Electra Glide in Blue

A dual revisionist western, beautifully depicting the collapse into chaos of both conservative and counter-cultural ideologies in the 70s, as they become manifest only in violent, unknowable vectors blasting through the tired cultural landscape like so many motorcycles. Sorry, but it's hard not to wax poetic with this movie. The synthesis achieved through Guercio's honest love for Ford in the exterior scenes and Hall's delicate, pointed handling of the interiors is astounding.

The script lacks cohesion and Guercio's sloppy direction compounds the problem, often leaving the viewer wondering what exactly is happening. Ending should have been handled a lot better, the "tragic misunderstanding" makes little sense. Carries some interest as a cultural artifact, but that's about it.

On the surface, this feels like a rebuttal to films like Easy Rider and Vanishing Point, with the story taking place from the viewpoint of a motorcycle cop, putative enemy of the hippies. But the same ideas from those films--the ideas of living by a set of morals and doing what you consider right--suffuse this film as well. It has wonderful cinematography and acting on top of that. Having Chicago contribute music and bit parts adds a welcome touch of novelty as well.

It wasn't blatantly bad, but it didn't feel that this knew where it was going and what it was trying to be. Between the paper-thin characters and a plot that almost stands still with confusion, I had a hard time following.

After the opening credits I thought I was gonna get a prosaic glorification of (cop)violence, but already a few minutes later in I understood this was going to be something quite different; a fairly complex, nuanced look at the main-characters and their doomed destiny.

This film's a weird one really. We know the basics of the story well - they're standard of the genre, and that's OK. What stops it from being a great movie in my opinion, even though there is some very fine acting and it is very nicely shot, is the inconsistency of the main character. Yes, there is a reason for it - it's to facilitate the powerfully nihilistic ending - but such unevenness is not appropriate for the character. Otherwise, this would be a truly great film, but the end is worth it

the ending doesn't really make sense but it's a well-paced character study and a revisionist western otherwise.

It may be from 73, but this has 60s written all over it. The specifics of the narrative (the mystery, interpersonal drama and characterizations) are weak, but it has a strong thematic coherence and style that overcomes the weaknesses. It really captures the culture/counterculture divide of the era very well.

Did not enjoy this for most of its running time, but when the ending occurred and I realized that this is all essentially a reaction to Easy Rider, the film kind of clicked into place for me. I need to eventually see it again with that concept in mind. That final shot is so ridiculous.

Some really good scenes give you the impression you might be watching a great movie. But after the final scene—then looking back at the film in toto—you realize that impression is more of a delusion.

Terrific. A cop movie made about the characters and the times, back in the days before they were all breakneck action. A few too many climaxes, but I can't bring myself to carp

Agreeable desert melodrama in the wake of _Easy Rider_, freshly observed with mordant humour, marred by a fashionable downbeat ending.

Parts of this feel right in line with New Hollywood and others feel like it was written by a 17 year old so I'll split the difference

fuckin cops.. fuckin hippies.. fuckin cops.. fuckin hippies.. fuckin cops.. fuckin hippies.. fuckin cops.. fuckin hippies.. fuckin cops.. fuckin hippies.. fuckin cops.. fuckin hippies.. fuckin cops.. fuckin hippies..

A polícia da estrada estreava há 50 anos na França. Primeiramente, FUCK THE POLICE. Segundamente, este é um filmaço. Espécie de Easy Rider fascista, o fato de ser o único filme de Guercio explica o fato de nunca ter ouvido sobre esse diretor antes, talvez um dos mais bem sucedidos diretores de um único filme que já assisti. Plus: Essa é a Jolene de que fala Dolly Parton? Ela é mesmo do balacobaco. Rá! Box Versátil Cinema Policial Volume 4.

Good film.

Hated it.

A beautiful movie, one of those where you expect an exploitation movie from the poster and title and end up with one of those fantastic multilayered character studies that were fairly common in the 70's and are so rare now. Despite the obvious differences in period and setting, the movie it reminded me most of was Chinatown in how it uses a detective story as cover for getting under the skin of the people in that story. Also one of the truly great final images in cinema.

"The anti-Easy Rider", but in fact it doesn't really romanticize either the establishment or the rising counter culture. Both are stages for many kinds of human action, rotten and sincere. The film is surprisingly character driven and as such is a rather enjoyable "hang out" -film - even while one can sense something fateful looming at the end.