One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975)

Director:

Milos Forman

Writers:

Lawrence Hauben (screenplay) and
Bo Goldman (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

26 February 1976 (Sweden)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

If he's crazy, what does that make you?

Plot:

Upon arrival at a mental institution, a brash rebel rallies the patients together to take on the oppressive Nurse Ratched, a woman more a dictator than a nurse.

Plot Keywords:

Nurse | Patient | Basketball | Asylum | Rebel

Awards:

Won 5 Oscars. Another 28 wins & 11 nominations

Cast

Michael Berryman	...	Ellis
Peter Brocco	...	Col. Matterson
Dean R. Brooks	...	Dr. Spivey
Alonzo Brown	...	Miller
Scatman Crothers	...	Turkle
Mwako Cumbuka	...	Warren
Danny DeVito	...	Martini
William Duell	...	Jim Sefelt
Josip Elic	...	Bancini
Lan Fendors	...	Nurse Itsu
Louise Fletcher	...	Nurse Ratched
Nathan George	...	Washington
Ken Kenny	...	Beans Garfield
Mel Lambert	...	Harbor Master
Sydney Lassick	...	Charley Cheswick

Also Known As:

Vol au-dessus d'un nid de coucou (Canada: French title) (France) [fr]
оПНКЕРЮЪ МЮД ЦМЕГДНЛ ЙСЙСЬЙХ (Soviet Union: Russian title) [ru]
Alguien voló sobre el nido del cuco (Spain) [es]
Atrapado sin salida (Argentina) [es]
Atrapados sin salida (Mexico) [es]
Einer flog über das Kuckucksnest (Austria) [de]
Einer flog über's Kuckucksnest (West Germany) [de]
En flög över gökboet (Finland: Swedish title) [sv]
Gökboet (Sweden) [sv]
Gøgereden (Denmark) [da]
Gaukshreiðrið (Iceland) [is]
Gjøkeredet (Norway) [no]
Guguk kusu (Turkey: Turkish title) [tr]
Kakkou no su no ue de (Japan) [ja]
Ken Ha-Cookiya (Israel: Hebrew title) [iw]
Let iznad kukavicijeg gnezda (Serbia) [sr]
Lot nad kukulczym gniazdem (Poland) [pl]
Prelet nad kukaccím hnízdem (Czechoslovakia: Czech title) [cs]
Prelet nad kukucím hniezdom (Czechoslovakia: Slovak title) [sk]
Qualcuno volò sul nido del cuculo (Italy) [it]
Sti folia tou koukou (Greece) [el]
Száll a kakukk fészkére (Hungary) [hu]
Um Estranho no Ninho (Brazil) [pt]
Voando Sobre Um Ninho de Cucos (Portugal) [pt]
Yksi lensi yli käenpesän (Finland) [fi]

Runtime:

133 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Canada:14+ (Quebec) (re-rating) | Canada:16+ (Quebec) (original rating) | Canada:PA (Manitoba) | Canada:R (Nova Scotia) | Canada:R (Ontario) | Iceland:16 | Portugal:M/16 | Spain:13 | South Korea:15 (DVD rating) | Brazil:14 | Canada:14A (video rating) | USA:Approved | France:-12 (re-rating) | Argentina:16 | Australia:M | Austria:12 | Finland:K-16 | France:U | Ireland:18 | Italy:VM14 | Netherlands:12 | New Zealand:R16 | Norway:15 | Norway:16 (1976) | Singapore:PG | South Korea:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:18 | USA:R | West Germany:12 (re-rating) | West Germany:16 (original rating)

Filming Locations:

Depoe Bay, Oregon, USA

Company:

Fantasy Films

Trivia:

The cast and crew had to become accustomed to working with extras and supporting crew members who were inmates at the Oregon State Mental Hospital; each member of the professional cast and crew inevitably worked closely with at least two or three mental patients.

Goofs:

Continuity: When fishing, the condition of the water changes as the scene shifts from one person to the other. Sometimes it is wavy with whitecaps and other times it is flat.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Attendant Warren: Good morning, Miss Ratched.
Nurse Ratched: Good morning.
Attendant Washington: Good morning, Miss Ratched.
Nurse Ratched: Mr. Washington.
Miller: Morning.
Nurse Ratched: Good morning.
Nurse Pilbow: Good morning, Miss Ratched.
Nurse Ratched: Good morning.
Attendant Washington: Morning, Bancini.
[...]

Movie Connections:

Spoofed in Stella Street (2004)

Soundtrack:

Row, Row. Row Your Boat

One Flew Over One of the Best Movies Ever Made!!! (And that person was me)

First thing's first, while I watched this movie, I found myself stunned. This movie so entertained the viewer, as it did fascinate, and inform. A chilling, disturbing, and revealing look into the mental institutions as seen through the eyes of a con. Jack Nicholson, Louise Fletcher, Brad Dourif, Danny DeVito, and Christopher Lloyd, round out the excellent, and very well casted cast.

Jack Nicholson brilliantly plays Randall Patrick McMurphy, an ex-con, who fakes being mentally insane, to enter the institution. As he goes to the hospital, he doesn't realize, that the people, and the atmosphere there is so out there. The patients are really psycho, and creepy. Randall, must try and survive these days, before he has to go to Jail. He has to entertain himself while at the same time, find good in this place of craziness.

Lousie Fletcher plays Nurse Ratched, a soft; but strong willed nurse, who will not take anything from anyone, or put up with misbehavior. She watches Randall, and notices something different about him, he's not as psycho as the others, but he is a little out there. Her job is tough indeed, having to put up with all these men, who don't listen, some go crazy and throw fits, and others just sit there and don't do anything.

Randall meets many new friends in this place, Brad Dourif who plays Billy Bibbit, is a mentally unstable, but voluntarily institutionalized person. Danny DeVito plays Martini, a slow but charming and sweet man, who means know harm in what he does or say. Christopher Lloyd plays Taber, a man, who also voluntarily institutionalized himself. He also meets Chief, a big 'dumb, and deaf' Indian, who happens to like to play basketball. Randall must try and survive these days with his new friends, and the hospital, as well as an everlasting war as to which they can watch the world series on TV. Put up with Nurse Ratched, and the other patients, doctors, vistors, and nurses. Ultimately leading up to a dramatic finale, that makes you want to stand up and cheer.

I think what was best about this film was the realism. I had no problem believing that this was happening. Almost like a documentary, it was striking and powerful, making the viewer not want to stop watching till the end. Some of the sequences are memorable as the basketball game, and the fishing trip. Jack Nicholson, who as always plays his character absolutely excellent, and makes the viewer want to hand him an Oscar himself.

The supporting cast, Louise Fletcher, Danny DeVito, Christopher Lloyd, and Brad Dourif also give terrific performances. Danny, Christopher, and Brad's careers all were made with this superb movie. It's all sentimental, funny, dramatic, intense, chilling, disturbing, diverting, and tragic. The finale leaves the viewer stunned and sitting there thinking about what he just saw. See this film, and believe it. I think you will find, its one of the BEST ever.

The second film to win all five major Oscars: Best Picture, Best Actor (Nicholson), Best Actress (Fletcher), Director, and Screenplay. And it deserved all of them.

Rated R for language, violence, sexual content, and brief nudity.