Five Jack Nicholson Not to be Missed on Satellite TV

If there is an actor that the world is always happy to see in a film, it has to be Jack Nicholson. In many ways Hollywood's "regular guy," Jack can be seen doing what most people like to do - checking out a Lakers or Yankees game when he's not working. It might be this constant exposure that makes him seem like one of us. Looking over his brilliant film career on satellite TV networks, you might end up thinking he's not regular whatsoever, but rather a very serious actor who perfected his craft after decades of hard work. Nicholson can make you think, make you laugh and frighten you all in the space of ten minutes when he's at his best. Here are five films now playing on satellite TV networks that no Nicholson fan should miss.

5. The Passenger. Italian director Michelangelo Antonioni's third film in English found Jack in fine form, as an investigative journalist in Africa who sees a way out of his life. When a rootless arms dealer dies in the same remote hotel, Nicholson decides to become this person with a few passport tricks and a good deal of courage. A study in existential angst, Nicholson is the ideal actor for the role, which in many ways references his early work. The Passenger is a gloriously-shot movie, aided greatly by HD technology. See it on Turner Classic Movies.

4. Five Easy Pieces. Any fan of Jack's should see this film. Playing a concert pianist who decides he is more suited to the life of a drifter, Nicholson tries to shake up the stolid world he sees in 1960's America and create a stir in every situation. Perhaps most legendary of all is the diner scene, in which Jack's frustration at the inanities of modern life comes to a boil. Satellite TV subscribers can see this film on TCM.

3. The King of Marvin Gardens. One of Nicholson's most interesting films, it was part of a run that included the best work of his career. Another collaboration with Bob Rafelson (Five Easy Pieces), Jack plays a Philadelphia DJ who decides to help out his brother (Bruce Dern) with a scheme in Atlantic City. While everything starts to go wrong, Nicholson's character tries to find a way out.

2. Chinatown. To see both the serious and comical side of Jack's personality, see this Polanski film that is the quintessence of a successful neo-noir. Like the great films of the 1940's, there is a lot going on behind the action in this film, as P.I Nicholson gets pulled into a web of betrayal and dark family secrets. One of the gems of the Turner film library, Chinatown should be seen without interruption in HD technology.

1. One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. The culmination of a great run of movies, Nicholson was rewarded with an Oscar for his exceptional performance in this film, a spellbinding drama set in the psych ward of a hospital in the Pacific Northwest.

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