They’re scared of what you represent to ’em.” In regard to why so many are hostile or hateful toward ‘hippies.’ However, the topic of this conversation between George and Billy is subsequently freedom–true freedom. George, while being labeled as an “alcoholic square,” says some of the most profound things throughout the film, such as: “They’re not scared of you. George is a lawyer for the American Civil Liberties Union that Wyatt and Billy meet after they’re thrown in jail for “parading without a permit.” George travels with Wyatt and Billy for a short while before being brutally murdered in his sleep while Billy and Wyatt are only injured. The other notable character in the film is George Hansen (Jack Nicholson). The audience does not know where they come from, or how long they’ve been on the road, and in this way the film is a portrait of lone existentialism. These two characters remain self-driven throughout the film to get to Mardi Gras in New Orleans. They represent everything America is not. Wyatt and Billy are chill, free-thinking, worry-free, finding the simple joys of existence, and looking for freedom. Wyatt is more open and friendly with people, whereas Billy is more reserved and hostile. Billy wears native-American style clothes. His motorcycle and helmet are also themed in American-flag designs. Wyatt wears a leather jacket with an American Flag on it (with an Office of the Secretary of Defense Identification Badge on it). Peter Fonda and Dennis Hopper (writers) have reported that these names are references to Wyatt Earp and Bill The Kid. Throughout the film the audience follows two protagonists: Wyatt (nicknamed “Captain America”) and Billy. This article will examine all filmmaking aspects of the film, their meanings, and why the film is very much an artful souvenir of the American sixties. Dennis Hopper, the director of the film, won Best First Work at the Cannes Film Festival in 1969, and the film is hailed as a cult and hollywood classic. In many ways it’s not.Įasy Rider is a gem of minimalist filmmaking and indie art that will forever be a memoir to the American sixties counter-culture. In many ways, the film is a documentary in that sense. It blew a kiss to cinema as much as it was a commentary on the growing social milieu of the time including the hippie movement, a drug-use and a less commercial, more communal lifestyle. Easy Rider is one of the first great American art films to surface during the late 60s.
Two men went in search of America, and couldn’t find it anywhere. Easy Rider: An Artful American Souvenir Billy and Wyatt ride on the open road.