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Woody Harrelson, Kiefer Sutherland, Dylan McDermott, Ernie Hudson, Cara Buono ... see more see more... , Marg Helgenberger , Tomas Milian , Doug Barron , Angel Caban , Matthew Cowles , Esteban Fernandez , John David Garfield , Frank Girardeau , Sam Gray , Rance Howard , Ahmed Ben Larby , Joaquín Martínez , Harsh Nayyar , Randy Pearlstein , Francie Swift , Leonard Thomas , Jaime Tirelli , Travis Tritt , Emmanuel Xuereb , Christopher Durang , Luis Guzman , Ira Newborn , Karina Arroyave , Christopher Murray , Billy Hopkins , Suzanne Smith , Jose Zuniga , Allison Janney , Laura Ekstrand , Leslie Stefanson , John Dehner , Tex Ritter , William Conrad , Lawrence Dobkin

In this action comedy, director Gregg Champion relies on the premise that, indeed, "country boys can survive," as Sonny (Kiefer Sutherland) and Pepper (Woody Harrelson, always game) head off to the Bi... read more read more...g Apple in order to rescue a mutual friend's daughter from the clutches of an evil sweatshop owner. Naturally, there are lots of encounters highlighting the two fishes out of water; there are opportunities to lasso bad guys; there's even a chase on horseback through the city streets after Sonny and Pepper steal a pair of NYPD horses. ~ Jeremy Beday, Rovi

Flixster Users

60% liked it

19,547 ratings

Critics

17% liked it

12 critics

PG-13, 1 hr. 46 min.

Directed by: Gregg Champion

Release Date: June 3, 1994

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DVD Release Date: January 17, 2006

Stats: 596 reviews

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Flixster Reviews (596)

  • LoughnerWasLucid
    June 14, 2009
    LoughnerWasLucid
    i think the real cowboy way theyre reffering to is to win the lottery make a stupid movie with the help of some so not cowboys playing cowboys
  • superclerk25
    February 26, 2009
    superclerk25
    A funny comedy about a couple of cowboys having to navigate the big city and take on some bad guy in the process.
  • Deano78
    June 12, 2007
    Deano78
    Saw this on TV never heard of it before but enjoyed it. Has some cool action scenes and plenty of laughs to.
  • crossbladezero
    May 9, 2011
    crossbladezero
    Man, with all of these gay undertones, I had to rewind a bit to see the title and make sure I wasn't watching "Brokeback Mountain" again. Really, I kind of wish that they did go the gay cowboy route. At least something interesting would be happening. True, the film is saved by so... read morelid performances from our leads. Still, the jumpy camerawork, awful dialogue, poor humor, cliches, improvable performances from supporting cast members and general dragging leave "The Cowboy Way" to be an unengaging and unmemorable ride.
  • EbertsLittleApprentice
    December 20, 2008
    EbertsLittleApprentice
    Has a few minor flaws,; The Plot, Acting, and Direction.
  • JaredsBaby
    September 14, 2009
    JaredsBaby
    Entertaining at best....love Woody & Keifer. No not another team I would like to keep seeing but the movie was fun to watch.
  • horrormoviefan
    January 31, 2009
    horrormoviefan
    Two cowboys are really fish out of water in New York City looking for the man responsible for killing thier friend. Woody Harrelson in one of his best roles in my opinion.
  • phantopp
    July 28, 2008
    phantopp
    "Sonny Gilstrap" (Keifer Sutherland) and "Pepper Lewis" (Woody Harrelson) are longtime rodeo cowboys out of New Mexico. They have been friends since they rode bucking sheep at rodeos when they were children.

    "Pepper" frequently gets in trouble, and "Sonny" always gets him out... read more of trouble. But not after "Pepper" deserts "Sonny", who loses a chance at at winning some muxh needed money.

    Some time later, "Sonny" comes to "Pepper's" house to ask for a loan to go search for his missing friend "Nacho" (Joaquin Martinez) in New York City. "Nacho" had gone to the "Big Apple" to meet up with his daughter, "Theresa" (Cara Buono), who was smuggled into the country by a man (Dylan McDermott), who demanded more money from him or he won't see his daughter, who had been working in a sweat shop.

