Drive, He Said

Drive, He Said
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Jack Nicholson
Written by	Jeremy Larner Jack Nicholson Terrence Malick (uncredited)
Produced by	Steve Blauner Jack Nicholson
Starring	William Tepper Karen Black Michael Margotta Bruce Dern Robert Towne Henry Jaglom Michael Warren
Cinematography	Bill Butler
Edited by	Donn Cambern Christopher Holmes Pat Somerset Robert L. Wolfe
Music by	David Shire
Production companies	BBS Productions Drive Productions Inc.
Distributed by	Columbia Pictures
Release dates	May 24, 1971 (1971-05-24) (Cannes)[1] June 30, 1971 (1971-06-30) (U.S.)[1]
Running time	90 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$800,000

Drive, He Said is a 1971 American independent film directed by Jack Nicholson, in his directorial debut, and starring William Tepper, Karen Black, Bruce Dern, Robert Towne and Henry Jaglom. Based on the 1964 novel of the same name by Jeremy Larner, the film follows a disenchanted college basketball player who is having an affair with a professor's wife, as well as dealing with his counterculture roommate's preoccupation with avoiding the draft in the Vietnam War. The film features supporting performances by David Ogden Stiers, Cindy Williams, and Michael Warren. The screenplay was adapted by Larner and Nicholson, and included uncredited contributions from Terrence Malick.^[2]

Filming of Drive, He Said took place on the campus of the University of Oregon and other nearby locations. After screening at the Cannes Film Festival, where it was poorly received, the film faced more backlash from the Motion Picture Association of America for its profanity and sexual content, including numerous scenes featuring full-frontal male nudity.^[3]

The title comes from the poem "I Know a Man"^[4] by Robert Creeley, which a character recites in the opening scene. It also serves as a cryptic reference to basketball, the movie's dominant milieu.