One of the main questions a Monkees fan or just an outside observer can ask of the film Head is, what were they thinking and why? As someone who has known about the late 1960s band who have been compared to the likes of The Partridge Family and a mockery of the Beatles, I found this movie to be exactly what critics thought about the film was spot on. That being said, I respect it thoroughly. 

Directed by Jack Nicholson and produced by Bob Rafelson, the movie is anything but conventional, even by today’s standards. Rafelson who ultimately created the Monkees seemed to put in as much effort as possible to ruining the bands’ squeaky clean persona. In the beginning of the film we see a young woman going to every member and kissing them passionately before the plot (or lack thereof) begins. Taking you on a rollercoaster of what feels like an artistic film becomes more complicated, confusing and really boasts two things, as the New York Times called it back in 1968, “pot and advertising”. One could agree with this argument when you see its total lack of plot, outlandish visuals and scenes where one of the members are fighting with a Coke machine. As someone viewing with an analytic mind this could possibly be symbolic of an alleged cocaine habit. But that’s just speculation. One thing that’s certain is it was a way for the Monkees to shed their teeny-bopper image and ultimately end the bands career by alienating it’s fans and movie-goers.

Roger Ebert called it a flop while other critics decades later called it one of Hollywood’s most influential films. I can see that. Some of my favorite films are visually artistic with symbolic undertones that allow you to analyze and make sense of what is happening. This quite possibly opened the doors to other similar movies like Pink Flyods’ “The Wall” and The Whos’ “Tommy”. In the movie Tommy it features cameo performances by Elton John, Eric Clapton and Tina Turner. In Head we get a cameo of Frank Zappa. In a brief scene Davy Jones is approached by Zappa where he tells him that he notices Davy has been working on his dance moves, although they are subpar and then utters some important lines: You should spend more time on it [his musical abilities] because the youth of America depends on you to show the way.

While that may not be case where young people of America are looking to Davy Jones as an inspirational revolutionary icon, I think this speaks volumes of what the Monkees were trying to convey through this film.