Le rodéo de la dernière chance

I saw the movie when it came out, and I think perhaps it plays much better if you live in a rodeo state (I'm in Texas) so the audience really understands what's going on. They used real rodeo performers, too, like Leon Coffee, and that's the sort of detail the average movie-goer wouldn't notice. As to the movie in terms of plot, it's fairly predictable--hometown boy makes good and saves the day--but the subplots are what make this a good, underrated movie, I think. You have a hero who's almost an antihero till he's forced to grow up and take on a normal man's responsibilities; i.e., caring for his aging father. You have a young widow with a recalcitrant son, basically a good boy who needs a strong masculine role model. You have the dutiful daughter who stayed home and took on the care of her father, even though she's married and has a life of her own. The acting overall is very good. Scott Glenn is a charming scamp, and he has a flair for light comedy. Cate Capshaw--well, she could be better. Ben Johnson is excellent. Mickey Rooney does a star turn in a cameo role. And look for the old TV western character actors from the 1960s. It's a decent movie with very good moments throughout, very honest moments, too. Maybe it didn't play well in New York or Los Angeles, but in Nacogdoches, Texas, the theatre was SRO.

I go to the Rodeo every weekend and that HD fellow is the oldest bullrider I've ever seen. That's a young man's game.

HD has led a life of rodeo-ing and honky tonkin. An injury while bull riding forces him to return home to recupperate. When he gets there he finds that his sister and her idiot husband have put HD's dad into a nursing home and are trying to take the farm. HD's old girlfriend from childhood also comes back into his life and soon HD has to return to bull riding to win the $100,000.00 prize, fend off his sister, keep his dad from the old folks home, and win the love of his life.

This has become one of my most favorite films. I love Scott Glenn and Ben Johnson and this story always brings a tear to my eyes. A must see. Its a bit corny and low budget but damn worth your time.

What should have been a good story with a capable cast was actually hard to watch for me. Each scene seemed to be performed without any regard to the ones previous or following, and HD actually calls Jolie "Jolly" at one point (and no one caught such a basic mistake, which could have been easily corrected in post production audio work).

The ending was predictable, and disappointing in its execution. Once the final scene was underway, the acting ended, and the audience was never treated to anything like a finale that would've tied up the loose ends.

Unfortunate, given the talent available (and the cameo by Mickey Rooney).

Sheesh.

There isn't much to say about this rodeo 'Rocky' rip-off. In a nutshell: hard-drinkin', slow-talking', two-fisted bronco buster Scott Glenn has to ride the meanest bull on Earth to win the money needed to keep his ailing father out of a nursing home, and so forth and so on. The formula is copied right down to the inspirational training montage and sappy, uplifting music score, and there's even a little cowboy Zen philosophy from old wrangler Ben Johnson. Besides being sloppy and derivative, the film is also too influenced by the MTV aesthetic, hardly the appropriate style for a country-western ballad: the camera is too close to the actors, the scissors too handy in the editing room, and the volume of the soundtrack is cranked far too loud. Better talent has never been more wasted: Johnson and Gary Busey provide a measure of stability, but Tess Harper gives what has to be one of the most irritating performances of the year. Keep a sharp lookout for Mickey Rooney, playing Johnson's nursing home buddy…don't blink or you'll miss him.