Plot Details: This opinion reveals minor details about the movie's plot.

Hair (1979) Directed by Milos Forman

Gimme a head with hair, long beautiful hair!
Shining, gleaming, steaming, flaxen, waxen!
Give me down to there, hair!
Shoulder length or longer! (Hair!)
Here baby, there mamma, Everywhere daddy daddy!
Flow it, show it, long as God can grow it, my hair!

Do you remember the sixties? I do; I was born too late to be a hippy, but I do remember watching with fascination. I was a precocious child; and I was never afraid to ask a question. I understood Vietnam and Women’s Liberation, because it was the path of least resistance to explain everything. (I am told I could be annoying, and I don’t think my family would lie to me.) I remember watching my friend’s older siblings lounging about, wearing beads and headbands and fighting with their parents about their hair.

I watched my babysitter burn her bra. I watched her brother burn his draft card. I knew what they were rebelling against; my grandfather was a Baptist Preacher. Conservative does not begin to cover it. Only a true Christian compassion kept him from being unbearable.

And I heard about Hair. It was a stage play, and I knew the basic plot, Claude is a boy from Oklahoma who has been drafted. He goes to New York to be inducted, and while there he runs into a group of Hippies. He also meets a debutante, and falls in love. In the few days before he enlists, his new friends not only open his mind, they see how far they pry it open before his brain falls out.

Then, in 1979, they made the movie. I got drug on a trip to Little Rock while my mom took a class for Continuing Education Units. I had the twins with me, and hours to kill, so I caught a matinee, and prayed they would sleep through it.

Bless the little darlings, they did.

And I was in love.

John Savage was Claude Bukowski, a farm boy from Oklahoma, going to do his duty for God and Country. He was honest, forthright, and a little tense. He definitely felt a bit of the country Bumpkin in New York City.

He ran into a group of hippies in the park, begging for change. Like me, he was a hippy watcher. And one in particular caught his attention. Berger.

George Berger. Treat Williams played him with a wonderful casual ease, totally comfortable inside his own skin, shielded only by his hair. Berger is the Trickster King, monarch of his little world, and rules it with benevolence and humour. His only enemies are those stuffed shirts who get in the way of his good time. His only weapon is good humour and a total disregard for social restriction.
The rest of his pack are Jeannie, (Annie Golden) she’s sweet, not to bright, and having a baby. The baby belongs to either Hud (Dorsey Wright) a gorgeous black man, or Woof, (Don Dacus) a golden haired god. (Yep, the Dacus of the Chicago controversy. Such a shame that his careers never did more. This is his only acting credit.) Jeannie does not know, nor does she particularly care.

When they meet, Claude is actually more interested in a trio of debutantes on horse back. The quartet of begging hippies was a colourful distraction. When Berger asks him for change, he at first rebuffs him. But the casual acceptance of Berger’s reaction touched him, and he gave them a quarter. A minor triumph and it could have been the end of it.

But instead of buying food, they rent a horse, in change, and go riding after the debutantes. Woof sings one of the best songs ever, cradled in Berger’s arms as they pace the women on horseback. “Sodomy, Fellatio…” My jaw hit the floor.

But the horse gets away, and Claude, cowboy that he is, catches it. Berger encourages him to chase his lady love, Sheila (Beverly D’Angelo). Later, he hooks back up with the hippies, and everything flows from there.

I remember thinking about the wonderful chaos of the Choreography back in 1979 and thinking, yeah…there is something there that really does capture what this was all about. Now, in 2008 I understand more about what it was. There was constant motion, graceful, beautiful, but no structure, no order, it just sort of happened without direction. And that is what the flower children were…beautiful in their youth, graceful in their simple philosophy of love, and totally directionless. (Just for the record, I do know how hard that is to choreograph…much harder than a floorshow number)

I remember thinking even then, how wonderful to be that free. (Remember, I am watching this movie with twin one year olds…freedom was in very short supply.) I still recall the wonderful thrill of watching the flower children scandalize the world around me as a child. It was a glorious time, and a tragic one, and the movie captured it so very handily.

It had a casual distain for racism. It had strong women. It showed men being affectionate out in public, even with each other. It was glorious.

And there were even more thrills for me. The flirting with the forbidden subject of the Love That Dare Not Speak It’s Name. When Woof was arrested, they tried to cut his hair. He freaked. That landed him a little session with the shrink.

Shrink: And men?
Woof: What do you mean...?
Shrink: You have any sexual attraction towards men?
Woof: You mean if I'm a homosexual or something like that?
Shrink: Yeah.
Woof: Well, I wouldn't kick Mick Jagger out of my bed, but uh, I'm not a homosexual, no.
Even better, were the song Black Boys and White Boys. They were semiduets, of dual ensembles. Each is sung by a trio of women in the park, and by a line of army recruiters looking at a buck naked recruit. It sure changes the meaning!

So the movie is about freedom, calling for free love, free drugs, shed the shackles of society, and have fun! But that is not the whole of the message. I loved that when they were arrested, and Berger talked Claude into releasing him instead so he could raise the money for all their fines, ultimately, it was Mamma Berger who gave them the money.

And the next turn of responsibility came when Hud is confronted by his fiancé and his son. Her solo “How Can People Have No Feeling” is one of the most moving of the movie….
How can people be so heartless
How can people be so cruel
Easy To Be Hard; Easy to be cold

And the last, of course the ultimate, consequence was due to Berger’s brilliant little plan to smuggle Claude off the base so he could see Sheila. The mark of the true Trickster King is his ability to love, and to sacrifice for that love…self sacrifice.

And for all the relationship between Claude and Sheila, I have often wondered if it wasn’t something of a triangle. The scene when they are singing Manchester, England, England while high on Acid is so very erotic. The way Berger supports and manipulates Claude seems decidedly sensual. And I think there was a very definite chemistry between Sheila and Berger. I think she, like me, was captivated by his easy sexuality and total freedom.

And as wonderful as the movie itself is, the focus is, of course, the music. This is the music I grew up to. I sang Age of Aquarius for the (mandatory) talent contest at school. Let the Sunshine In is one of those songs I use to fight the blues. And so long as I live, I will never forget “I Got Life.” And the lady in pink who dances on the table? Does anyone recognize Mrs. Garrett? Charlotte Rae was hilarious. Have you ever noticed it’s the “ladies of a certain age” that can really cut loose?

Hair is iconic. When you say “the sixties” I think of Kent State, Viet Nam, and my Baby sitter and her brother burning the things that bind them. And the soundtrack in my mind is this, the sound track to Hair. It is my second favorite musical. Only The Rocky Horror Picture Show is dearer to me.

So, if you want a trip down memory lane, or are wondering what all the hype your parents (or grandparents) are talking about, this is the movie to watch.

I realize it doesn’t make sense to kids these days. They can’t understand the oppression that dominated our society that the hippies were railing against. I look around, and I realize that there are no hippies left. There may be some old stoners who can’t let go, but there are no hippies. There are no feminists any more either. The issue is almost gone. It is becoming an equitable world. As mom puts it, “There is a sad shortage of suffragettes these days.” And some day, there will be no gay rights activists either, and race will really be a non issue. But I’ll let you in on a little secret. In my heart of hearts, I miss the hippies.


Recommended: Yes

Viewing Format: DVD
Video Occasion: Fit for Friday Evening
Suitability For Children: Suitable for Children Age 13 and Older