Hard Country

Kim Basinger made her feature film debut as a woman in a small town in a small town in Texas questioning her relationship with her redneck boyfriend. "Hard Country" strikes me as an attempt to look at the feminist movement. The movie DOES feature a lot of Texas stereotypes, although they're probably accurate. In the end, I thought that it did a good job showing the main character's desperation with her irresponsible boyfriend and lack of opportunities in this small town. And the soundtrack proves what should be well known by now: a lot of good music comes from the Lone Star State (it almost makes you forget that Texas is full of, well, Texans). And it should go without saying that Basinger looks mighty fine throughout the movie (as she always does).

Also starring are Jan-Michael Vincent, Michael Parks, Tanya Tucker, Daryl Hannah and Ted Neeley (Jesus in "Jesus Christ Superstar" and more recently a tracker in "Django Unchained").

In the current days of CGI, it is rare to see movies like this nowadays!! This is a gritty, blue collar love-story with a lot of heart. I really enjoyed the atmosphere of this story - the country bars, the little apartment, the mobile-home lot, the fence factory. It's gritty and real- the dust, the wind, the empty Texas roads. Kim Basinger is truly delightful as Jodie. She's all charm, with her Georgia drawl in full swing. I am a huge Jan Michael Vincent fan, and this is one of his best roles! It's nice to see him in a more adult role. The heavy drinker side of his character comes naturally - obviously! But Jan always had a great underlying angst in all his characters. He always has a detached, macho pathos which he conveys with those eyes - just makes him fascinating to watch. He has great chemistry with Kim Basinger in this. He struggles with his job, his sleazy brother, his drinking, and Jodie's willfulness. It's a great role for him! This is a MUST SEE for any Jan or Kim fans out there!

This has been one of my favorites. Kim is so innocent and probably at her most beautiful. this is just a feel good movie, you dont have to think about the plot just sit back and watch and enjoy the simple life of Texas and their dreams of being somewhere else.

Reading here that this film was held up in release for two years, someone must have thought it was going to be a turkey. Then when Urban Cowboy got released and did so well someone then decided we might have a good thing in the vaults. Watching Hard Country with its plot so very similar to Urban Cowboy I was thinking they've got everything here but the bull.

Jan-Michael Vincent and Kim Bassinger in her first big screen film are a pair of twenty somethings who are living in sin as Bassinger's mother tells her in no uncertain terms. Vincent's life consists of his construction job by day and going to the Stallion Bar at night to raise a little hell with his good old boy friends. And of course Bassinger goes along as a little Texas arm candy.

But Vincent doesn't see the change is coming with her and that Bassinger is starting to think there has to be more to life than this. Her itch for something better is cultivated by Tanya Tucker who is a friend who went on to Hollywood and Nashville and is now a country music star. She'd like to be a flight attendant, although back in those days they called them stewardesses. But Jan-Michael wants his woman home, barefoot and he's doing his best to see she becomes pregnant. And that meets with the approval of all his friends.

You can see already that Hard Country is along the lines of Urban Cowboy. I can't call it an imitation since it was made earlier, but maybe we can call it a prototype.

Like Urban Cowboy it has a nice country and western score. I do like Tanya Tucker singing her famous salute to the Lone Star State entitled simply Texas. Some other prominent roles are Darryl Hannah in one of her earliest roles as Bassinger's sister, Michael Parks as Vincent's brother and Gaillard Sartain one of Vincent's goofball buddies who gets himself with some nasty injuries for acting drunk and stupid.

This film might have been a good hit in Texas other than the fact it really Texas and Texans down something fierce. Hard Country is not a bad film, but Urban Cowboy is better.

This was filmed in Bakersfield. I was a cowboy extra in the bar scenes. We drank Lone Star beer until they ran out and would only let us pretend to drink when film was in the camera LOL. A good friend was the stand in for Kim Basinger. Made $70/day and had a ball. Because of this I have a Kevin Bacon number of 2! How many can say that? When not in the scene we all played poker in a tent and got pretty wasted on that Lone Star. They fed us if we worked over 6 hours I think. Good sack lunches. One take was at night and was a blast. They used the Basque Club on South Union to film in. They had it all decorated like a Texas honky tonk bar which was the setting of the movie. One scene was shot in a small restaurant in town. I went to see it but discovered I was on the cutting room floor.