THE COWBOY WAY
A film review by James Berardinelli
Copyright 1994 James Berardinelli
Rating (0 to 10): 5.1
Date Released: 6/3/94
Running Length: 1:42
Rated: PG-13 (Language, sexual situations, nudity, violence)
Starring: Woody Harrelson, Kiefer Sutherland, Dylan McDermott,
Ernie Hudson, Joaquin Martinez, Marg Helgenberger,
Cara Buono
Director: Gregg Champion
Producer: Brian Grazer
Screenplay: Bill Wittliff
Cinematography: Dean Semler
Music: David Newman
Released by Universal Pictures
Howdy, pardner. Saddle on up, and join me on a little ride. And, along the way, if you spy a theater showing this new Woody Harrelson/Kiefer Sutherland flick, THE COWBOY WAY, just keep goin'. It ain't worth the bother of stabling the horse.
Well, perhaps that's a little cruel, but this movie really isn't a whole lot better--or fundamentally a whole lot different--from Eddie Murphy's recent BEVERLY HILLS COP III blunder. Both pictures try to mix action and comedy, and end up doing neither well. Perhaps someone this summer will come out with a picture that's both exciting and funny, but it hasn't happened yet.
Pepper (Harrelson) and Sonny (Sutherland) are New Mexico rodeo champs who spend their days roping calves and riding broncos. Despite a friendship that goes back to boyhood days, they hardly ever talk because of a transgression committed by Pepper a year ago. Fate forces conversation, however, when their buddy Nacho (Joaquin Martinez) disappears in New York while on a quest to buy his daughter Teresa (Cara Buono) illegally into the United States. Hopping into Sonny's pickup (rather than riding a couple of horses), the pair heads east for the big city and a little motel called the Waldorf Astoria.
The real enjoyment of any "fish out of water" motion picture comes from watching the lead characters react and adapt to the unusual setting. This is what made CROCODILE DUNDEE and STAR TREK IV: THE VOYAGE HOME such fun experiences. Add violence and traditional bad guys, and you get the DUNDEE sequel, which was, at best, a huge disappointment. THE COWBOY WAY not only has the guns and crooks, but long chase scenes as well.
One of the chief problems with THE COWBOY WAY is that it spends so little effort detailing the characters' reactions to their circumstances and so much time attempting to craft a thriller. There are a lot more punches than punchlines, and the feeble comedy quickly takes a back seat to all sorts of action-based genre staples.
The plot is exceptionally thin (not to mention dumb), and obviously had to be padded out to feature film length. As a result, there are a number of pointless scenes that serve no purpose other than to eat up running time. The entire "relationship" between Pepper and Margarette (Marg Helgenberger) is pointless and distracting.
Woody Harrelson doesn't really act his part. Instead, he struts, thrusting out his chin and exposing his posterior. Kiefer Sutherland is more relaxed and natural, but his laid-back portrayal gives his co-star too much of the spotlight. Dylan McDermott plays the head villain with a typical bad guy attitude that's supposed to make the audience hate him. The only supporting performer worth mentioning is Cara Buono, who makes a convincing damsel in distress. Too bad her role wasn't slightly more meaty.
THE COWBOY WAY is just another in a long line of summer motion pictures that hopefully won't amount to much at the box office or elsewhere. As far as I'm concerned, these guys should ride off into the sunset and forget coming back for anything--especially a sequel.
- James Berardinelli (blake7@cc.bellcore.com)
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