The Cowboy Way (1994) User Reviews

When Babies Grow Up To Be Cowboys

[bkoganbing · 6/10 · 15 November 2008]

As a native New Yorker I always look askance at The Cowboy Way because that last chase scene involving our heroes Kiefer Sutherland and Woody Harrelson is geographically impossible. Anyone who has some knowledge of the New York City Subway System can tell you that. Still The Cowboy Way is rollicking good entertainment.

The rollicking part is courtesy of its two leads. They play a pair of feuding rodeo cowboys. Sutherland is mad at Harrelson because of his general irresponsibility. But a good friend of their's is in trouble and Sutherland's got to put aside his attitude about Harrelson in order to help out. Harrelson of course doesn't make it easy.

Tomas Millian has paid money to smuggle his daughter Cara Buono from Cuba and now the coyotes are holding him up for more. He goes to New York and gets killed for his trouble. When Harrelson and Sutherland discover that, they're not about to wait for regular law enforcement to do its thing. That's just not The Cowboy Way.

As a sideline fashion designer Marg Helgenberger thinks Harrelson has possibilities as an underwear model and maybe she'd like to explore that with him. They also have a wonderful scene at the Waldorf Astoria hotel and restaurant where these two think its just your basic motel, a little upscale.

The guy who carries the serious part of the film is villain Dylan McDermott and he's as serious as a crutch. But apparently he's starting to listen to his crotch before his head where Buono is concerned. It's a weakness of the film, because when the good guys are closing in, McDermott probably could get away if he wasn't dragging Buono along with him.

Of course the highlight for me is that wonderful scene at the Central Park Petting Zoo where Sutherland and Harrelson teach McDermott henchman Luis Guzman the way Pancho Villa used to get information from people not willing to give it up. It involves a weaning calf and it's hilarious and a little frightening to the male of the species.

Despite its story weaknesses, The Cowboy Way is one hysterical film and you'll have a good time seeing it. And since this film is about rodeo cowboys, this review is dedicated to the recently retired Justin McBride of the Professional Bullriders. A man definitely dedicated to The Cowboy Way in his sport and in life.

Keifer & Woody romp

[Ishallwearpurple · 7/10 · 24 September 2002]

Catching up on Keifer Sutherland films since being mesmerized by his "24" series. This one is lots of fun, as the two cowboys head from New Mexico to New York City to see what happened to their friend, who came from Cuba and is trying to get his daughter to the states. He does but there are complications. The boys are drawn into the sweatshop force labor problem and other unsavory doings. But their bravado and guts save the day. Nothing earth shattering here, but a good ole boy buddy film with two likable guys.

Not a great movie, but...

[Costu-2 · 6/10 · 18 July 2000]

This is by no means the best movie I've ever seen, but I must confess (however guiltily) that I enjoyed it a great deal more than the reviewers I consulted led me to expect I might. -- Kiefer Sutherland and Woody Harrelson are appealing as the two male leads, old rodeo friends who had a major falling out years before but now find themselves teamed up to help an old friend find his daughter. Their adventures in urban New York City are, by turns, humorous and suspenseful. Dylan McDermott demonstrates some considerable acting range as a sleazy weasel. The inevitable chase scene through downtown Manhattan somehow seems fresh and exciting. -- No one will confuse this piece with High Art, but one could spend one's time in worse ways...

Great fun!

[young gun · 7 April 2000]

This movie is great for a fun night in if you want some light-hearted entertainment. The actors do they job well, they are believable as Sonny and Pepper. They make a good acting team and the storyline is entertaining, but not great and you don't have to solve any difficult plots, which i like to do. Despite this, it is worth watching,it has lots of fun moments, but really it is only for cowboy and western fans.

Absurd Fun

[damianphelps · 7/10 · 14 December 2021]

Ive rewatched a few older movies of late and have sadly been left underwhelmed by most of them. Thankfully The Cowboy Way ended that trend.

Its funny, has some nice action pieces and most importantly kept me properly entertained for the entire movie.

