"Easy Rider"; the bikers' dream of freedom

Photo: Brian Snelson/wikimedia commons

The film Easy Rider (1969), directed by Dennis Hopper, is about the two friends Wyatt and Billy, played by Peter Fonda and Dennis Hopper, and their quest for freedom.

After making money from a drug deal that takes place near an airstrip, they buy motorcycles and embark on a journey across the United States to experience freedom and find a place to belong. The motorcycles they ride are, of course, the arch-American icon Harley-Davidson .

Dennis Hopper directed Easy Rider and played Billy. Photo: wikimedia commons

On their journey south to Mardi Gras, the celebration of the last day of carnival in New Orleans, they meet people from different parts of American society. They experience both kindness and community, but also prejudice, violence and a strong hatred towards people who live differently. Among them is lawyer George Hanson, played by Jack Nicholson, who accompanies them for a part of the way. George represents a person who wants freedom, but who is also afraid of society's reactions. The meeting with Wyatt and Billy brings out the rebellious side in George, and he really lets loose, sitting on the back of Wyatt's Harley with a helmet used in American football.

Peter Fonda; Captain America. Photo: wikimedia commons

The film shows the contrast between the hippie culture and the more conservative American society of the late 1960s. Wyatt and Billy want to live freely without following society's rules, but their journey shows that this freedom comes at a high price. I won't reveal the final scene of the film other than to say that it is tragic to say the least......

Billy Bike; The Panhead ridden by Billy. Photo: Brian Snelson/wikimedia commons

Easy Rider is therefore not just a road movie, but as much a film about freedom, individualism, counterculture and intolerance. It became an important symbol of 1960s youth culture, and showed how the desire for freedom could clash with established American society and its conservative values.

One of the world's most iconic Harleys; Captain America