Take It Down the Highway

I was only ten years old when Easy Rider was released. I think my dad may have brought us to the drive-in to see it, which is rather weird. Maybe it was some prior motorcycle movie. Still, I really knew only fleeting references to the 1969 film.

Today, I watched it.

Is there anyone who cannot go in for a road story? You know this specific genre of American film, I'm talking about. They take place with copious, stunning stretches of endless road. They use scenic variety to showcase a type of modern frontier. Most importantly, they all involve characters hitting the open road in order to find peace and inner freedom. I nearly get all teary-eyed just thinking about this while humming, This Land is Made for You and Me.

I don't imagine this genre's myth translates well to other cultures. Geography and circumstance seems too specific to this continent.

This particular version of the road story, seemed to chronicle the angst of an entire era well. It's been re-mastered into Dolby 5.1 so the sound track sounds great. In conclusion, some sections made me wish I'd been born eight to ten years before I was. The ending made me feel lucky I ducked those times.