Movie · 1979 · Music, Drama, Comedy · 2h 1m · PG · English
Curator score: 6.1/10 (44.6K ratings)
Let the sunshine in!
Overview
Upon receiving his draft notice and leaving his family ranch in Oklahoma, Claude heads to New York and befriends a tribe of long-haired hippies on his way to boot camp.
Ratings
Curator score: 6.1/10
IMDb: 7.5/10
Rotten Tomatoes: 83%
Metacritic: 68
TMDB: 7.3/10
Director
Miloš Forman
Production
CIP Filmproduktion GmbH, United Artists
Cast
John Savage, Treat Williams, Beverly D'Angelo, Annie Golden, Dorsey Wright, Don Dacus, Cheryl Barnes, Richard Bright, Nicholas Ray, Charlotte Rae, Miles Chapin, Fern Tailer, Charles Denny, Herman Meckler, Agnes Breen, Antonia Rey, George J. Manos, Linda Surh, Jane Booke, Suzanna Love
Where to watch
Amazon Prime Video, Amazon Prime Video with Ads
Curator Review
Verdict
A wild, freewheeling counterculture musical that starts as a shaggy hangout comedy and ends in a sharp anti-war gut punch. It’s messy on purpose, but the energy, performances, and emotional whiplash make it memorable.
Best for
Viewers who like 70s musicals with a loose, anarchic feel
People interested in anti-Vietnam-era cinema and counterculture
Fans of ensemble films that mix comedy, romance, and tragedy
Anyone who enjoys bold, experimental studio-era filmmaking
Skip if
You want a tightly plotted or polished musical
You dislike improvisational, chaotic, or episodic storytelling
You prefer musicals that stay light and upbeat throughout
You’re looking for subtle political commentary rather than overt protest energy
Overview
Hair is less a conventional musical than a burst of cultural memory: a ragged, ecstatic portrait of youth, freedom, and the fantasy of opting out. Miloš Forman keeps it loose and human, letting the songs feel like communal declarations rather than tidy set pieces. The result is funny, sensual, and strangely tender, even when it seems to be drifting aimlessly.
Worth noting
What makes it stick is the tonal swing. The movie can feel like a joyful hangout one moment and a devastating anti-war statement the next, with the final stretch landing far harder than its breezy first half suggests. That contrast is the point: the film treats the counterculture not as a joke or a sermon, but as a fragile, doomed attempt at self-invention.
Bottom line
It won’t work for everyone, especially if you need narrative discipline or a more polished musical style. But if you’re open to a movie that’s messy, exuberant, and emotionally ambushes you near the end, Hair has a real charge to it.
Top Letterboxd reviews
vin (3.5★) · 1654 likes
most of the movie: haha, this is just a fun musical comedy :))
the last ten minutes: WHAT THE FUCK
Jake Moran (5★) · 1125 likes
As soon as those horses started dancing I knew how many stars this was gonna get
𝒜𝓂𝒶𝓃𝒹𝒶 𝒦.🏳️🌈 (5★) · 849 likes
“Flow it, show it, long as God can grow it, my hair”
From Milos Forman the acclaimed director who brought us many wonderful films such as One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, Amadeus, Man on the Moon and this underrated classic of hippy innocence/affecting drama. Releasing at the tail end of the 70’s and reflecting the anti-Vietnam counterculture era, Hair takes us on a drug laden euphoric adventure through New York City and beyond.
A band of misfits led by Treat Williams take… more
Gerry Nava (5★) · 711 likes
Hair is identity, and identity gives you power over the oppressor.
The ending song fucking slaps.
Oliver Swift (4★) · 645 likes
Me 10 mins into the movie: hehe his name is Berger.
Me at the end of the movie: 😭😭 his name is Berger!