So, our Movie of the Day series is back for Thanksgiving week with a handful of movies about the holiday (or it's at least part of a significant scene in the film), and this one is a counterculture classic from the late 60's that joins a bunch of genuine hippies in their communal Thanksgiving celebration. It stars Arlo Guthrie (son of Woody) as himself, a wannabe folk singer looking to escape the draft who hitches his way across the country and joins his pals for a New England Turkey Day. There's very little plot to speak of, we just kind of drift along with Arlo as he wanders from place to place, checking out various scenes of late 1960's dropout culture. But it's kind of cool just for that, since it was such a singular and relatively short-lived time in American history that you don't see a whole lot of in movies that were actually made at the time (most looks at hippiedom come from nostalgic re-creations, which often tend to glorify or exaggerate the period). But this one, along with a few others, like Easy Rider and Woodstock, are probably the most accurate and true to life examinations of the culture you're ever likely to see.
Original 1969 Trailer:
