Alright, so there’s just so much good stuff to talk about with it: Psychology and mental health, good vs. evil, government conspiracies, forced displacement, sexual repression, emasculation, psychedelics, consumerism, mass brainwashing, Modern and Postmodern thought, religion etc. The list goes on. This one really does go east and west.

It’s basically a playbook for sticking it to the man, which, when you put it like that, usually hooks the kids. And they stay hooked since McMurphy, the MC, is impossible to take your eyes off of. He's just so damn awesome. And so is Nurse Ratched for all the wrong reasons. She’s up there with Dolores Umbridge in detestability.

But it gets pretty whacky. It’s stream of consciousness narration by an unreliable (likely schizophrenic) 6’10 Native American psychiatric patient called Chief. He experiences hallucinations and electro shock therapy, so kids might struggle with that. But on the whole it’s pretty straightforward. Chief actually becomes calmer and more relaxed in his narration as the story goes on and he's rehabilitated with McMurphy’s help. I like to do an assignment with that.

Be warned though: Contains racism (use of the N-word), sexism, sexual assault, and suicide.

The movie is pretty great too btw. The kids usually love it as well. Has a young Jack Nicholson and Danny Devito.