8. One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest (1975)
Warner Bros.
What's It All About? Jack Nicholson was riding the wave of an incredible run of classic performances when he immortalised the anti-hero criminal of Ken Keseys classic novel, Randle McMurphy. The character accepts a transfer to a psychiatric hospital in lieu of prison, despite not showing any real signs of mental illness besides a total lack of respect for authority. Once there, he soon finds the ultimate impenetrable wall of blank, disaffected power in the chilling form of Nurse Ratched (Louise Fletcher) whose vicelike control over the psychiatric ward - when threatened by the free spirit of McMurphy - squeezes ever tighter, with tragic consequences.
What's The Question Then? Can an individual stand up to the system without being crushed?
Does It Answer It? Yes it does. Depressingly, with a resounding no.