The historical question of how the film relates to and reflects the popular culture of the time immediately comes to mind while considering the movie Head. In an article by Dorian Lynskey in 2011, titled, ‘The Monkees’ Head: Our Fans Couldn’t Even see it’, it is argued that the Monkees did not have any control over how the movie was made. Bewilderment was the dominant emotion felt by the band after they saw the final cut, as the scenes piled up in disorder with no apparent connection with the overall plot. In a quote from this source, Micky Dolenz says, “There’s a scene with me and Teri Garr in the old west and I get hit by arrows and I say, ‘Bob, I can’t do this fake shit any more.’ Well, that was a metaphor for people being fed up with the studio system.” This statement illustrates the enormous effect the American culture of the times had upon Head, as the film industry was undergoing a shift in how movies were filmed and directed. Society demanded movies that more closely followed real life. Although films made before the late ’60s included sex and violence, the portrayal abruptly shifted to be more matter-of-fact in the films created after this time.

In an article published in 2016, named, ‘The Monkees’ ‘Head’: One of Hollywood’s Most Influential and Overlooked Films’, it is maintained that the Monkees became involved in making Head, as a result of their desire to crawl out from underneath their stamped image of being a copy of the Beatles. Even in the theme song of Head, entitled, the Porpoise Song, the Monkees can be seen to ‘say goodbye’ to the branded idea that their band was not original or modern. Once their third album was released, composed exclusively of songs the band had written and performed themselves, the Monkees were further disappointed in the public’s lack of acknowledgement for their effort in being entirely new. It is clear that the culture and social views of the ’60s was affecting the Monkees, as their frustration with the clinging “Pre-Fab Four” mark led them to enter the movie business. However, the Monkees went further than just wiping out the preconceived persona the public maintained of their band, through the creation of a film that challenged the social structure of the United States.

The technology used in Head reflected the popular culture of the ’60s in America, as audiences wanted innovative styles and camera angles to populate the screen that surpassed the old method of filming. However, through their approach of telling the events of the movie, the Monkees were creating a new aspect of culture that would be responded to in the movies to come. The fantastical scene sequences, along with the studios’ indifferent attitude towards making the movie legible to audiences, introduced the next trend of films. Additionally, in this era, as dissenting voices were being heard on a public stage, the Monkees echoed this openness by rebelliously declaring their scornful opinions on every subject the American people held dear.

The New Wave cinema movement occurred during the 1960s, and influenced films through the advent of fresh editing practices, as well as introducing a fluid camera use. Released in 1968, this film strongly corresponded to this cinematic movement, as it not only came out while the New Wave cinema was in practice, but also because Head employed distinctive editing techniques throughout every scene.

Head has some strains of mainstream cinema, as it had an extremely large budget and was produced by a large corporation in the film industry. However, this film is mainly unconventional, due to its unique style of storytelling that leans more towards art than a clear or focused method of relating the plot. In the same way, Head challenged established social along with political matters, as unconventional films target a specific crowd and can therefore alienate some groups in society. One of the major issues, aside from war, that Head derided during the course of the film was Hollywood and the film industry. Continuously entering into scenes that first appear real, before the Monkees trample through a paper wall, or walk off from the scene that was enfolding, demonstrates the fact that everything in the film is just part of a set. Moreover, it insinuates that Hollywood movies are not very realistic.

Watching the film in contemporary times seems to mirror the confused and dissatisfied reaction of audiences in 1968. The scenes were wholly unconnected, and there was no apparent plot that tied everything together. The trailer for the movie expressed the myriad isolated scenes in the movie, with the transitions making as little sense as the scenes themselves.

The multiple themes that Head tried to include, such as a western, science-fiction or war movie, were too diverse to really fit into one plot. In a review from the year of the film’s release, the point is made that, “The special effects — playing with perspective, focus, dimension…are most accessible to [those on] marijuana…” Although the special effects used in the film were interesting, there was no need for them, as seeing the Monkees inside a vacuum cleaner did not appear to relate to a central theme of the storyline. Furthermore, the conversations in the film did not progress the story, and served as trite place-holders for actions that could have advanced the plot.