Freedom is a word often talked about but never practiced. The idealist biker hippies in Easy Rider are looking for romantic idea of freedom through the course of the film but never ultimately find it in 1960's America. The time is just not right for Wyatt and Billy, and they pay dearly for the transgression of individuality in such a repressive and violent part of the USA. Freedom for most people is an abstract concept. For Wyatt and Billy, the word seems tangible, with the help of drug use and riding cross country on a chopper. The film plays on the idea that you can't have it all, not because you really can't, but because there will always be someone trying to control or correct your actions. True freedom will never be possible in place so severely crippled by societal rules and regulations. Some things have changed since 1969, but the same types of violent, ignorant and repressive people still exist. I wonder if Wyatt and Billy would be able to make it to Florida in 2009?
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