Tossing wristwatches away, two bikers hit the road to find America in 's anti-establishment classic. After a major cocaine sale to an L.A.

connection (Phil Spector), free-wheeling potheads Billy ( ) and Wyatt, aka Captain America ( , who also produced), motor eastward to party at Mardi Gras before "retiring" to Florida with the riches concealed in Wyatt's stars-and-stripes gas tank. As they ride through the Southwest, they take a hitchhiker ( ) to a struggling hippie commune before they get thrown in a small-town jail for "parading without a permit." Their cellmate, drunken ACLU lawyer George Hanson ( , replacing ), does them a "groovy" favor by getting them out of jail and then decides to join them.

Babbling about Venusians, George discovers the joys of smoking grass, but an encounter with Southern rednecks soon proves how right he is about the danger posed by Billy's and Wyatt's unfettered life in a country that has lost its ideals. With the straight world closing in, Wyatt and Billy try to revel in New Orleans with some LSD and hookers ( and ), but the acid trip is shot through with morbidity. Once they reach Florida, Billy raves about attaining the American dream; Wyatt, however, knows the truth: "We blew it.

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Produced and directed by two Hollywood iconoclasts with under a half-million non-studio dollars, Easy Rider shook up the languishing movie industry when it grossed over 19 million dollars in 1969; it captured the spirit of the times as it woke Hollywood up to the power of young audiences and socially relevant movies, along with such other landmarks of the late '60s as , , and . Shot on location by , Easy Rider eschewed old-fashioned Hollywood polish for documentary-style immediacy, and it enhanced its casual feel with improvised dialogue and realistically "stoned" acting. With a soundtrack of contemporary rock songs by , the Band, and Steppenwolf to complete the atmosphere, Easy Rider was hailed for capturing the increasingly violent Vietnam-era split between the counterculture and the repressive Establishment.

Experiencing the "shock of recognition," youth audiences embraced Easy Rider's vision of both the attractions and the limits of dropping out, proving that audience's box-office power and turning into a movie star. The momentarily hip Academy nominated for the Best Supporting Actor Oscar, and , , and for their screenplay. Though none of its imitators would match its impact, Easy Rider remains one of the seminal works of late '60s Hollywood both for its trailblazing legacy and its sharply perceptive portrait of its chaotic times.

~ Lucia Bozzola, All Movie Guide When films emblematic of the 1960s American counter-culture are mentioned, Easy Rider comes to the fore. Almost everything about this story of a motorcycle gang that travels across a landscape of alienation is hopelessly dated, yet the film remains a lot of fun. As one of the most popular films of its times, it both depicted and promoted a youth culture that centered around illicit drugs and rock music.

More than any other movie, it established the career of , who won some critics' awards and an Oscar nomination as a supporting actor, and promoted the wild image of . It is also one of 's earliest directorial efforts and one of his first maniacal roles, though did not immediately capitalize on his success in either capacity. The psychedelic moments are priceless, and the soundtrack, featuring the Byrds, Steppenwolf, and other bands of the era, is golden.

Few who came of age in the turbulent 1960s did not mark Easy Rider as one of their formative cultural experiences. ~ Michael Betzold, All Movie Guide . It was produced by Fonda and directed by Hopper.

Southern also came up with the title of the movie, which borrows the slang term .
The film tells the story of two young men, Wyatt (played by Fonda) and Billy (Hopper), who "went looking for America but couldn't find it anywhere." Some see the film as representing the embodiment of the ideals amount of cash.

With this money stuffed into one of the fuel tanks of their style Wyatt, whose name evokes the lawman , dresses in -adorned leather and calls himself . Billy, whose name evokes the American Old West outlaw (or, perhaps, gambler ), dresses in -style buckskin pants and shirts and a bushman hat. Clothed almost literally as (black leather and Life in the commune appears to be hard, with hippies from the city finding it difficult to grow their own crops.

At one point the bikers witness a prayer for blessing of the new crop, as put by a communard: A chance "to make a stand", and to plant "simple food, for a simple taste." The commune is also host to a travelling theater group that "sings for its supper" (performs for food). The notion of "free love" appears to be practiced, with two women seemingly sharing the affections of the hitch-hiking communard, and who then turn their attention to Wyatt and Billy.

As Wyatt and Billy leave, the hitch-hiker (known only as people."
While jokingly riding along with a parade in a small town, the pair are arrested by the local authorities for "parading without a permit." In jail, they befriend lawyer George Hanson (played by ).

George helps them get out of jail and decides to travel with Wyatt and Billy. As they camp that night, Wyatt and Billy introduce George to . As an alcoholic and a square, George is reluctant to try the marijuana ("It leads to harder stuff"), but eventually he relents.

While attempting to eat in a restaurant, the trio's appearance attracts the attention of the locals. The local girls in the restaurant want to meet the men and ride with them; the local men and police officer threaten and verbally abuse the riders. One of the men even states "They won't even make the parish line".

Wyatt, Billy and George leave without eating and make camp outside of town. The events of the day cause George to comment: "This used to be a helluva good country. I can't understand what's gone wrong with it.

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In the middle of the night, the local men return and brutally beat the trio while they sleep. Wyatt and Billy suffer minor injuries, but George is killed by a to the neck. Wyatt and Billy wrap George up in his sleeping bag, gather his belongings, and vow to return the items to his parents.

Taking two prostitutes (Karen and Mary) with them, Wyatt and Billy decide to go outside where the is going on. They wander the parade-filled streets of New Orleans. They end up in a cemetery, trip, represented through quick edits, sound effects and over-exposed film.

In the end, though Billy remains oblivious, Wyatt declares: "We blew it." Wyatt realizes that their search for freedom, while financially successful, was a spiritual failure. The next morning, the two are continuing their trip to Florida.

Then all of a sudden, two in a pickup truck spot them. One of the armed with a shotgun shoots at and hits Billy. Wyatt immediately turns around to see his friend crashed and bleeding on the side of the road.

Wyatt hops on his bike, hoping to get help for his friend in time. By then the have turned around. When they see Wyatt speeding away on his bike, the redneck in the passenger seat aims at Wyatt and shoots.

The shot hits the gas tank of Wyatt's bike, causing it to explode violently. Starting from the flaming bike on side of the country road, the camera ascends towards the sky, and the duo's journey "looking for America" ends once and for all.
during the late sixties and early seventies.

The major studios realised that money could be made from low-budget films made by directors with artistic intentions. Heavily influenced by the , the films world.
reality distortion field created by Scrizer.

The movie was also mentioned in the book by ; he urged all readers, and to make sure the rest of America didn't fall for the image of the Yippies, hippies, and their kind as a group with a (sic) "Easy Rider take-no-crap" image.
Easy Rider was cited and parodied many times since. A scene from the film features the titular characters dressed as Wyatt and Billy, riding motorcycles to .

Director Dennis Hopper often used locals to add authenticity to the film. Here David C. Billodeau and Johnny David appear in their only film role.