**SPOILERS** a lot of neat references to some of the things that news reportage as part of the Sixty's radical anti-government left action groups. Starts out as a light-hearted look at a smart private detective who's career is exactly Jake Gittis'. Dreyfus plays this part very well. Susan Anspach is a former crush whose murder changed Wine (Dreyfus) into a guy who's more than a little P.O.ed at authority, the government, the me-generation ex-hippie phonies that his ex-wife is being seduced by, and, mostly whoever killed his girl. He has to deal with all of it, and one really good scene was when he was in a prison where a brother and sister radical are in for (I believe) killing a cop in an explosion)., When Wine, asks how long they are in for, he is told "forever". When he is interviewed by the F.B.I., he sees how they have surveilled him deeply, and how they didn't care about and were disdainful of Lila, (Anspach). He verbally levels their Karma, and sets out again on his quest. He discovers what he must, tracks down the bad guy, and exacts revenge; disguised as self defense. It was neatly done. I've read the negative reviews, and I disagree. I think it is a very good movie; alternately fun and serious, with a good ending, and a character who is a good guy. These days, are there ANY good guys out there? DVDs are available, but they are expensive, so if you can get it, well... Okay. I stand corrected by myself. By God, just had the thought to find out if Amazon was gonna re-release it; they have. I ordered it. You might wanna too...

This movie and John Sayles's "The Return of the Secaucus Seven" are the best movies I know about the post-hippie years."The Big Fix" is funny, fast, and smart -- and also touching. The scenes of the old activists in jail and around the swimming pool are touched with aching nostalgia. Richard Dreyfuss plays an adorable, idealistic nebbish who really thought the future was going to hold more than EST trainers and deteriorating VW Beetles. I think it's his best performance (though "Inserts" was also fine).I have read the book on which this was based, and it is not only nothing like the movie but considerably worse than the movie. This is one case ("Roger Rabbit" is another) in which the Hollywood rewrite was a noticeable improvement over the original.

The Big Fix is a mystery that does not answer every question that it raises, but it nails the Zeitgeist of the late 60's from a vantage point 10 years later. I have only seen it once, when it first came out and I have looked for it ever since.The story is slow to develop with Moses Wine (Dreyfuss) having trouble with seemingly every aspect of his life. We learn that he feels displaced in time, and cannot get past the radical time in his life. I and many others have had those same feelings in the 35+ years since.The sense of confusion and struggle fits exactly the feelings many of us experienced at the time. Taught to respect the police by our Greatest Generation parents, we often found that we were at the top of the police list of suspects for anything from subversion to bad manners and bad dress. The sense of alienation that I felt at the time permeates the viewing. I may have read too much of myself into it; if so, The Big Fix evoked it from my own life.Best scenes without spoiling the story: Leon Redbone's "I Wanna Be Seduced" while Moses gets ready for a date with Lila Shay (Anspach).Moses at the TV station reviewing scenes of past demonstrations; the images are shown projected on his face. No real detail is visible except the tears on his cheeks. Powerful.The reunion of old friends as they dance around the swimming pool of the house that was built by selling out the old radical values.Finally, a sense of something incomplete at the end. The mystery solved, but every question not answered. How true to life!

An excellent film for Dreyfus. At this point (1978), the best known films with Dreyfus were "American Graffiti"(1973), "Jaws"(1975), "The Goodbye Girl"(1976) and "Close Encounters"(1977). Dreyfus did a great job inviting the viewer in and sharing his (Moses Wine's) feelings about the late 60's and its effects on the students at Univ of California Berkley. Wine wanders aimlessly to find out who is pitting various ethnic and political groups, etc. against each other. He does not find out who the true enemy is until the end of the movie. You won't either. John Lithgow also appears in one of his first films. Look for Mandy Patinkin as the pool cleaner. F. Murray Abraham and Susan Anspach also star.