    "Pepper" lends "Sonny" the money, on the condition that he goes with him after being informed that "Sonny" hadn't heard from "Nacho" in some time.

    Now, the two go to NYC to find their friend and his daughter while trying to fit into the big city.

    There are some fairly good laughs in this film, but they are not through out the entire film. Harrelson with Sutherland as the straight man make a fairly good comedic duo, but they don't get enough laughs with what they were handed in the script. One running joke, which I think is the only running joke in the entire movie, is that "Pepper" is a bit dim-witted. Many of the jokes about "Pepper" will make you laugh, but you won't bust a gut on them. Other jokes are either chuckle worthy or fall flat.

    One thing that you have to do with this movie is suspend disbelief. Even though they do come across a NYPD mounted officer (Ernie Hudson), who has visions of becoming a cowboy himself, they take the law into their own hands to save "Theresa" and the cop does little to stop them.

    I also thought that the supporting characters in the movie were not really developed. We basically know what the lead villain "Stark" (McDermott) is about, but we are left hanging as to why he smuggles illegals into the country. We can only assume that he does it only for the money. We also aren't shown much of the relationship between "Nacho" and "Sonny" before "Nacho" goes to NYC to pay for his daughter's trip. We are left with dialogue to explain their relationship.

    Harrelson is easily the comic here and has some funny scenes and lines, but he can't carry the laughs in this movie. Like I said earlier, many of the jokes produce some laughs or light chuckles, but many I didn't laugh at. I can't remember specific jokes, but the ones I did laugh at seemed to have been grouped together in the middle of the movie.

    There are also some pretty good action scenes, and at least one car vs. horse chase in the busy streets. You can also tell that there are some stunt riders thanks to distant camera shots and the stunt doubles trying to hide their faces from the camera.

    If you like Country music, then you will like the soundtrack to this film. A lot of songs are modern Country, with Travis Tritt, who does a cameo early in the movie, providing one song in the film.

    Despite the fact that the laughs are few, Sutherland and Harrelson make a pretty good on screen duo and is one of the few things that make this movie watchable.
  • jeffman52001
    May 24, 2007
    jeffman52001
    An underrated film from the 1990s. The Cowboy Way is a film that shows the West is still cool and cowboys are heros. A great cast and crew. This is a great buddy film about 2 cowboys that go to New York City to find out about a friend's murder. Kiefer Sutherland, Woody Harrelson,... read more Ernie Hudson, and Dylan McDermott give great performances, and Marg Helgenberger is superb, too.
  • matchbox201964
    March 4, 2007
    matchbox201964
    Kiefer and Woody wear funny as all can be in a few scenes, worth watching. He I feel sorry for the baby cow in this movie!!!!LOL

View All The Cowboy Way Reviews

Critic Reviews

Scott Weinberg
July 26, 2002
Scott Weinberg, eFilmCritic.com

Obvious and almost completely lacking in energy.

Brian Lowry
March 26, 2009
Brian Lowry, Variety

Click to read the article Full Review

Caryn James
August 30, 2004
Caryn James, New York Times

Click to read the article Full Review

April 12, 2002
Globe and Mail

Click to read the article Full Review

Peter Travers
May 12, 2001
Peter Travers, Rolling Stone

No review available.

Joe Brown
January 1, 2000
Joe Brown, Washington Post

Click to read the article Full Review

James Berardinelli
January 1, 2000
James Berardinelli, ReelViews

Click to read the article Full Review

Rita Kempley
January 1, 2000
Rita Kempley, Washington Post

Click to read the article Full Review

June 3, 1994
Entertainment Weekly

Click to read the article Full Review

Emanuel Levy
October 6, 2005
Emanuel Levy, EmanuelLevy.Com

No review available.

Critic ratings and reviews powered by RottenTomatoes.com

Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)

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The Cowboy Way Trivia

  • What movie does Woody Harrelson perform a shiver shot?  Answer »
  • Name the movie: "Now you might think that this is gonna be fun, and hell for the first 3 or 4 seconds it just might be..."  Answer »
  • "Texas! There ain't no real cowboys from Texas! We're from New Mexico."  Answer »
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