Woody is an absolute star :)

Very entertaining movie

[jkstexas2001 · 7/10 · 2 January 2006]

I have always enjoyed watching this movie. This and a couple of others pay homage to Kiefer's interest in ranching. In real life, he is a real life cowboy, owning a fairly large ranch. He is truly a multifaceted individual, and this film takes most of its humor from the culture clash between the Ranch lifestyle and the New York City lifestyle. It is the type of conflict you see in more light hearted films such as the City Mouse and the Country Mouse. Interestingly, the country, cowboy lifestyle, while first out of place, ends up dominating those who adhere to the city ethos, and results in unique solutions to bad situations. There is a definite chemistry between Harrelson and Sutherland. One would hope Harrelson would be asked to star in future episodes of "24".

No "Way" to treat a movie...

[Mister-6 · 5/10 · 6 September 2000]

If they would have just dropped the whole slavery ring idea, the Dylan McDermott character and most of the nastiness, this could have been a great movie. As it is, though, "The Cowboy Way" is only half-good, which is a shame seeing how good the good parts are.

As Pepper, Woody Harrelson has his best movie part in a long time. His raunchy, ready-for-anything cowpoke is one funny character. He contributes some of the best scenes here, as observed before; like when he entices the lady in the string quartet, does the "no-hands" trick with the hat, licks salt off of Marg Helgenberger's neck or dances around on a model's runway. He's quite a show, that Woody.

Sutherland doesn't come off quite a swell as Sonny, the more sensible of the duo. He's all seriousness and grim necessity - the exact opposite of Pepper. That he gets the bum end of the deal is no fault of Sutherland's or ever Harrelson's. They both do their best under the circumstances, yet have to fight a no-win situation against the script, which gives them only a couple of scenes where they actually get along.

But then there's the whole situation of WHY they are in New York - the white slavery, vice, corruption, beatings, shootings and deaths have no place in a movie whose biggest parts aim for a "'Crocodile' Dundee" flavor. Confusing? Definitely.

Five stars for "The Cowboy Way", only half-good, but half-bad, too.

The Cowboy Way

[ktch25 · 6/10 · 8 April 2005]

"The Cowboy Way" starring Kiefer Sutherland as Sonny Gilstrap and Woody Harrelson as Pepper Lewis is about two "former" friends/partners who go to New York City to help their friend, Nacho. Struggling to stay alive and out of trouble the pair work through their differences to reach a common goal: to find Nacho's daughter, Teresa. Together, through thick and thin the two cowboys fight to uncover the truth and to rekindle their friendship. The characters strongly portray aspects of friendship, forgiveness, and loyalty towards one another. Sutherland and Harrelson work well together and the concept of the movie is good and entertaining. Personally, I think that it is a good film to watch, especially for any Kiefer fan.

Cowboys have no accountability in NYC

[emdragon · 1/10 · 17 January 2007]

Pretty much the worst possible cinematic contrivance of a movie ever made. Whatever cowboy cliché they need to just manage to get over the next obstacle in their chasing of the bad guys, Woody Harrelson and Keifer Sutherland get to pull off in this one. Why Hollywood puts these kinds of bad comedies out defies my understanding. Every scene is stagy and contrived. Just basically celluloid garbage time. 2 cowboys spend most of the picture chasing drug smuggling kidnappers through the streets of New York trying to retrieve a captured female. Along the way they make macho cowboy jokes, ride police horses, lariat bad dudes, and generally ravage the city.

very entertaining

[pepekwa · 7/10 · 24 March 2009]

sometimes the best movies are the most unpretentious, simple ones. This one follows a tried and trusted formula, its a buddy movie, woody harrelson and kiefer sutherland are chalk and cheese personalities but they unbeknown to each other complement each other and then they have the fish out of water experience as good ol boy cowboys in new york city. Woody is a scream in his role and kiefer plays the straight man and while you know exactly how its going to end, its a fun film from start to finish, probably suitable for all the family too. I liked how the guys were able to use their rodeo "skills" in the city and I laughed out loud at the final shot of the film, all-in-all a very easy way to spend an hour and three quarters.

Worse than awful.

[Bobster36 · 1/10 · 22 February 2009]

This movie was so bad that by the time it was over I felt angry. The "good ol' country boys one-upping the city slickers" theme has been done so much that I guess there were no more intelligent ways to do it. So they came up with The Cowboy Way.

