One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975)
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96% of critics liked it
(54 reviews) -
95% of users liked it
(229,520 ratings)
With an insane asylum standing in for everyday society, Milos Forman's 1975 film adaptation of Ken Kesey's novel is a comically sharp indictment of the Establishment urge to conform. Playing crazy to avoid prison work detail, manic free spirit Randle P. McMurphy (Jack Nicholson) is sent to… More With an insane asylum standing in for everyday society, Milos Forman's 1975 film adaptation of Ken Kesey's novel is a comically sharp indictment of the Establishment urge to conform. Playing crazy to avoid prison work detail, manic free spirit Randle P. McMurphy (Jack Nicholson) is sent to the state mental hospital for evaluation. There he encounters a motley crew of mostly voluntary inmates, including cowed mama's boy Billy (Brad Dourif) and silent Native American Chief Bromden (Will Sampson), presided over by the icy Nurse Ratched (Louise Fletcher). Ratched and McMurphy recognize that each is the other's worst enemy: an authority figure who equates sanity with correct behavior, and a misfit who is charismatic enough to dismantle the system simply by living as he pleases. McMurphy proceeds to instigate group insurrections large and small, ranging from a restorative basketball game to an unfettered afternoon boat trip and a tragic after-hours party with hookers and booze. Nurse Ratched, however, has the machinery of power on her side to ensure that McMurphy will not defeat her. Still, McMurphy's message to live free or die is ultimately not lost on one inmate, revealing that escape is still possible even from the most oppressive conditions. ~ Lucia Bozzola, Rovi
- Directed By
- Milos Forman
- Written By
- Bo Goldman /Lawrence Hauben
- Genres
- Drama, Classics, Comedy
- In Theaters
- Nov 19, 1975 Limited
- Studio
- United Artists
Critic Reviews
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Chris Nashawaty, Entertainment Weekly
There's a lot here. But with a classic like Cuckoo's Nest, too much is never enough.
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Richard Schickel, TIME Magazine
One Flew over the Cuckoo 's Nest is an earnest attempt to make a serious film. But in the end the movie backs away from both the human reality and the cloudy but potent symbolism that Ken Kesey found in the asylum.
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James Berardinelli, ReelViews
Viewed 30 years after its release, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest remains a very good motion picture, although one that perhaps just misses the pinnacle of greatness where its reputation suggests it resides.
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A.D. Murphy, Variety
Jack Nicholson stars in an outstanding characterization of Ken Kesey's asylum anti-hero, McMurphy, and Milos Forman's direction of a superbly-cast film is equally meritorious.
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Dave Kehr, Chicago Reader
Jack Nicholson plays McMurphy as if he were born to it, and the supporting cast provides fine, detailed performances.
See more critic ratings and reviews on Rotten Tomatoes
Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)
Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)
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Cast
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Jack Nicholson
as Randle Patrick McMurphy
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Louise Fletcher
as Nurse Mildred Ratched
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William Redfield
as Harding
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Dean R. Brooks
as Dr. John Spivey
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Scatman Crothers
as Turkle Crothers
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Danny DeVito
as Martini
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William Duell
as Sefelt
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Brad Dourif
as Billy Bibbit
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Christopher Lloyd
as Taber
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Will Sampson
as Chief Bromden
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Vincent Schiavelli
as Frederickson
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Delos V. Smith
as Scanlon
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Marya Small
as Candy
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Louisa Moritz
as Rose
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Mimi Sarkisian
as Nurse Pilbow
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Nathan George
as Attandant Washington
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Michael Berryman
as Ellis
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Peter Brocco
as Col. Matterson
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Alonzo Brown Jr.
as Miller
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Mwako Cumbuka
as Warren
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Josip Elic
as Bancini
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Lan Fendors
as Nurse Itsu
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Sidney Lassick
as Charlie Cheswick
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Dwight Marfield
as Ellsworth
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Ted Markland
as Hap Arlich
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Phil Roth
as Woolsey
- Alonzo Brown
- Sydney Lassick



