The movie, Head, directed by Bob Rafelson and featuring The Monkee’s- at it’s core, is an experimental New Hollywood Cinema movie. It examines politics, entertainment industries, and society during the time the movie was made (1968). During the time that the film was being made, American society was undergoing a lot of changes- assassinations of political figures who stood for equality between races, the emerging women’s rights movement, the Vietnam War, and on top of all of this, people were becoming less and less trusting of the government. All of these forces came together, and the year that Head was released has been called The Revolution That Was 1968, comprised of  “A generation of young people came of age in the 1960s questioning all forms of authority”.  Looking at the history of everything, it sheds light on many of the scenes that are depicted in Head, and leads me to believe that the movie was trying to “call to action” it’s audience to be more aware of their surroundings and of life in general.

One scene in the movie, depicts the band members of The Monkees, who are the main characters in the film (and one of the few constant variables), in a war trench in Vietnam. Michael volunteers to go out into the war field to obtain ammunition, and while he’s dodging bullets and bombs, a photographer appears and he says, “Hold it, this is for LIFE.” and proceeds to take his picture. This is a notable scene, and calls attention to one of the messages the film is trying to convey.

The photographing for LIFE magazine of a soldier in the Vietnam war, represents how the director and actors of the film feel towards the war and media. I believe it suggests they think the war was too publicized in the media, and that the media had a big influence on how long the war went on. This scene is transitioned into a scene of the band playing at a concert, while clips of war footage is dispersed throughout the scene.

All of the scenes in the movie have a meaning, and many of them are politically charged, however, the scenes are completely different from each other and the movie follows no plot. The movie essentially is mocking war, the entertainment industry, and America. It was definitely an anti-establishment film, asking their audience not to conform. I don’t think that the audience understood what Head was trying to communicate- the film that cost $790,000 to create, only made a little over $16,000. Head was extremely unconventional during it’s time, and received a lot of bad reviews… however, over the years it has gathered a cult following and is considered “…one of the weirdest and best rock movies ever made, and a harbinger of the so-called New Hollywood.”, by popular journalists today.

One of the first trailers for the movie, was received with a lot of confusion by the masses, and deterred people from seeing the movie.

Even the advertising for the movie was unconventional, although the satirical and ironic humor of the trailer is widely appreciated today.

Although unconventional, the movie was one of the first in New Hollywood Cinema. It fit the bill of being, “…thematically complex, formally innovative, morally ambiguous, anti-establishment,”. A lot of New Hollywood Cinema films fit this bill, but Head, does it very accurately. The film style was innovative, and experimented with cutting back and forth between scenes, each scene being a different kind of film genre- romance, comedy, horror, war movie, etc. The filming of the movie in itself was ahead of it’s time, and the director was later called, “…the leader of the so-called American New Wave”.

The movie was a great representation of New Hollywood Cinema and what is stands for, especially since it was so  unconventional in its day. In the end, the main characters of the movie also had personal stake in the message of the movie. The Monkees were a well known rock band in their day, and after watching the movie, it’s clear that they were unhappy with the way that the music industry, and the entertainment industry treated them. They portrayed this in one of the scenes in the movie where mannequins of themselves are literally being torn apart by a crowd during a concert. The Monkees probably felt like they were being taken advantage of, and being pulled apart by outside forces, and the movie Head helped them explain this to the masses.

 

Sources

Gillon, Steven M. “The Revolution That Was 1968.” History.com, A&E Television Networks, 23 Feb. 2018, URL: The Revolution That Was 1968. (historical)

Lynskey, Dorian. “The Monkees’ Head: ‘Our Fans Couldn’t Even See It’.” The Guardian, Guardian News and Media, 28 Apr. 2011, URL: The Monkees’ Head’: Including a Jack Nicholson Interview. (critical)

“” Head ” – Official Film Trailer 1968.” YouTube, YouTube, 21 June 2015, URL: Head Official Trailer. (historical)

“A HISTORY OF AMERICAN NEW WAVE CINEMA.” New Wave Film.com | French New Wave / Nouvelle Vague and International Cinema of the 1950s, 60s, and 70s, URL: A History of American New Wave Cinema. (critical)

“Bob Rafelson’s ‘Five Easy Pieces’ Is the Quintessential Film of the so-Called American New Wave • Cinephilia & Beyond.” Cinephilia & Beyond, 22 Apr. 2018, URL: Bob Rafelson Review. (critical)