I generally like both Woody Harrelson and Kiefer Sutherland. And despite the weak plot, Sutherland does a good job with his role. But Harrelson employs every good ol' boy cliché ever imagined. Right down to the overbearing mush-mouthed twang in every word he utters.

The plot has our two good ol' countrified cowpokes going to NY City to rescue a girl from the big bad city slicker bad guys. In the process, Harrelson ends up at a posh fashion party. Naturally, the hostess is so overwhelmed by the charm of this rube that she hangs all over him while ignoring the rest of her well-to-do guests.

Of course, the good ol' cowpokes have a big ol' gunfight with the city slicker bad guys. And there are no legal ramifications. Ernie Hudson plays a mounted NY City cop. He is so enamored of the good ol' cowpokes that he abandons his patrol area to follow Harrelson through town on horseback. Later, he rides his horse INTO the police station shouting some blather about forming a posse. Later still, he gives away his horse and a horse of a fellow officer to the cowpokes so that we viewers can be treated to the sight of our good ol' boys galloping through NY City in pursuit of a train carrying the city slicker bad guys. Incredibly, after galloping all over town, the horses still have enough left to overtake the train. Also, incredibly, Hudson's cop is not fired for his bizarre and irresponsible actions.

And just to make sure the point is hammered home that the good ol' countrified cowboy way is superior to the city slicker way, our cowpokes save the day by employing their rope tricks.

This movie is so unbelievable that it seems better suited to a cartoon. Maybe a Heckle and Jeckle plot. If you're the type that just has to have that notion validated that the good ol' boys are always better than the city slickers regardless of how absurd the story is, then this one's for you. Otherwise, you'll find better entertainment in Heckle and Jeckle.

funny and a good ride

[mrscliffy · 8/10 · 28 July 2000]

You can't take this movie seriously, but it is a riot. Don't expect a lot and you'll find yourself laughing like crazy. Weak plot with under developed characters but the Harrelson/ Sutherland comedy team could go a long way! The restaurant scene is a howl.

"Oh, I like this city."

[lost-in-limbo · 6/10 · 6 April 2013]

Sort of a buddy action film that's focal point is the rocky relationship between the two main protagonists (who just happen to be modern day cowboys) as they find out just how much they rely on each other. The friendship might consist largely of bickering between the two actors; Woody Harrelson (who mugs it up) and Kiefer Sutherland, but the combination naturally flows and their performances are truly fitting with amusing comical exchanges. And even heartfelt too. Two New Mexico rodeo cowboy friends (strained at that) Sonny and Pepper head to New York City to find a missing friend Nacho and his Cuban immigrant daughter Teresa. What they uncover is that Nacho had got himself in some serious trouble that seems him ending up in a morgue and his daughter working in a sweatshop.

This Hollywood dross is something rather light-weight and blunt with a message to boot. Still rather enjoyable even with its sugar-coating and stereotypical traits. The script throws about priceless dialogues and sets up the situation with aplomb. These characters are right out their comfort zone, but go about getting the job done the cowboy way and going all out. Had me thinking of the 1968 feature "Coogan's Bluff". Atypical but amusing if a little a silly. Some good action set-pieces standout (namely the climatic chase) and you can't beat good dummy work. Flavoured country soundtrack finds its way in. The rest of the performances are acceptable with a likable Ernie Hudson as a horse riding New York cop and Dylan McDermott as the sly criminal behind Nacho's death. Also popping up are Tomas Milan, Marg Helgenberger, Cara Buono and Luis Guzman.

"You cowboys are a dying breed."

Just Plain Bad

[Scott_Weinberg · 3/10 · 12 June 1999]

Moronic, formulaic, and dull, this offering has Woody and Keifer as bickering Cowboys who come to New York. That's it. Really. What can you say about a movie that aspires to be as deep as Crocodile Dundee? Woody deserves better.

Cowboy Way

[jeff-89 · 7 July 1999]

I enjoyed this movie it has a good cast with Kiefer Sutherland/Woody Harrelson having to help their friend Poncho get his daughter back from the evil Dylan McDermott who played a really good bad guy in this one. Erie Hudson played a good role as the cop on the horse. Woody was the hilarious one though especially when he was dancing like a cowboy at that lady's party. Then the best scene of them all was when Woody and Kiefer were at the restaurant Woody was making gestures to the lady with the violin that was hilarious.

