Daily Dialogue — November 11, 2018

“I‘m not just talking about my wife, I’m talking about my LIFE, I can’t seem to get that through to you. I’m not just talking about one person, I’m talking about everybody. I’m talking about form. I’m talking about content. I’m talking about interrelationships. I’m talking about God, the devil, Hell, Heaven. Do you understand… FINALLY?”

— One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest (1975), screenplay by Lawrence Hauben and Bo Goldman, novel by Ken Kesey

The Daily Dialogue theme for the week: Support Group.

Trivia: Rumors that production shut down because Jack Nicholson had hair plugs implanted are false (this can be verified by actually looking at his scalp). The story, as related by Production Designer Paul Sylbert, was that Nicholson and Milos Forman had very different ideas about how the narrative should play out. For example, Forman thought that the ward should be in bedlam when McMurphy showed up, and Nicholson posited that his character would have absolutely no effect on the mental patients if they were already riled up, which would have negated the purpose of his character, and therefore much of the plot. Nicholson and Forman refused to give an inch, each believing he was right, and the other was wrong. The “two months” that Nicholson was supposed to have disappeared, was actually closer to two weeks, and he didn’t “disappear”. In actuality, Nicholson spearheaded a coup among the other cast members, and refused to let Forman run rehearsals, running them himself instead. During production, Nicholson and Forman spoke to each other through the cinematographer, but faked a friendly relationship when the media and studio personnel would show up to the set. This is one explanation why Nicholson doesn’t appear on any of the DVD special features.

Dialogue On Dialogue: There are many therapy sessions in One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest including this explosive one.