For some reason, there is such a tendency: if you want to create a cult book or a movie, do it about a madhouse. Some law of psychology is that people inexplicably admire the madhouse. "Master and Margarita", "Ka Pex", "12 Monkeys", "Island of the Damned" - all these are hits of their years, the trend is some alarming.
This film contains many strange things that the modern viewer, accustomed to logic, purposefulness of actions, will be difficult to understand. So here I am, looking at this in the 21st century, not in 1975, not knowing hippies or beatniks, and I see it this way:
The man, who had to serve a sentence for a couple of months not even in prison – in the settlement, feigns madness and signs himself to stay in the madhouse for an indefinite long time. Realizing that he has increased his sentence, instead of admitting to the simulation and returning to the settlement, he continues to commit extremely destructive acts, plays with the patience of the staff, forcing doctors to apply the most cruel measures instead of being released for exemplary behavior. He escapes from the madhouse and arranges a fishing trip for idiots, after which he returns to the fool. Why? To come up with a new escape plan. He had an open ground floor window all night with no fence, no guards, even a child could escape, and what is he doing? Delayed to arrange a date with a friend and a muddle on the treatment table, and ended up sleeping all night under that open window! That's the way out - nobody runs. No one's in a hurry. Most lunatics can get away at any time – they don’t. But they dream about it. As a modern spectator, I don’t understand this.
But since the work somehow reflects the spirit of its time, it turns out, there was something then why people subconsciously wanted to go to the madhouse and not out of it. To bring something to other people, sacrificing oneself, to give freedom for the moral transformation of one’s neighbors – probably something like that. But I could not believe the naturalness of what was happening, for example, the hero could still run away when he had already helped others, but he systematically did not use any of the opportunities given to him and sought death, although this is contrary to his character. His self-sacrifice was completely unnecessary and meaningless. I also disagree with the very idea of the film - it is impossible to help crazy people by making a mess in a madhouse.
Later I read the retelling of the book. In the original, the boss of the fool was a real tyrant and despot who broke the will of people. He did what he did to confront her personally. In the film, she was made a perfectly normal medical worker, so the hero lost the villain and all his actions completely lost meaning.