An underrated combo platter of goofy comedy and crime drama

[jakattak · 6/10 · 1 January 2006]

I saw this movie running on cable recently, without commercials, or censorship, which is the only way to watch it. I highly recommended it for Woody Harrelson freaks and Kiefer Sutherland freaks and maybe even Luis Guzman freaks,and, certainly Dylan McDermot freaks will like seeing him as an excellent bad guy. Snappy dialogue and situations, a common plot with the story of two modern cowboys dropped into The Rotten Apple on a mission of search and rescue, this movie is best viewed on widescreen TV. It doesn't break down too much near the end, which is usual for fictions of this type. The writers did a fine job blending the clash of cultures and the director manages to keep control of the project. It will probably be the centerpiece of this director's career, since he's moved into directing "made for TV" movies.

All the incidental characters are well chosen and make the most of their roles. Check it out, really, my wife usually dislikes this kind of movie and she liked it a lot! Remember, however, this is completely fictional, any resemblance to real life style dramas should not be expected.

good duo but inferior material

[SnoopyStyle · 6/10 · 10 September 2016]

Pepper Lewis (Woody Harrelson) and Sonny Gilstrap (Kiefer Sutherland) are competitive best friends on the rodeo circuit. Their friend Nacho travels to NYC to rescue his daughter Theresa (Cara Buono) from smugglers holding her after she escaped Cuba. Ruthless criminal John Stark (Dylan McDermott) is keeping Theresa to work in his sweatshop. Sonny finds Nacho's note and goes to join him with Pepper riding along. Pepper catches the eye of socialite Margarette (Marg Helgenberger). The guys befriend police horse patrolman Sam Shaw (Ernie Hudson). Sadly, Nacho has been murdered.

This is a fish out of water action comedy. There is the charismatic duo of Harrelson and Sutherland. They are fun together. The material isn't quite as good as those guys. There is little humor other than the bits generated by Harrelson with Sutherland as the straight man. The story is straight 90's good guys and bad guys. It's not anything great but there is good enough chemistry with the boys.

The Cowboy Way (1994) Is A Disappointment

[monkey-man · 5/10 · 18 March 2006]

The Cowboy Way (1994).

This movie is about how a man in New Mexico is trying to illegally bring his daughter from Cuba to America.And the man gos to new york city to get her but when he is gone for a few days his two friends (Sutherland and Harrelson) start to worry about him.And they know a bit about what is going on and they have a phone number of the people who are bring in people to America.So the two cowboys go to New York city to try and find there friend and his daughter.And with the help of a New York Policeman named Sam Shaw (Ernie Hudson) they discover that there Friend is in the morgue.Now all that is left to do is save there friends daughter from the bad guys.

I only watched this movie because i am a huge fan of Kiefer Sutherland and i probably would of never seen it if he was not in it.I sort of had high expectations for this movie and i was really disappointed in this movie i thought it would be so much better then it turned out to be.

Over all this movie was a big disappointment but this movie still had its good points and i still enjoyed watching it.My rating for this movie is five stars out of ten.

A buddy Cowboy movie

[joecarong · 7/10 · 17 July 2022]

Keifer Sutherland and Woody Harrelson make a great team in this action/comedy! The story is good and the jokes are plenty! Not over the top funny but definitely makes you laugh. Cam watch this movie anytime...

So-so 'buddy flick' about two naive cowboys on the loose in the Big Apple !!

[DeuceWild_77 · 5/10 · 4 April 2018]

"The Cowboy Way" is a movie tailor made for Woody Harrelson to star, once again as the mindless redneck with a heart of gold, a bit slow to understand things around, but capable to ultimately save the day. Here he was paired with Kiefer Sutherland, playing the big brother type, the wise and restrained of the duo, even if in real life, Kiefer is about 5 years younger than Woody, but sporting a manly moustache and acting mature and it worked.

The story is like a "48 Hrs." buddy flick meets "Crocodile Dundee", a fish outta water action / comedy about two naive cowboys from New Mexico which came to the Big Apple searching for their elderly Cuban friend that went missing trying to find his illegal immigrant daughter, in a plot that focus on human trafficking led by Tomás Milián and his sleazy henchman, played by Dylan McDermott in a surprising scene-stealing performance.

