One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest was released in 1975 and it was universally praised as evidenced by the fact it won Oscars for Best Picture, Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Director and Best Screenplay. It was based on the 1962 novel by Ken Kesey which he wrote after working in a mental institution in California. The film is about a small time criminal called McMurphy (Jack Nicholson) who decides to fake madness so he can be transferred to the supposedly cushy mental institution. Unfortunately for him the institution is run by the terrifying Nurse Ratched (Louise Fletcher) and she doesn’t take kindly to McMurphy encouraging the patients under her charge. The two of them clash in one of the most epic battles of cinematic history. This is a beautifully made and deeply poignant film with amazing performances from Nicholson and Fletcher. The rights to the film were actually owned by Kirk Douglas and originally he intended to star in the film himself. He passed the project onto his son, Michael Douglas. By the time it was nearing production Michael decided his father was too old for the role of McMurphy. The part was offered to James Caan instead and he declined. Marlon Brando and Gene Hackman were both considered and according to Michael Douglas the director, Milos Forman, wanted to cast Burt Reynolds in the role. He was eventually persuaded to hire Nicholson for the part and he gave possibly the greatest performance of his career. Trying to imagine McMurphy as another actor now is an exercise in futility. Apparently Forman and Nicholson did not get along at all well and they clashed about various aspects of the character. Nicholson even led a coup at one point which led to the production shutting down for two weeks. The talented veteran cinematographer Haskell Wexler also argued bitterly with producer Michael Douglas during the production and he was eventually replaced by Bill Butler. The part of Nurse Ratched also presented some difficulties. Director Forman was casting Candy and Louise Fletcher came to his attention. He asked her to audition for Nurse Ratched instead but remained unconvinced that she was right for the part. Supposedly a variety of other actresses were offered the role including Lily Tomlin, Colleen Dewhurst, Geraldine Page, Anne Bancroft, Ellen Burstyn, Jane Fonda and Angela Lansbury. Eventually just a week before shooting began Forman realised Fletcher was the woman for the job. Ken Kesey the writer of the original book was furious about the fact that they had changed the focus from Chief Bromden to McMurphy. In the book the story is told from the Chief’s perspective and Kesey even wrote a screenplay which retained this idea but Forman rejected it. In the end Kesey tried to sue them and refused to ever watch the film. Many of the problems were brought about by the inexperience of Michael Douglas as producer. He struggled to deal with a lot of strong personalities on the shoot. Luckily in the end the finished result was a superb film and the casting was perfect.