bits that I will never forget. Sick. Jack’s acting was crazy even when no one expected it to be that way, so he alone is the reason to see this film. (01/15/2019)

Although the focus is on the traditionally delicate Nicholson, who stumbles through life with annoyance and repressed sarcasm, Bob Rafelson’s attempt at universal direction proves that you can polish a turd, but it will still be a turd. And, unfortunately, the shallow period story about the search for oneself is, despite a few successful scenes and well-targeted humour, an exemplary proof of that. 60% (03/10/2020)

People watch some movies because they are interested in the story, and they watch others because they want to see a great performance by an actor. In this case, it is definitely a movie that stands out for Jack Nicholson's acting performance. In terms of plot, it didn't captivate me, even though the theme of searching for one's place in the world and not finding it is certainly interesting. (07/20/2015)