Going Through Films #6
Midnight Cowboy
dir. John Schlesinger, 1969
Seen June 15, 2007 on Pan and Scan DVD unfortunately. My fiance put in the disc and when the dreaded "This film has been modified card came up, I groaned figuring that Netflix had just sent a disc from an early edition DVD that didn't have widescreen which there were a few in the early days. It was only afterward that I discovered that the movie was on a double sided disc, which I haven't seen in a while. Ah, well something for another time.
This movie is a lot more trippy than I remember. I'd say that roughly half the flick is strung out montages. There's lots of neat editing that juxtaposes interesting visuals to represent what it's like to be down and out in Manhattan in the late 60s that probably went right over my fifteen-year-old cow-licked head. What I did remember very well was the relationship between Joe Buck and Rico "Ratso" Rizzo that has to be one of the top ten cinematic male friendships depicted on film. In fact that's probably what Oscar voters remembered back in early 1970 when they were voting for Best Picture of 1969. Even in the 60s and 70s movies like this weren't given Oscars. Except, of course, that it did win the Oscar.
This is famously known as the only X-rated Best Picture winner, although it would be rated R today and I think it actually was rated R upon rerelease. I think what pushed it over the edge back then (or what would push it over in today's thrust-counting MPAA present) was a quick shot in one of the montages of Jon Voigt's legs being spread by what I think was a mob that was going to rape him? I dunno. I couldn't really make out Joe Buck's pre-New York story in all the indirect flashbacks. But I like it better that way. The tone of the flashbacks suggest that Joe Buck had a weird psycho-sexual past that, along with the American cinematic myth of the cowboy (and perhaps early 60's swinging romances like Breakfast at Tiffany's) drove him to hustle his body in New York. Anything more needn't be necessary.
dir. John Schlesinger, 1969
Seen June 15, 2007 on Pan and Scan DVD unfortunately. My fiance put in the disc and when the dreaded "This film has been modified card came up, I groaned figuring that Netflix had just sent a disc from an early edition DVD that didn't have widescreen which there were a few in the early days. It was only afterward that I discovered that the movie was on a double sided disc, which I haven't seen in a while. Ah, well something for another time.
This movie is a lot more trippy than I remember. I'd say that roughly half the flick is strung out montages. There's lots of neat editing that juxtaposes interesting visuals to represent what it's like to be down and out in Manhattan in the late 60s that probably went right over my fifteen-year-old cow-licked head. What I did remember very well was the relationship between Joe Buck and Rico "Ratso" Rizzo that has to be one of the top ten cinematic male friendships depicted on film. In fact that's probably what Oscar voters remembered back in early 1970 when they were voting for Best Picture of 1969. Even in the 60s and 70s movies like this weren't given Oscars. Except, of course, that it did win the Oscar.
This is famously known as the only X-rated Best Picture winner, although it would be rated R today and I think it actually was rated R upon rerelease. I think what pushed it over the edge back then (or what would push it over in today's thrust-counting MPAA present) was a quick shot in one of the montages of Jon Voigt's legs being spread by what I think was a mob that was going to rape him? I dunno. I couldn't really make out Joe Buck's pre-New York story in all the indirect flashbacks. But I like it better that way. The tone of the flashbacks suggest that Joe Buck had a weird psycho-sexual past that, along with the American cinematic myth of the cowboy (and perhaps early 60's swinging romances like Breakfast at Tiffany's) drove him to hustle his body in New York. Anything more needn't be necessary.
posted by Jesse @ 11:28 PM
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