The movie flows well and the two leads have on-screen chemistry together (not as much as Woody / Wesley Snipes in "White Men Can't Jump" and "The Money Train", but yet adequate) with Woody faring better than Kiefer in his usual ingenuous / childish behavior type (think Paul "Crocodile Dundee" Hogan or Tom Hanks in "Big") that made him a star when he was cast in "Cheers" and he's always watchable to follow. Kiefer is okay, but he was never as solid playing the good guy as he was playing villains (like in "Stand By Me"; "The Lost Boys"; "Eye for an Eye"; "A Few Good Men" or "A Time to Kill"). Ernie Hudson offers a fine support as the NYC Cop who helps the two cowboys in their asphalt jungle adventure.

In short, "The Cowboy Way" is a passable, however harmless flick with a couple of good scenes that don't mesmerize the viewer, but neither bores him. It's a case of "been there, done that" that can satisfy a less demanding audience and especially, fans of Woody and Kiefer, but if you're looking for something new or creative in the action / comedy genre stay away of this one, because it just limits on ressurging the old formula.

The Cowboy Way

[phubbs · 6/10 · 6 April 2018]

This movie was pretty much the epitome of cloning or ripping off another movies concept, and then see it go straight to video (in the UK at least). Back in the day you'd find many of these random comedies on the videoshop shelves. Movies you'd never seen or heard of before but had really good casts; its like they just popped up outta nowhere ('Celtic Pride' for example). You had no idea if they were any good but you'd usually rent them because of the cast, and sometimes the neat movie poster on the box.

The plot centres around two cowboys in New Mexico (Woody Harrelson and Kiefer Sutherland) who must travel east to New York in order to find their Cuban friend Nacho (who went to find his daughter). Turns out Nacho owed money to a gang for bringing his daughter into the US from Cuba. In the meantime the gang keeps his daughter in sweat shop slavery. So the butch stetson wearing duo must find Nacho and his daughter.

In short this is a very weak rip-off of 'Crocodile Dundee' but minus everything that made that movie a classic. I'm sure you know exactly what to expect when I say that. Both protagonists are your absolute cowboys. They both wear stetsons, jeans and cowboy boots all the time. They both have various stereotypical cowboy skills which come in handy throughout. And they are both displayed to be rather butch and sexy over dem city folk. The only real difference is Sutherland's character is the more sensible, straight laced cowboy with morals. Where as Harrelson's cowboy is the wildcard who loves loose women, drinking and getting into trouble. Pretty predictable stuff really.

Most of the action we see if also your predictable guff (oh my the stunt doubles!!) which was done way better in that 1986 Aussie comedy. Being cowboys these guys are of course out of their natural habitat in downtown New York/Manhattan. They dress funny, they talk funny, and they act all gruff; its all just so...funny. Somehow they manage to waltz into the Waldorf Astoria unchallenged and then manage to get into the dinning area for a snack to eat. Oh the hilarity that ensues as Harrelson's Pepper character acts all uncouth (ahem).

Later on Pepper gets himself into a posh yuppy-esque party for catwalk models (some middle aged woman takes a fancy to him). So this is the part where Pepper acts a bit homophobic because cowboys are real men, grrr! As the plot progresses they meet mounted police office Ernie Hudson who tickets them for camping out in Central Park (you know because they're cowboys and that's what cowboys do). Ernie's character seems to fall under a bit of a man/hero crush with these cowboys and starts helping them on their quest. By helping them I mean completely violating his jobs procedures and acting like a wild cowboy. This includes riding all over New York on his police horse waving his gun around. And allowing Pepper to drive his truck full speed into a local bar owned by the gang (his truck seemingly suffers no damage and apparently no one gets killed or injured).

As the trio chase after the main villain (a snarling, scenery chewing Dylan McDermott who dies quite horribly in the end) they basically end up riding horseback all over places which you simply wouldn't expect to see a horse being ridden. This is of course the movies main hook, having cowboys running amok in Manhattan. They make a point to ride past many landmarks, because of course they do. I can't deny it was interesting to see these scenes of cowboys galloping down main streets, bridges, railway stations, the port areas etc...

