The way to watch this film is with the Nicholson commentary. This is a very good art film with intriguing ideas and an existentialist theme, however the pace is so slow that at times you would get bored, Nicholson's commentary fits perfectly into this and adds a great deal. Today this would be considered way to slow. In the seventies art films like this were able to have long shots with little or no dialogue. In this world of video games and high budget cgi action its refreshing to see something that you can get absorbed in or lost in like a dream, and reflects more accurately the pace and events of real life.
The story narration flips between past, present and location. At times it can be a bit difficult to follow, both where they are and when they are, but this adds to the overall intrigue of the film. Identity, time, place are all interwoven together. The themes are Bunuelian in many ways and this type of film, with real ideas and themes about the existence of life and what it means to live with an identity are explored very well. Movies like this simply aren't being made today.
The name of the game in this film is "understated." Everything, from the performance by Nicholson to the sex scene, or implied one, and car chase, or implied one is not over the top. Maria Schnieder doesn't give a stellar performance. In the commentary, Nicholson states she was on pain pills for a back problem, however it was well known at the time she had a drug problem. Seems like she was on drugs throughout the film. Maybe heroin or some kind of downer, I watched this film in many ways to see her follow up to "The Last Tango in Paris" where she was vibrant, charismatic, and very sexually charged. This film, seems like she is more subdued, jaded and reserved and she is still only 23 at the time this was made. "Last Tango In Paris" took its toll on her, even by this point it is apparent she was damaged by what had happened during the aftermath of that film.
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