It's kind of weird returning to City Slickers now that I'm actually older than the characters in the film. I can appreciate some of the stress that comes with getting older, and I guess I understand the desire to seek out adventure before it's too late in life. It does seem like the message of this movie is fairly vague, bordering on being a complete cop-out that dodges any true moral, and therefore it lacks some of the emotional punch I was expecting. I enjoy all the camaraderie between the main characters, and seeing how they grow closer through this adventure. I'm not sure I fully believe that they could become as good at herding cattle as they seem to get in a matter of days in this film, but it certainly gives a triumphant tone to the end of the story. Unfortunately, that tone lasts less time than I expected, and never feels fully satisfying.
There's no doubt that City Slickers is an entertaining movie, and it works because the 3 best friends all have charm and good chemistry with one another. I like the diverse characters we see from Billy Crystal, Daniel Stern, and Bruno Kirby. I'm not sure all the humor in the film works, though. There are several moments where I chuckled, but it fell short of laugh-out-loud funny. Of course, I have seen the film before and knew most of the jokes were coming, so perhaps the humor just lacks the kind of punch needed for repeated laughs. The strangest attempt at humor is just Billy Crystal's repeated nasal "Hello." I'm not even sure why that's supposed to be funny, but he goes there again and again. On the whole, City Slickers is still a decent comedy-adventure film that explores the causes and effects of a man's mid-life crisis. It's not an all-time classic, but certainly worth watching.
There's no doubt that City Slickers is an entertaining movie, and it works because the 3 best friends all have charm and good chemistry with one another. I like the diverse characters we see from Billy Crystal, Daniel Stern, and Bruno Kirby. I'm not sure all the humor in the film works, though. There are several moments where I chuckled, but it fell short of laugh-out-loud funny. Of course, I have seen the film before and knew most of the jokes were coming, so perhaps the humor just lacks the kind of punch needed for repeated laughs. The strangest attempt at humor is just Billy Crystal's repeated nasal "Hello." I'm not even sure why that's supposed to be funny, but he goes there again and again. On the whole, City Slickers is still a decent comedy-adventure film that explores the causes and effects of a man's mid-life crisis. It's not an all-time classic, but certainly worth watching.