I just saw this Jack Nicholson-sponsored classic starring the Monkees, and was wondering–if you’ve seen it–did you understand it any better than I did?
I love the movie. I don’t understand it for the life of me. What the hell were the Monkees doing making that movie, anyway? Their fan base was not going to enjoy it.
A bit of history–
The TV series had been cancelled and the Monkees signed to do three television specials (only one of which was made). This left them with free time and Bob Rafelson (one of the creators of the series) came up with the idea of making the movie Head.
At this point the music people at Colgems records basically stopped promoting the Monkees records. The show was shown, for a while, on Saturday morning CBS as repeats, but the fan base was dwindling. The older fans moved up to the Beatles, Rolling Stones or others while there were few younger fans coming in. The younger potential fans moved on to the next big thing. It’s probably hard for many younger people of today to believe this, but prior to 1967 everyone (well almost) come out with at least two albums a year–plus a non album single or two. If you didn’t have at least a modest hit every six months, at the longest, you were forgotten. With out any promo, *The Porpoise Song (The Theme from Head) * died a quick death. And after *Valleri * there was (were?) no Monkees on the radio.
This lead to Head’s quick demise.
The movie Head’s plot is simple, there is none. But the movie dies purposly try to destroy the image of the Monkees that the TV series created. It was, to a certain extent, an artificial image and the Monkees wanted out of that mold.
But make no mistakes, Head was, and is, very popular with the fans of the Monkees. It is the only movie I own on video tape, laser disk and DVD. (If George Lucas ever puts out any of the original Star Wars movies on DVD they may join the ranks). Most Monkees fans concider Head to be the high point of the Monkees video existence. And I agree.
What little fan base there was, enjoyed the movie. And when the fan base came back in the late 1980’s, Head sold a lot of videos. And albums (as did every album, especially the ones released after the series was cancelled. Some peaked higher on Billboards charts then than during their initial release).
I was leading to another point, but I forgot what it was. It’s the Cleveland Indians fault, they distracted me. Maybe if I remember what is was (and I will–at about 4am while lying in bed) I’ll finish what I was saying.
Here’s another tidbit. I believe Teri Garr was involved in this film briefly and stated on David Letterman that the only reason the film was called “Head” was so that when the producers put out their second film they could put on the ads “From the people who gave you HEAD!” (Groan!)
The movie Bob Rafelson and Bert Schneider (the creators of the Monkees) made after head was **Five Easy Pieces **. I’m preatty sure that they didn’t use any Head references in promoting the movie.
According to Jack Nicholson (the co-screewriter) the movies title refers to the fact that the movie was designed to be a head-trip. Ok course, I have no doubt that the joke was used, but it only appeared long after the fact. I suspect it is a late add to **Head **lore.
I LOVE that movie. If you watch it enough it starts to make sence. They called it head because of the ad campaign they tried for it. The just had a picture of a mans head and the TV commercials just said “come see head”. That was probably part of the reason it floped, no one knew what it was.
Head came before the TV special, they tried to do the same manufactured image thing with less success in 33 1/3
Oh, I thought this was a thread about Al Snow, the wrestler. He carries a mannakin head into the ring with him. Everybody has signs that say “got head?”.
ditto that, Dolores.
Yeah, but, what’s the deal with Victor Mature?? If anyone knows then they can tell me cause I don’t have a clue.
I don’t know what the deal was with Victor Mature, but he made the comment one time (as best as I can remember), “Yeah, I’m no actor, and I have 80 movies to prove it.”
He played a parody of himself in “After the Fox” with Peter Sellers. I suspect something similar with “Head.”
I think Victor Mature kinda represents the powers controlling them, then wanting to destroy them. He flips the channels, which changes the stories, he sucks Davy into that room, they’re dandruff in his hair, and at the end he’s a giant trying to smash them.