Movie - 56, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest

One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975)

by

Milos Forman

Movie Seen: 08 November 2015

Note Written: 10 November 2015

I watched the movie right after I read the novel of the same name (by Ken Kesey) which it was based on. As a film, 'One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest' was great, but it wasn't as emotional or gripping as the novel, for me. The soul of the novel lies in the character Chief Bromden. The story is from his perspective, the film isn't. I know comparison is not the right thing to do but it is unavoidable. If I had seen the movie first I would definitely have compared the novel with it. Cinema and literature, as media, have their differences and sometimes it is difficult to bring in the various elements to sync. 

The gradual progression of events which brought inmates closer to McMurphy and his slow win over Nurse Ratched (Louise Fletcher was terrific by the way) is missing in the film - it's all so fast, I felt; may be it's the constraint of film as a medium. 

All the actors were great in their roles - apart from Louise Fletcher, my favourites were Danny Devito (Martini), Jack Nickolson (McMurphy), and Brad Dourif (Billy Bibbit). 

I couldn't be an objective watcher of the movie. Hence, some of the liberties which the film took spoiled certain elements of the story, for me. I think I should ask someone who has just watched the movie, about how they felt about it.