Easy Riders, Raging Bulls
Year: 2003
Grade: B
Country: USA
Director: Bowser
Reviewa sweeping overview of 70s film and what it meant for the studio system. the quick version is that the studio system, as we knew it in the 40s, died in 1963 because of a series of big-budget flops. but because of the influence of independent films (cassavetes, corman, etc. which they barely talked about), foreign films (french new wave, especially), and a few talented auteurs the studio system survived and evolved. the auteurs, and their lifestyle, is the main focus of the documentary. i felt it segued too frequently into the personal lives (read: drama) of certain players like bogdanovich, beatty, and polanski, but i suppose that that was an integral part of the creative output at the time. they also either omitted or glossed over the contributions of cassavetes, russ meyer, 70s indie horror flicks from craven, carpenter, etc., exploitation pictures, and more – all of which had an effect on 70s cinema, 70s audiences and the directors who were mentioned in the film. i think that the biggest untold element of the transformation of hollywood at this time was the explosion of independent films that pushed the boundaries – exploitation stuff that built on the 60s flicks, revenge flicks like last house, fight for your life, i spit on your grave, etc., which were amazingly gruesome, etc. the 70s were a very interesting time in cinema. also, while it got into the directors’ personal lives, it didn’t look very much at the social context. in other words, it’s a film that’s too ambitious for its sub-two hour running time. but there are worse things that being ambitious. it’s got so much information that you’re bound to learn something about 70s film or those involved in it.