Please don't spend money on this.

Intense, gripping, stylish and poignant

It's funny, it's tense, it features two great performances from two actors and the director expertly creates a web of odd tension where you actually don't know what is happening for the majority of the run time.

Very good movie overall, highly recommended. Most of the negative reviews don't have any merit and are all pollitically based. Give this movie a chance at least, and it might give you a different perspective.

A city tenderfoot toughens up on a long cattle drive in "Cowboy," the last of three westerns that Glenn Ford made with director Delmer Daves; the others being "Jubal" and "3:10 to Yuma." Although not a classic like "3:10 to Yuma," the film is well made, and the literate screenplay by Edmund H. North and Dalton Trumbo was based on the memoirs of Frank Harris, a Welsh writer who actually spent time as a cowhand in the 1870's. Jack Lemmon plays the real-life Frank Harris, a hotel clerk with romantic problems and dreams of becoming a cattleman. Harris also has a little money in the bank, and, at a critical moment, he convinces a successful cattle driver named Tom Reese, played by Glenn Ford, to take him on as a cattle hand. Over the course of a long drive to Mexico, Harris learns the rigors and hard facts of the trail. The cattle drive provides the background for a battle of opposing views between Harris, who values human life, and Reese, who puts the value of a steer above all else.Although Lemmon initially has to overcome his light-comic image, he eventually succeeds in the dramatic scenes, if slightly less so in the romantic; his love interest, Marlon Brando's first wife, Anna Kashfi, seems an odd, unattainable match for Lemmon. However, a veteran of many westerns, Glenn Ford is excellent; like his Ben Wade in "3:10 to Yuma," the easy-going good-guy image masks a steely toughness that makes him dangerous to cross. Both Lemmon and Ford ably develop their characters as they spar and influence each other during the drive. The two stars are supported by a bevy of veteran supporting players that includes Brian Donlevy, Richard Jaeckel, and Vaughn Taylor. The fine cinematography by Charles Lawton, who also lensed the other two Daves-Ford western collaborations, captures the beauty of New Mexico landscapes. Glenn Ford was an underrated actor, whose career needs re-evaluation. While "Cowboy" may not be a classic like "Gilda," "The Blackboard Jungle," or "3:10 to Yuma," Ford is in fine form. His biography, Glenn Ford: A Life, penned by his son a few years back, is worthy reading and will re-introduce film lovers to an actor whose star has dimmed since his heyday in the 1940's through 1960's. "Cowboy," among other films, should help restore his reputation and his place in Hollywood history.

There wasn't the good-guy-bad-guy conflict in this outstanding Columbia Movies western, but it was one of those movies which held my attention and interest well. Glenn Ford, (who portrayed the real-life cowboy Tom Reese) though slightly built, was the same tough guy he always was in any movie in which he acted. Jack Lemmon (who played the real-life cowboy Frank Harris) actually played two distinct roles; he was a dude in a Chicago hotel, but later a different type person as a cowboy on the range, though in the latter role it was a challenge for him to assimilate himself to the totally different life style to which he had been accustomed. Anne Kashfi, who played a young lady from Mexico, was someone who made it hard to keep your eyes off of her. (Can Jack Lemmon be blamed for strongly wanting to marry her?)Bryan Donlevy, an experienced actor who played tough guys and cowboys, was right for the role he played as a retired sheriff who wanted to go on the round-up. Dick York was accomplished as a young, almost-mean, tough cowboy. And though his role was minor, Buzz Henry, who had played in westerns in his pre-teenage years, was also a good actor in this movie. Again, there was little conflict: there was, along this line, only a brief Indian attack. More than anything else there was character study. While not allowed to include any spoilers, there was a change in each of the major character, but the viewer will have to decide whether it was for better or worse. Because of all the major elements already mentioned, I have added this movie to my repertoire.

