Examining eight films produced between 1969 and 1980, this book explores how the actor and the filmmakers played upon audience expectations of "Jack Nicholson" to challenge prevailing attitudes about masculinity and power. In each of these films-Easy Rider, Five Easy Pieces, Carnal Knowledge, The Last Detail, Chinatown, The Passenger, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, and The Shining-the actor embodies an inherent tension between a desire to make authentic choices and a pressure to conform to societal expectations of manly behavior.