Two things struck me right off about this film. One was that it was 40 years old. Incredible! Time does fly, as they say. And, two, I can accept John Travolta as a lot of things but as a cowboy…hard no! I think they just figured he was popular and sure could dance so the rest would figure itself out.
At his day job Bud Davis (played by John Travolta) works at an oil refinery. Most nights he can be found at Gilley’s, one of the more popular night clubs in Houston, Texas. He is big into the two stepping and impresses many a lady that way. One lady whose attention he catches is Sissy (played by Debra Winger). Somehow he also gets involved with an ex-con (played by Scott Glenn) who has thieving on his mind – of the money and heart variety.
That is basically all you need to know about the story. Thin, but good enough when it comes to this type of picture. This is pretty much someone thinking that if Saturday Night Fever was such a hit why change things up. So they just transferred it from the night clubs in New York to country bars in Texas. Dance competitions vs bullriding competitions. Same stuff in the end. Love story with some drama thrown in for good measure.
Though I did not remember much about the film (for good reason, now looking back at it), what did stick was the soundtrack. It was/is pretty decent filled with fun country music by the likes of The Charlie Daniels Band, Bonnie Raitt and Mickey Gilley.
Special Features:
-Digital Copy
-“Good Times with Gilley: Looking Back at Urban Cowboy” (NEW!)
-Deleted Scenes (NEW!)
-Outtakes
-Rehearsal Footage
