“Bob Rafelson’s The King of Marvin Gardens is a perversely satisfying movie and it works after going out of its way not to.” – review by Roger Ebert
The movie Five Easy Pieces gets most of the glory, but when it comes to classic, subtle Jack Nicholson, you needn’t look much further than Atlantic City and The King of Marvin Gardens. It’s the story of a depressed radio monologist (think Ira Glass crossed with Eeyore) eho travels to Atlantic City, New Jersey to visit his scheming brother who has plans to screw over a mobster.
One of a number of collaborations between Nicholson and director Bob Rafelson, this movie is full of subtle humor and ‘70s angst. But if tightly wound drama isn’t you’re thing, stay tuned anyway; you can see some boobs at around the 51 minute mark, not to mention a fantastic lecture on inter species sexual relations over lobster about an hour in.
The King of Marvin Gardens had it tough being compared to Rafelson and Nicholson’s previous work Five Easy Pieces, which was nominated for four Academy Awards, but it’s miles away from their first partnership. Nicholson and Rafelson were co-writers on the film Head, a staring vehicle for none other than The Monkees.
For those of you who don’t know, Rafelson was one of the creators of everyone’s favorite fake pop group. At about the same time, Nicholson thought his career lay in writing and directing so he teamed with Rafelson to write The Monkee’s big screen debut. Lucky for everyone, Nicholson got back to acting and Rafelson stopped creating bands.
So take some time and visit with a classic piece of American ‘70s cinema, and let us know, is this truly an over looked classic?
CJ – Crackle Blog Editor
Tags: Bob Rafelson, bruce dern, Ellen Burstyn, jack nicholson, Scatman Crothers