|
By
NICK ZEGARAC
"Easy Rider" is the '60s
counter-culture classic that seems to wreak
slightly of formaldehyde today. It stars Peter
Fonda (Wyatt) and Dennis Hopper (Billy) as a pair
of drugged out loners who trade a formidable
amount of cocaine to "Connection" (Phil Spector)
for a sizable amount of cash. Unfortunately, the
best that either Wyatt or Billy can think of doing
with their new found wealth is to mount a pair of
truly sweet cycles and roam the countryside --
looking for trouble and, ultimately finding more
than they bargained for. Along the way they enter
into an on again off again tempestuous
relationship with loose canon George Hanson (Jack
Nicholson). Together the boys go through a heap of
money, a string of hookers and more than a few
ounces of psychedelic trippin'. Nothing seems to
help cleanse these reprobates of their rebel
without a clue -- little boys lost -- syndrome.
Fueled by a soundtrack that features Steppenwolf's
classic "Born to Be Wild," "Easy Rider" is
anything but, and perhaps, the closest realization
of the decade's hippie counterculture ever put on
film. That it today seems quaint in its hostility
toward authority only serves to reflect just how
lost contemporary film culture is.
Previously, "Easy Rider" had been made available
through Columbia Tristar in a moderately pleasing
DVD transfer. If you're thinking of upgrading to
this new, 35th Anniversary edition for a better
print of the film don't bother. This is the exact
same transfer and extras previously made
available. The only pluses to this edition are an
extra CD of the film's soundtrack and a nicely put
together pocket book on the making of the film.
But the DVD quality remains the same.
As for the quality of the transfer -- beginning as
it does with several long shots of the boys on
their bikes, there is a remarkable amount of
resolution to be had in the image. Fine details
are nicely realized for the most part and colors,
while slightly dated, exhibit a fairly accurate
level of contrast and balance. Unfortunately,
roughly mid-way through this transfer some strange
digital happenings begin to occur, beginning with
the flashback sequence in which Wyatt and Billy
pick up a pair of hookers. Designed to reflect to
an audience that the sequence is going on in the
mind of the boys, it's exceptionally grainy and
slightly out of focus with a bleached-out color
scheme that is unflattering to say the least. On
top of the inherent grain in the print we get an
exceptional amount of digital grit that generally
makes for a very harsh looking image. Also, the
print quality after the flashback -- which until
its insertion had been moderately pleasing to very
nicely done -- is increasingly riddled with age
related artifacts and grain which degrades the
film's image quality in the final third. I really
am unable to account for the reason this occurs
but it does and it is distracting. The audio is
5.1 and, as expected, dated. Dialogue is never
natural sounding, obviously manufactured
postproduction studio recordings that are tinny at
best. The one kick that the audio gets is in its
throbbing rock score that jumps to life with an
explosive bass and vibrating treble. |
