Com a Corda no Pescoço

If you realize that a movie critique represents an INDIVIDUAL'S opinion which may be very different from your own, you probably also don't take these comments too seriously. But - for what it's worth - here's mine re: Goin' South: I found it very entertaining (and I'm probably fussier than most when it comes to movies). That's what I value most in a film: entertainment. Any negative comments about this flick come from the more erudite crowd which knows or looks deeper for such things. I was even able to get past Nicholson's character's need for a good nose-blowin', which usually really bothers me, but, in this case, I found it utterly hilarious. We're gonna leave out recapping the plot - THAT'S pretty well taken care of not too far from here. But I just couldn't pass up the opportunity to write something good about this picture because I think that it richly deserves it.

Released in 1978 and directed by Jack Nicholson, "Goin' South" is a Western comedy/romance starring Nicholson as a two-bit outlaw saved from hanging to marry a prim virgin (Mary Steenburgen) who uses him to (try to) strike gold on the mine located on her remote ranch, inherited from her dad. But the ex-outlaw's former gang might not let him strike it rich, whether with gold or love. The wannabe outlaws are played by Veronica Cartwright, Tracey Walter, Danny DeVito and Jeff Morris.

The tone is akin to 1976's "The Duchess and the Dirtwater Fox," but the movie's not as good. It's generally amusing, but sometimes a little boring; the script needed more work to further draw out its potential. Yet it's still worth catching if you like the cast. There are some chuckles. The best parts are the sequences in the town involving two deputies (Christopher Lloyd & John Belushi), the sheriff (Richard Bradford) and others.

This was one of only three films directed by Jack (if you don't count "The Terror," where he got his initial experience). It also marked the film debut of Steenburgen and was one of Belushi's first theatrical films (he did this and "Animal House" around the same time).

The film runs 108 minutes and was shot in Durango, Mexico.

GRADE: Borderline B-/C+

I saw it when it first came out in the 1970's and thought it deserved more praise than it got. It is mostly an entertainment comedy with such lines as "You weren't that hard to find. You were standing in the middle of town with a rope around your neck." I read someplace where Mary Steenburgen had been working as a waitress in an Arizona dinner and Nicholson stopped in and thought she would be perfect for the part. I think there is some very touching scenes between Nicholson and Steenburgen that are well written and acted. Except for Christopher Lloyd the rest of the cast is wasted. I think the only reason John Belushi is in the movie is because Nicholson wanted to meet him. At that time Saturday Night Live was considered radical chic.

One can't help but notice how Nicholson eventually gave up on concealing his hilariously obvious coke nose (to the untrained ear it just sounds like "allergies"- this is the usual excuse given, of course....).

Over the counter allergy medicine can help with allergy symptoms. Nothing helps cocaine-blasted sinuses.

Not even Scorsese could direct while coked up. Nicholson's attempt is considerably more disastrous. Take a second look at the cast (see Belushi) and it isn't hard to deduce what happened to this movie.

Note that it gets steadily worse as the film progresses.

I wasn't expecting a "great" movie being that this was Nicholson's only directing effort. I was just curious. I didn't expect something this bad. Yikes.

The critics slammed this movie when it came out, as I recall. Exceedingly lofty expectations for Jack the director or something, I don't know. I just know that 25 years has made this movie better. I liked it from the start, and it seems that the rest of the world is coming around.

There are slow sections of this film, to be sure. But the great lines! "I wouldn't take you to a dog fight if you was the defendin' champion!" "We were just sayin' how much we needed a figurine." "Good mornin', ladies! I SHORE ENJOYED them CANNED APRICOTS LAST NIGHT!!!"

It bears up well to repeated watchings. What higher rating can a movie have?