In the end this is a cheeky little number that solely relies on the then star 'brat pack' power of Kiefer Sutherland (which he retained for quite sometime); and that period in time when Woody Harrelson was considered a bit of a heartthrob. It also relies heavily on the overly used concept of lower class rough types clashing with posh types, and the tired culture clash formula. The weathered, seemingly backwards type character/s entering the fast-paced modern world.

Its totally as you would expect all the way. A silly comedy with Harrelson in his brazen undisciplined period, and Sutherland just doing what he always kinda did...look stoic (whilst also looking like he stepped out of a Marlboro advert here). Its reasonable but there are much better similar action comedy flicks from this era.

6/10

The Comedy Makes Up for Some of the Ridiculous Action Scenes

[Uriah43 · 5/10 · 7 April 2021]

This film essentially begins with two rodeo cowboys by the name "Sonny Gilstrap" (Kiefer Sutherland) and "Pepper Lewis" (Woody Harrelson) teaming up to win a state championship. Unfortunately, even though they have been friends for a long time, when Pepper fails to show up for an important event this creates a great amount of friction between them. Yet even though Sonny wants nothing to do with him, things change dramatically when a mutual friend by the name of "Nacho Salazar" (Joaquin Martinez) unexpectedly goes to New York City and doesn't come back. So after learning that his daughter "Teresa Salazar" (Cara Buono) may be in serious trouble the two of them reunite and head to New York to render their assistance. What they don't realize, however, is that a local mobster by the name of "John Stark" (Dylan McDermott) has essentially kidnapped Teresa and plans to force her into prostitution to pay off a nonexistent debt. Now rather than reveal any more I will just say that this film started off well enough but became more and more unrealistic as the movie progressed with the character of "Officer Sam Shaw" (Ernie Hudson) being especially ridiculous. Even so, this wasn't a bad film necessarily and I have rated it accordingly. Average.

Cowboys and crime

[birdiesmithmilan · 8/10 · 29 December 2019]

I enjoyed this movie. Unique perspective - ways of the west meet big city. Suspense, action, comedy and , well...horses. what's not to like?

I found this VHS tape at a thrift store...

[Dylanu · 6/10 · 6 February 2024]

...and boy did it not completely disappoint thanks to the fast forward button. Woody Harrelson saved this movie from being a complete unholy cacophony of "cowboy" chaos. Keifer's lines in the script were just bad and never funny but I suppose this played a good contrast to Woody's goof ball character. There are comedic scenes which cut straight to a sweatshop/human trafficking subplot without any transition so it feels like this was just poorly edited.

You are able to fast forward through over half of the movie, especially the non-dialog bits and this movie could have easily been cut to 20 minutes long.

The ending extension-cord-lasso train death was well worth waiting the 1.5 hours of subpar story telling.

There was also a surprising cameo by Rob Moran as the bartender...I am unsure why he was reprising his role from Dumb and Dumber as they came out the same year or if he was just at the top of cast agents list to play a bartender that year.

Buddy and cops

[BandSAboutMovies · 3/10 · 8 March 2023]

Rodeo riders and ropers Pepper Lewis (Woody Harrelson) and Sonny Gilstrap (Kiefer Sutherland) have traveled from New Mexico to New York City looking for their friend Nacho Salazar (Joaquín Martínez) and staying to find his killer along with police officer Sam "Mad Dog" Shaw (Ernie Hudson).

Directed by Gregg Champion and written by Robert C. Thompson and William D. Wittliff (Legends of the Fall, The Perfect Storm, Lonesome Dove's TV script), this reminds me of the 90s when high concept buddy movies kept coming out. "So Woody and Kiefer are from Texas and come to the big city and stuff happens! We'll even have Woody order a steak, you know, because he's vegan! It's kind of like Crocodile Dundee."

Bad guy John Stark (Dylan McDermott) is the reason they're in town, as Nacho was coming to buy his daughter Teresa's (Cara Buono) freedom. The outcome is never in doubt, but there is a nice bit of character work as Hudson really wants to be a cowboy, which is supposed to be funny because the movie assumes audiences believe there were no black cowboys when history informs us that up to 25% of all cowboys in the settling days of the west were African American.