Midnight Cowboy (1969)

[Guest John Cougar Lunchbucket]

Texas wannabe gigilo and polio-ravaged Bronx punk encounter gritty hijinx in NYC.

Never saw it till last nite. Loved the performances and friendship in the middle of it, and the soundtrack, and the scenery. The story? Well, that was OK I guess.

[Frayed Knot]

And now you know the source for Swan-H's 'I'm walking here!' post in an IGT after the Cubs Anthony Rizzo drew a base on balls last year.

[Guest John Cougar Lunchbucket]

Knew that line was from some flick just didn't realize which. Very clever.

[RealityChuck]

Far too heavyhanded and obvious plot- and character-wise. Hoffman is great; Voight less so, but there's not much there.

[batmagadanleadoff]

Loved it. That bus ride Joe Buck takes from the midwest, through the rust belt, the bible belt and into New York City is a classic. Neat soundtrack, too. Still in print. But missing "Orange Juice on ice". I love movies filmed on location in NYC during the '60's and '70's.

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[batmagadanleadoff]

Loved it. That bus ride Joe Buck takes from the midwest, through the rust belt, the bible belt and into New York City is a classic. Neat soundtrack, too. Still in print. But missing "Orange Juice on ice". I love movies filmed on location in NYC during the '60's and '70's. [youtube]SGyTnG543Kk[/youtube]

Leslie Miller belts out He Quit Me, a relatively obscure Waren Zevon penned lowdown soulful blues tune.

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John Barry worked as "Musical Supervisor" on this classic gem of a movie to integrate found pop with his original themes. Many of the "pop tunes" were culled from fledgling United Artists acts of the late sixties such as The Groop ("Tears and Joys" and the Mamas and Papas-sounding "A Famous Myth" are included herein), and someone had the great sense to steer him to the avant garde New York group Elephant's Memory (whose influential work - see Stereolab and Komeda - on Buddah records remains sadly out of print)to patch together a soundscape for the film's psychedelic Warholesque party scene where Joe Buck gets high and Ratso steals all the salami. Of course, it was the inclusion and reorchestration of Fred Neil's folk tune, "Everybody's Talkin'", as sung by Nilsson, that made the soundtrack a hit in 69 and has kept it in print all these decades. The lasting impression that this time capsule of a soundtrack leaves is the abundance of vocal energy and inventive harmonizing that proliferated in the late sixties, and how styles were changing from cool lounge and orchestral scoring to topical pop music placement to reflect the moment. Modern day soundtrack producers would do well to study this package and the film from which it was borne. Barry's themes - "Midnight Cowboy", "Fun City" "Science Fiction" "Joe Buck Rides Again" and "Florida Fantasy" reflect and refract pieces of the pop tunes while draping pivotal scenes in a lovely sadness. Outstanding is Toots Theilman's wailing harmonica on the Main Theme; the piece is a wee bit overproduced for the soundtrack edition and I wish the version used in the film - just harmonica and stummed guitar - had been included here.

http://www.amazon.com/Midnight-Cowboy-Original-Motion-Picture/dp/B00000DQWS/ref=sr_1_1?s=music&ie=UTF8&qid=1362421406&sr=1-1&keywords=midnight+cowboy+soundtrack

[Vic Sage]

The lasting impression that this time capsule of a soundtrack leaves is the abundance of vocal energy and inventive harmonizing that proliferated in the late sixties, and how styles were changing from cool lounge and orchestral scoring to topical pop music placement to reflect the moment.

The same is true of the film itself. It's a time capsule of the late `60s, and the decaying and decadent culture of the time. Actually rated X upon its initial release, the movie is so tame today it would probably get a PG13. And the psychedelic Warholian party scene seems positively silly now, but was very much cutting edge in its day. But to criticize it for its lack of plot is to kind of miss the point. British director John Schlesinger was working in a European mode that is not plot-driven, focusing instead on setting, character and themes, and those still hold up. Ultimately, its not a movie about a hustler coming to NYC from small town Texas and getting disillusioned, or about the dying homeless guy who takes him in... it's a movie about how lonely we all are, particularly in a crowded city, and how much we need each other. That these 2 lost souls find each other, and even save each other in a way, gives a sweet poignancy to an otherwise dark and tragic tale, and that's why its still worth watching.

[batmagadanleadoff]

This movie had always intrigued me, especially it's Oscar winning triumph despite the X rating. I read the novel about 20 years ago and the feeling of dread and loneliness that surrounds the two main characters is all too pervasive, the major theme of the book, and not quite captured in the film to the same degree. The film is also somewhat fuzzy and vague as to Joe Buck's past and the events that shaped him. But I suppose that, as you wrote, the plot was secondary.

Midnight Cowboy harmonica theme.
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"I'm walkin' here!"

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Everybody's Talkin' at Me
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[Vic Sage]

i love that harmonica theme, and Harry Nilsson has one of the best voices, like, ever.

[RealityChuck]

batmagadanleadoff wrote: Loved it. That bus ride Joe Buck takes from the midwest, through the rust belt, the bible belt and into New York City is a classic.

A friend of mine was one of the passengers on the bus.

[Guest cooby]

I love this movie. How did I miss this thread til now?

[Guest cooby]

When I hear the Midnight Cowboy theme. I swear if I close my eyes, I am sitting at my dinner table with my family with the radio on, as it usually was, and I am a kid again.

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

I remember hearing somewhere about "I'm WALKIN' HERE" being an ad-lib to an actual, honest-to-goodness set-intrusion by the taxi-- that Hoffman actually was almost run over, and that the cab driver was an actual, irate cab driver. I just can't for the life of me remember where.

[batmagadanleadoff]

Liz Taylor with a shout out to the world's serious and dedicated film makers of 1969. But to my ears, it sounds like a nod to the reigning World Series champs.

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[Guest Mets � Willets Point]

I remember hearing somewhere about "I'm WALKIN' HERE" being an ad-lib to an actual, honest-to-goodness set-intrusion by the taxi-- that Hoffman actually was almost run over, and that the cab driver was an actual, irate cab driver. I just can't for the life of me remember where.

It's contested, but the story is cited on IMDB: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0064665/trivia?item=tr0650126