Five Easy Pieces - 1970 American Drama Film Written by Carole Eastman

Five Easy Pieces

Five Easy Pieces is a 1970 American drama film written by Carole Eastman (as Adrien Joyce) and Bob Rafelson, and directed by Rafelson. The film stars Jack Nicholson as Bobby, Karen Black as Rayette, Susan Anspach as Catherine, Ralph Waite as Carl, and Sally Ann Struthers as Betty. Five Easy Pieces was filmed in many locations in the United States and Canada. The film is a new genre of drama in American Cinema, which rejects the idea of institutions. Five Easy Pieces is also unique, because it plot wanders throughout the film.

Bobby comes from a well-bred family of musicians, and once showed great promise as a concert pianist. Bobby by nature is an edgy, angry individual; who left his family and his music when he could no longer endure the dull, confined routine of daily practice. He took to the road, wanting to "see the world," and hopefully find something or someone to control his inner turmoil. He has settled in a small town as an oil rigger, where his life consists of going to work, arguing with his senseless but loving girlfriend Rayette, and bowling every night with his friend Elton. Bobby eventually gets sick of this routine, and sets out to visit his sister Partita and finds out his father is ill. When Bobby finds out about his dad’s illness, he goes home and is confronted with his rich, cultured family that he had left behind.

One film aesthetic I found interesting in Five Easy Pieces was the narrative of the main character Bobby. Bobby was not the average main character for he was portrayed as an anti-hero. An anti-hero is a central character in a story, movie, or drama that lacks conventional heroic attributes. Bobby is an angry and edgy individual, who can’t seem to stay in a routine. Bobby is a perfect character to match the film’s plot of always wandering around. A great example of this is during the last scene when Bobby decides to leave everything behind and go on