Rating: Summary: Buckaroo Bonanza.... Review: This review refers to the MGM Contemporary Classic DVD Edition of "City Slickers".....Saddle up Buckaroos, for the funniest city dude meets cowboy adventure since Bob Hope roamed the plains! Mitch(Billy Crystal) is going through a mid-life crisis. He sells "air" for a New York radio station and finds that as he nears 40, his life seems unfulfilling. His buddies Ed(Bruno Kirbly), an aging Romeo, and Phil(Daniel Stern), pitifuly henpecked, also seem to be feeling the strain. They decide a little vacation is in order and head for a New Mexico cattle ranch to enjoy life as they "bring in the herd". This "fantasy" vacation turns into one hysterical adventure. Learning to rope and ride is trickier(and funnier), then you think. But the toughest part is dealing with the tough ranch hands. One in particular..."Curly"(Jack Palance)...is one bad hombre as he scares these guys out of their wits. They are joined by several others as the drive begins from New Mexico to Colorado and anything than can go wrong... does! There's a stampede, a runaway wagon, and Mitch even has to deliver a calf. Their cell phones are no help here! There's also mucho male bonding going on during the trek. These guys even bond with the cows! They learn about each other and with the help of the very tough Curly, they even learn what is important in life. The funny lines and gags are non stop, and there are some very poignant moments as well. It'll have you smiling and often laughing out loud. You won't want it to end, but luckily...there's a sequel.."City Slickers 2..The Legend of Curly's Gold". The film was honored with several awards. Among them Jack Palance took an Oscar for Best supporting actor, as well as a Golden Globe and a Best supporting actor from the American Comedy Awards. Billy Crystal was also honored at the American Comedy Awards as Funniest Actor in a lead and the People's Choice Awards voted the film the Favorite Comedy of the year. They are joined by some outstanding and seasoned character actors. Jeffrey Tambor, John Mostel, David Paymer, Patricia Wettig, and Helen Slater and the wonderful Noble Willingham all keep us in stitches as well. The music by Marc Shaiman is as fun as the story and Direcotr Ron Underwood and Photographer Dean Semler bring us some real cinematic delights. The transfer of the DVD is very nice. An excellent picture in widescreen presents the beautiful Western scenery and terrific colors. If you watch the original theatrical trailer, you can really notice the difference made by the transfer. Although the sound in Dolby Stereo was good, it could have been better. This film with all the great music and action needs to be in 5.1. It may be viewed in French(Mono) and has subtitles in Spanish and French, but no other special features. Just a really funny flick that will take you away for about 2 hours. So sing along to the tunes of "Rawhide" and "Bonaza" with Mitch, Phil, Ed and Norman the cow along the big trail...have fun...Laurie
Rating: Summary: Buckaroo Bonanza.... Review: This review refers to the MGM Contemporary Classic DVD Edition of "City Slickers"..... Saddle up Buckaroos, for the funniest city dude meets cowboy adventure since Bob Hope roamed the plains! Mitch(Billy Crystal) is going through a mid-life crisis. He sells "air" for a New York radio station and finds that as he nears 40, his life seems unfulfilling. His buddies Ed(Bruno Kirbly), an aging Romeo, and Phil(Daniel Stern), pitifuly henpecked, also seem to be feeling the strain. They decide a little vacation is in order and head for a New Mexico cattle ranch to enjoy life as they "bring in the herd". This "fantasy" vacation turns into one hysterical adventure. Learning to rope and ride is trickier(and funnier), then you think. But the toughest part is dealing with the tough ranch hands. One in particular..."Curly"(Jack Palance)...is one bad hombre as he scares these guys out of their wits. They are joined by several others as the drive begins from New Mexico to Colorado and anything than can go wrong... does! There's a stampede, a runaway wagon, and Mitch even has to deliver a calf. Their cell phones are no help here! There's also mucho male bonding going on during the trek. These guys even bond with the cows! They learn about each other and with the help of the very tough Curly, they even learn what is important in life. The funny lines and gags are non stop, and there are some very poignant moments as well. It'll have you smiling and often laughing out loud. You won't want it to end, but luckily...there's a sequel.."City Slickers 2..The Legend of Curly's Gold". The film was honored with several awards. Among them Jack Palance took an Oscar for Best supporting actor, as well as a Golden Globe and a Best supporting actor from the American Comedy