City Slickers (1991)
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Three middle-aged friends embark on a cattle drive across the American West to find meaning in their lives.
The story
In New York City, three middle-aged friends—Mitch, Phil, and Ed—realize they use adventure trips as escapism from their mundane lives. At Mitch's 39th birthday party, they are gifted a two-week cattle drive from New Mexico to Colorado. Mitch's wife insists he goes to find his smile again. Upon arriving in New Mexico, the trio joins a group of cattle drivers led by the gruff but wise Curly. As they begin the journey, Mitch must navigate the challenges of the wilderness and the personalities of his fellow drivers while confronting his own disillusionment.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
Mitch Robbins, Phil Berquist, and Ed Furillo are three friends in New York City seeking escape from their unfulfilling lives. They embark on a cattle drive from New Mexico to Colorado. They join a crew including the gruff leader Curly Washburn, brothers Barry and Ira Shalowitz, and others. Mitch initially struggles with the environment and the drivers, even confronting two men, Jeff and T.R., for harassing Bonnie Rayburn. After Mitch causes a stampede and Curly suffers a fatal heart attack, the group faces various hardships, including a drunk cook who breaks his legs and a confrontation where Phil holds Jeff at gunpoint. Eventually, the trio drives the herd to Colorado through a heavy storm. After reaching the ranch, they discover the cattle are being sold to a meat-packing company. Despite the lack of a traditional reward, the men use the experience to re-evaluate their lives. They return to New York City with new perspectives: Mitch reunites with his wife and children, Phil begins a relationship with Bonnie, and Ed plans to start a family.
- First release year
- 1991
- Runtime (minutes)
- 114
- Production countries
- United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- Ron Underwood
- Writers
- Lowell Ganz · writer; Babaloo Mandel · writer
- Cast and characters
- Billy Crystal · Mitch Robbins; Daniel Stern · Phil Berquist; Bruno Kirby · Ed Furillo; Patricia Wettig · Barbara Robbins; Helen Slater · Bonnie Rayburn; Jack Palance · Curly Washburn
- Genres
- Western comedy; buddy comedy
- Themes
- midlife crisis; friendship; self-discovery
- Tone and mood
- comedy; heartfelt; slapstick
- Premise and plot tags
- buddy comedy; road trip; Western
- Source material / true-story basis
- Conceived to be similar to John Wayne's The Cowboys.
- Franchise connections
- The Legend of Curly's Gold
- Reception
- The film received positive reviews from critics and was well-received by audiences, earning an 'A' grade on CinemaScore.
- Awards and nominations
- Academy Award · Best Supporting Actor · 1992 · win
- Production trivia
- The film was the acting debut of Jake Gyllenhaal.; Rick Moranis was originally cast as Phil Berquist but had to leave due to his wife's illness.; The Billy Crystal episode of Muppets Tonight featured a parody entitled 'City Schtickers'.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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