Talking to a friend recently about up coming sales soon to be taking place in the post-Holiday season,I was surprised to hear that HMV were planning to hold a 25% off sale in the next week or so.With having heard for a number of months about HMV being on pretty "shaky" ground,I decided that this would be the best time for me to cash in the £2 which I had gathered in credit on their loyalty card.Walking past the aisles filled with clunky,cheap plastic looking headphones,I originally hoped to pick up Walter Hill's Southern Comfort,but quickly found out that this batch of southern hospitality was no where in sight in the store.Being in the mood of watching a Western very soon,I was pleased to find,in amongst the vastly overpriced other titles ( £10 for a 1 disc edition of The Searchers!) a Western co-starring an actor from the TV show Bewitched!,which,with a little bit of help from my money off points,I could pick up for a wallet breaking £2.The plot:Feeling down after being ordered by his boss to empty the room where his secret love's family has been staying, (who give Frank Harris a special bonus,by telling him that he can not go near their daughter again,after Maria Vidal's dad finds out that Harris has secretly been writing poetry to her) due to one of the most wealthiest cowboys coming to stay in the hotel with his gang,Frank Harris decides to take the first opportunity that arrives,when he discovers that "wealthy" cowboy Tom Reece is planning to leave the hotel after one night,due to having lost all his cash gambling with his buddies. Convincing Tom to stay at the hotel,Frank gives Harris every penny of his savings,so that he can rebuild his reputation at the gambling table.Going back to the table with a new sense of vigour,Reece quickly wipes the floor with his opponents and regains all of the cash that he had previously lost.Thanking Harris for his generously,Tom decides to meet Frank the next day,so that he can give him back his savings,and also give him a "personal" thank you,by including all of the extra cash that he won the previous night with Harris's money.To Tom's complete surprise,Frank tells him that he does not want any of the money to be given back,but to instead be given something that money could never buy:become one of Reece's cowboys.Astonished by getting an offer of his turned down for the first time ever,Reece grudgingly agrees to Harris becoming a cowboy,when his gang tells him,that if Frank is willing to show this much daring to get into the saddle,he should be a perfect fit for their huge upcoming task of safely transferring cattle across a vast distance.Originally expecting to find his new job as a cowboy to be one filled with camaraderie and thrilling adventures,Harris soon finds out that there is a much darker side to being a cowboy than he ever could have expected.View on the film:Opening with a dazzling,stylised title sequence by Saul Bass,director Delmer Daves uses Tecnicolour in the first half to brilliantly put the viewer in the bright red cheeks world of Frank Harris,where every object in the hotel is covered in spilling colours and the opportunity to become a cowboy is connected to a strong sense of wonderment and awe of discovering "the great outdoors" for the first time.Showing the excitement in Franks life,Daves contrasts the shining colours in the first half by giving the film an atmospheric,moody downcast appearance,which shows that Franks dreams are far from the bitter reality,which instead of being filled with shootouts and riding into sunsets,has Harris starting to relies that he is only part of a machine,and also witnessing death at the most unexpected moments.Along with expertly creating two contrasting atmospheres,Daves also makes each of the movies excellent action scenes ones that feel very realistic,with a particular highlight of the film being a scene which involves playing a "game" with a bull,that is intensely shoot close so as to make the viewer feel that the bull could kill the "player" at any moment.Whilst his work on this adaptation of Frank Harris's autobiography would sadly be kept hidden for years,due to being blacklisted at the time (which led to fellow writer/actor Edmund H. North "fronting" as the writer of the movie) the screenplay by Dalton Trumbo gradually shows Harris's changing personality in an expertly handled subtle manner.Making Franks initially encounters with Reece ones that feature a light Comedy touch,Trumbo shows the wide open arm way that Harris's initially treats Frank and his fellow cowboys to harden,as Harris finds all his fantasy crushed,to instead be replaced by a world packed with bitter,mean and cold hearted people.Although the wonderful supporting cast (which includes a charming Dick York and a cute,future Mrs Marlan Brando Anna Kashfi) are disappointingly given half sketch roles,Jack Lemon and Glenn Ford both give mesmerising performances,with Lemon showing the smirk which had hidden behind Harris's innocent smile,and Ford showing Reece's sudden fear that Frank might be transforming into him.

"Cowboy" examines the relationship between partners in a herd, the older statesman and highly principled Ford clashing on moral and physical grounds with the younger, disrespectful, hot headed Lemmon. During a tumultuous droving journey, the two men gain a mutual respect for one another, their generational differences merging through shared experiences with marauding Indians, troublesome hired hands, and the pitfalls of controlling a thousand head of cattle.Donlevy is effective as a seasoned hired hand, eager to hang up his gun and forge a retirement nest egg, but his untimely end is denied the screen time it deserves. Reliable supporting actor Jaeckel is at his ruthless best, here taking umbrage with another drover's provocation leading to a protracted fisticuffs ending only when Lemmon intervenes moments before Jaeckel knifes his opponent. There's something sinister, maybe even psychopathic about Jaeckel's crazy eyes. A young Dick York also appears in a reasonably prominent supporting role, and in spite of his chaffs and sneer, it remains difficult to divorce him from his future 'Darren Stevens' alter ego from "Bewitched".Grand cast in a low-key western drama, the mediocre action punctuating shallow soliloquy's and sermons on honour, tradition and loyalty. Ford is consciously more aggressive than is usual persona, his steely-eyed determination more than matching Lemmon's youthful ambition. But despite some interesting moments, the plot peaks don't soar high enough to build momentum. Even the penultimate climax in which Lemmon and Ford risk life and limb to stabilise the herd on the train, lacks suspense. It may well be a tough life with perils more realistic than gunslingers and Apaches, but director Daves doesn't adequately convey this on the screen. Not a bad film at all, just unremarkable, run-of-the-mill western fare.