Awards. Billy Crystal was also honored at the American Comedy Awards as Funniest Actor in a lead and the People's Choice Awards voted the film the Favorite Comedy of the year. They are joined by some outstanding and seasoned character actors. Jeffrey Tambor, John Mostel, David Paymer, Patricia Wettig, and Helen Slater and the wonderful Noble Willingham all keep us in stitches as well. The music by Marc Shaiman is as fun as the story and Direcotr Ron Underwood and Photographer Dean Semler bring us some real cinematic delights. The transfer of the DVD is very nice. An excellent picture in widescreen presents the beautiful Western scenery and terrific colors. If you watch the original theatrical trailer, you can really notice the difference made by the transfer. Although the sound in Dolby Stereo was good, it could have been better. This film with all the great music and action needs to be in 5.1. It may be viewed in French(Mono) and has subtitles in Spanish and French, but no other special features. Just a really funny flick that will take you away for about 2 hours. So sing along to the tunes of "Rawhide" and "Bonaza" with Mitch, Phil, Ed and Norman the cow along the big trail...have fun...Laurie
Rating: Summary: Remember: just one thing Review: Three friends (Billy Crystal, Bruno Kirby, Daniel Stern)attempt to ward off old age by participating in a cattle drive. The trail boss, wonderfully played by Jack Palance, dies of a heart attack and his assistants turn out to be a pair of drunken bullies who abandon the vacationers to their fates. Rather than leave the cattle to die in the desert, the trio decides to bring the them in, and their holiday turns in a genuine ordeal. This movie is a lot of fun. The screenwriters (Lowell Ganz and Babaloo Mandel) do a good job of setting up a situation in which each man has his sense of self-worth on the line. The characters are familiar types with recognizable mid-life problems, which makes them easy to identify with. The comedy is nicely interwoven with deft character touches. Palance's advice to Crystal is deceptively simple. Billy Crystal's second best performance (after "When Harry Met Sally").
Rating: Summary: This is a mans movie not unlike "Passages" Review: Three friens, all men, who grew up together and who apparently, vacation as adults,(without female friends or wives) go on a vacation to a dude ranch where you actually learn to drive a herd of cows across country-with the help of a drunken cook, two misfit trail hands and an aging Jack Palance who who is full of "street" wisdom,albeit "country. The three friends all seem to have "skeletons in their own closets but somehow this comedy which clearly invokes memories of any young boy from the NY area . Who cannot remember walking through the tunnel in Yankee Stadium and seeing the green grass and the Mick hit one out. All three friends grow along the way and make us laugh and cry sometimes at the same time. One of Billy Crystals best.
Rating: Summary: A Big Letdown! Review: WARNING: Spoilers Ahead!! I hate it when they do this!! The first hour of this movie is so funny I laughed out loud on a number of occasions. Something I don't usually do when I watch a comedy by myself but this was just too hilarious. Then, a cow gets shot just after giving birth, Jack Palance dies and is buried on the trail, two horses get killed going over a cliff with the wagon and a cute little calf nearly drowns in a river. After being bullied and deserted by drunken cowboys, the "city slickers" manage to drive home the herd of cattle and are informed that the cows that "trusted" them will be ground up for hamburger....but hey, that's life! Billy Crystal finds his family is the most important thing to him, and he adopts the little calf, but no jokes could make me even smile after the middle portion of this movie that starts out broad comedy and mutates into warm'n'fuzzy, overly-sentimental, and very predictable fluff. Not my idea of a "feel-good" movie... a little sad actually. When it started I was making plans about buying the sequel. When it ended I decided to sell the original. I can see why there are so many used copies for sale at Amazon Marketplace. This could have been up there with the best National Lampoon Vacation movies (started out that way) but they blew it.
Rating: Summary: helooooooooooooooooooo Review: What a completly soothing film. A film that requires very little thought. A film that needs only to be watched. I love this film because it makes me smile, i love it because it makes me laugh but most of all i watch it becuase it makes me cry. I dont know why but it has a very special glow. Billy crystal is very caring and his performance is warm, its a shame he has lost that with fame. I wait patiently for the release.
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