Watched John Schlesinger's 1969 Drama "Midnight Cowboy"

"Uh, well, sir, I ain't a f'real cowboy. But I am one helluva stud!"
--Jon Voight as Joe Buck in Midnight Cowboy

Midnight Cowboy is a drama about a naive young man from Texas that comes to New York with a get rich quick scheme of becoming a male cowboy prostitute. Along the way, he forges a very unlikely friendship with a small time conman. This film won Academy Awards for Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Screenplay and is #43 on the AFI 100.

In what's probably considered his breakout performance, Jon Voight plays Joe Buck, the young Texan that starts as a dishwasher and moves to the big city with big dreams.


In the role of Rico Rizzo, Dustin Hoffman gives an incredible performance as a small time conman that wants to get away from his hard city life and someday live in Florida. After his performance as Benjamin Braddock in The Graduate, the director was not convinced Hoffman would be the right choice for this role, but he changed his mind after meeting him in New York and seeing how natural he seemed there.


Both of these men are brought together through their hard luck and their desperate loneliness.


As the only X-rated film ever to win the Best Picture Oscar, Midnight Cowboy is definitely graphic in parts. Schlesinger wanted gritty realism in the harshness of their lives. Was it totally necessary to have these parts to show that? I'm not totally convinced though I understand it.

One of the things I really liked was how the film flashbacks were edited together. Every once in awhile, various parts of Joe's memories would reveal his back story and the past he tries to leave behind.

Joe and Rico's friendship was very touching, and it showed how two very different people can come together and face the real difficulties of life.

Related Item:
Midnight Cowboy [Blu-ray]

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