The Wild Goose

Duration: 7:00

Year Published: 1973

Creator: Bruce Cronin

Complete Record: Reminiscent of old silent movies, satirizes the roles that our society assigns to old people and old age institutions. In a convalescent home, there is none of the quiet conformist atmosphere usually expected in such places. One old man, John, is a terror who fights with nurses, chases them in his wheel chair, steals food from other patients, and bullies them into pulling him around the home. John is plotting to escape so he steals an electric lawnmower and with the help of an accomplice, he motorizes the wheelchair toward making a quick getaway. After weeks of secret work, the escape is planned for Easter Sunday when all the elderly people are attending outdoor church services. Just as the chorus is shouting ‘hallelujah,’ he waves gaily to one and all and gleefully roars across the grounds and down the road to freedom.