THE COWBOY WAY
A film review by Michael John Legeros
Copyright 1994 Michael John Legeros
Directed by Gregg Champion
Written by Bill Wittliff
Cast Woody Harrelson
Kiefer Sutherland
MPAA Rating "PG-13" (but a *strong* PG-13..)
Running Time Approx. 100 minutes
==
"I'm a bid-ness man."
- Harrelson to Sutherland
Woody Harrelson *is* THE COWBOY WAY.
The former bartender of TV's "Cheers" is the *sole* reason to watch this clunky action/comedy about a pair of rodeo-riders roaming the Big Apple to find their missing friend. When they discover that said friend is dead, they take their own approach to solving the crime.
COOGAN'S BLUFF it ain't, but this clunky caper comedy has about forty-minutes of wit worth watching. The best bits have Harrelson stealing scenes with lines like "I wouldn't throw a bucket of water on your ass if it were drowning." The price of admission also buys the viewer a chance to see (a) Woody with a crew cut and (b) Woody wearing nothing but his hat.
How's that for a decent proposal?
The rest of the rest is a lame-brain sweat-shop subplot that stops making sense after about an hour. The finale is an absurd horse/subway chase that's calmed by the sight of Harrelson and Sutherland riding horseback through The City. Remember when they still made movies there?
Oddly, THE COWBOY WAY has much more cruelty than the rating (of PG-13) suggests. The demise of the villain, in particular, is quite disturbing and parents should be wary.
Grade: C+
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