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the audience applauded

Absolutely the worst movie.

Very interesting film. Was caught on the premise when seeing the trailer but unsure as to what the outcome would be for the showing. As it turns out, it was a very good film.

I really wanted to like this movie. I feel terribly cynical trashing it, and that's why I'm giving it a middling 5. Actually, I'm giving it a 5 because there were some superb performances.

The End of the Road, is probably Terry Southern's most personal work for the cinema. One over which he had most input and control. Southern's presence is felt throughout the film, from the use of his own East canaan home as a location, to Keach holding a pair of Terry's legendary 'Bono' fly style shades, to Terry's own cameo appearance as a patient.The film is superbly acted by all concerned, Keach especially and the film is shot and edited as a subversive assault on the psyche and hypocrisy of America at the end of the sixties. Family life and alienation are to the fore, and a profound sadness for the end of the sixties.The film often goes too far and screams too loudly its in gags and cleverness, but it is genuinely moving and totally unique. One can also say that the ill judged inclusion of the protracted and unwatchable abortion scene, killed any chances the film had of success. Which is a great shame, as this is a film which deserves a wider audience beyond its status as a cult oddity. The End of the Road is one hell of a unique ride if you can stay on board and a great insight into the mind of one of cinema's greatest screenwriters, Terry Southern.

That's actually perhaps a bit harsh, but at 110 minutes the over the top acting and tedious 2 characters in a room trying to "out-strange" each other, first half of the film will turn most people away. The two great lead actors make the, can you top this for over the top performance, moments interesting only because they are such good actors, but at it's heart this is a drug or alcohol script, culled from a novel with much internal thought that can't really be done as a film anyway. Writer/producer Terry Southern was an unfocused, from what I've heard increasing bitter man, and his flashes of inspiration here and there just make the rest of it that much more unforgivable. Sure it's a product of the era it was made in, but the best of those can still speak to today, most of this is just a collection of bizarre behavior (people having sex with chickens, flashes of photos of mutant babies) with no sense of reality and nothing but a, "I wrote the script in a brothel with no sleep and 5 bottles of scotch in me." feel.There is a funny telephone conversation near the end that reminds you of some of the phone conversations in Dr Strangelove. But by that point in the movie it's totally out of place.There is really for the first hour no sense of purpose at all, then something that resembles a plot emerges and it all ends in a rather memorable scene that really is just the "I woke up sober and wanting to die" bad hangover ending.The photography is occasionally fascinating, Gordon Willis first feature. The movie is not a reflection of insanity in the world or of the times, it's a reflection of substance abuse masquerading as a exploration of a crazy world. The bottoming out and turning of 60's ideals into recreational drug use as an excuse for self examination. It's the drunk who opens his mouth after saying, "do you like see food." A waste of talent and time ultimately.

Man, it is hard to digest some of the bile and acrid animosity of many of the comments here. I saw this when it first came out right as I was about to graduate high school in 1970, and I loved it. I had not read John Barth's novel, so I had no prejudice about the approach. I have watched the film a couple of times since on video (though it is virtually impossible to find) and must testify it more than holds up. Stacey Keach really gives a great, subtly nuanced performance (perhaps the best of his career when he was still getting 'serious' roles) as the guy plagued by occasional catatonia, and James Earl Jones is also fantastic as a brilliant, maverick innovator of psychiatry (think Wilhelm Reich by way of Malcolm X) who, at the end, may be a bit too godlike for his own good. I personally think Terry Southern is a wonderful writer, and I love all of the films from his work from the more favorably acknowledged, like DR. STRANGELOVE and MAGIC Christian, to the less so (CANDY, which is probably my favorite). There are some crazy juxtapositions here as well as absurd humor (that would do the 1920s-30s surrealists proud), but the humor is not stupid by any means. Director Aram Avakian and Terry Southern were a good pairing. It's too bad that they never did another film together. I can only guess that this dark, dark comedy that is about America in the sixties and about human vulnerability, hubris and arrogance touched many raw nerves with not only some of the IMDb commentators, but the few people who saw it on its initial release. A totally uncompromising picture with the courage of it's twisted convictions. The intention of director, screenwriter and cast was to rattle complacent, uptight people's cages -and, judging from the invective here, I'd say they succeeded in spades. I will echo: whomever owns the rights to END OF THE ROAD, put it out on DVD - NOW!

End Of The Road is a compelling and bizarre film from that most elusive of genres, the "acid" film. Okay, so that may not be an officially recognized genre. All the same this title emerges from the hippie generation as an indictment of "establishment" ethos complete with a generous helping of surrealism and "acid-friendly" scenery.In and of itself, its a pompous and wholly unremarkable film. It tries to play itself of intellectual and deep, and only comes off as superficial and pointless. The whole is definitely not as valuable of its parts. What is remarkable is the brilliant performance of James Earl Jones as Doctor D who is experimenting with radical psychological treatments that wreak of the mythical MK Ultra mind control experiments alleged to be performed by the CIA and legendary escaped Nazi scientist Joseph Goebles (sp).Jones really pulls out all the stops and lets loose in this role. He bombards Stacy Keach with traumatic sounds and images as part of his treatment, and he twists and contorts his voice, body, and mannerisms to paint an over the top picture of a cutting edge scientist walking a fine line between sanity and lunacy.It's hard to suggest that you, or anyone would enjoy this film, but if you have a taste for the twisted, you'll certainly appreciate bearing witness to this oddly beautiful artistic train wreck of a movie.