Movie Review: City Slickers (1991)

Reviewing a movie which came out literally well over three decades ago? Is that what I really am doing here?

Well actually, yes. Here's the thing: I never actually saw it back then. No, at that time, I was a teenager who seemed to thrive on disliking certain things, including actors. And one of the actors I largely disliked, or at least believed to be overrated, was Billy Crystal. So that meant that, for the most part, I did not bother watching his movies.

Fast-forward many years, and this movie came on recently on television. And this time, for whatever the reason, it seemed like a good idea to watch it.

And you know what? It was not half bad.

Now, it is a comedy, with elements of a western, as well. Jack Palance is also in this movie, and I always enjoy seeing him, because he reminds me of my childhood. I remember him mostly from Ripley's Believe It Or Not. Also, I enjoyed  him in the first major Batman motion picture. Many years later, I also saw him in Shane. He is a solid actor, at least based on those three things, as well as this movie, where he plays a very tough cowboy, albeit one of the last of them.

Crystal, meanwhile, plays someone from New York City who is going through something resembling a midlife crisis. He is at a job where he has little hopes of any kind of advancement. Nothing in his life seems to be particularly exciting for him. On top of it, while his marriage is not necessarily in trouble (yet), his wife seems to sense that he needs something, some kind of a break. So she urges him to go on a trip of a couple of weeks with some pals who themselves are also going through their own issues.

Crystal and these friends are not really ready for the rugged task of driving a herd of cows 200 miles through the western desert. There are tensions with the locals, and these grow worse when Palance's character dies midway through.

Ultimately, there are funny parts, as well as some rather illuminating points made here and there. What I found was that tis movie was enjoyable. Nor was my own impression alone. Below is a video clip of Siskel and Ebert (remember them?) giving a favorable review of this movie.

Enjoy:

Siskel & Ebert - City Slickers (1991)