Midnight Cowboy [VHS] starring
Dustin Hoffman, Jon Voight, Sylvia
Miles, John McGiver, Brenda Vaccaro
The Concept Of Dated
The first, and only, X-rated film to win a best picture Academy Award, John
Schlesingers Midnight Cowboy seems a lot less daring today (and has
been reclassified as an R), but remains a fascinating time capsule of late-
1960s sexual decadence in mainstream American cinema. In a career-
making performance, Jon Voight plays Joe Buck, a naive Texas
dishwasher who goes to the big city (New York) to make his fortune as a
sexual hustler. Although enthusiastic about selling himself to rich ladies for
stud services, he quickly finds it hard to make a living and eventually
crashes in a seedy dump with a crippled petty thief named Ratzo Rizzo
(Dustin Hoffman, doing one of his more effective stupid acting tricks, with a
limp and a high-pitch rasp of a voice). Schlesingers quick-cut, semi-
psychedelic style has dated severely, as has his ruthlessly cynical
approach to almost everybody but the lead characters. But at its heart the
movie is a sad tale of friendship between a couple of losers lost in the big
city, and with an ending no studio would approve today. Its a bit like an
urban Of Mice and Men, but where both guys are Lenny. --Jim Emerson
Personal Review: Midnight Cowboy [VHS] starring Dustin
Hoffman, Jon Voight, Sylvia Miles, John McGiver, Brenda
Vaccaro
Many of the reviewers that have posted negative comments seem to share
the same penchant for the word dated and employ it as a tool with which
they can easily dismiss Midnight Cowboy among other films. Without
question, some films have stood the test of time better than others. Mostly
those that were products of conservative filmmakers and more mainstream
subject matters. With 1969s Midnight Cowboy, we have neither. The
aesthetic of the film is, without question, heavily influenced by the avant
garde art world of 1960s New York; a Warholesque vision of decadence
mixed with an almost reverent appreciation for all things urban.
Schlesinger, in my opinion, tried and succeeded in fusing both worlds and
created not only a snapshot of a time and place, but a whole sensibility.
But for the record, Im not at all a fan of the psychedelic camerawork and
editing he used throughout the movie. But with a story as powerful as this,
all gripes about the visual style of the film can easily be forgiven. Most
films, though, in one way or another have through the years lost their
ability to really make an impact on the public. Were by far more jaded,
cynical, dismissive, but overall sophisticated than audiences were half a
century ago and were certainly not as forgiving. Our collective gullibility
and naiveté died with the Edsel. Comedies have probably faired best,
because humor is timeless and what was funny 70 years ago will most
certainly be funny today. Do we need a better example than I Love Lucy
still on TV almost 60 years after it was originally aired on CBS?. But lets
take a quick look at the horror films of Universal Studios golden age. In a
day and age where eye gouging and Achilles tendons are sliced for fun
comprise a large part of most contemporary horror movies, does Dracula,
Frankenstein or the Wolf Man elicit even a modicum of terror in anyone?
However, does that mean that the aforementioned films arent, indeed,
masterpieces of that genre and wholly worthy of being seen, if for no other
reason than to appreciate, among other things, the craftsmanship and
performances? How about another personal favorite of mine, Film Noir.
Were inundated on a daily basis by news and television shows that
seemingly revel in the most grotesque aspects of all things criminal, do the
villains, femme fatales and other losers that populate Sam Spade and
Philip Marlowes criminal underworld seem remotely threatening to
anyone? How about the street lingo of 1940s America, where every dame
had more curves than the Monaco Gran Prix? Is that even remotely
relevant nowadays? But in a film genre that was equal parts style and
substance, the art of it is its eternal appeal. Midnight Cowboy is, simply
put, an excellent film, beautifully acted and expertly rendered. If you are
able to get past some of the dated aspects of the movie, youll be rewarded
with an honest if gritty exploration of the price we pay for our individuality
and the true nature of friendship.
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