Cisco Pike

One of the lost 70s movies that seldom turns up in books or on 'best' lists, and yet it defines the time (1972) and place (Venice Beach, CA) like no other. Leading the stellar cast is Kris Kristofferson, playing a down-on-his-luck musician - kind of ironically as his soundtrack is every bit as good as his performance. The ever-wonderful Karen Black is his much put-upon girlfriend, though a strong character in her own right. Harry Dean Stanton strums a guitar and shoots up, while Gene Hackman plays a rogue cop, Factory model Viva appears looking somewhat out of place in LA, and the Doug (Sahm) in the Sir Douglas Quintet plays himself, even doing a turn in the studio. Finally, there's the perfectly named Joy Bang, and that's pretty much all you need to know. Sure, there's a story going on about a dope deal that inevitably goes tits up, but we've all seen that before. This is a character driven movie with a vengeance and while it may be the only film of note from writer/director Bill Norton, it's a great one.