The Cowboy Way
by Gregg Champion
from Universal Studios
Somebody in Hollywood thought there was some fish-out-of-water potential in this teaming of wild man Woody Harrelson and slow-burning Kiefer Sutherland as a pair of New Mexico cowboys who go to New York to tame the wild, wild, uh ... East. Well, they were mistaken, because this 1994 action-comedy is little more than a tiresome reworking of Crocodile Dundee. Woody and Kiefer head for the Big Apple to rescue the illegal-immigrant daughter of one of their rodeo buddies (who has mysteriously disappeared), and what they discover is a sweatshop operation run by a hot-tempered thug (Dylan McDermott, before his role on TV's The Practice). That's when the boys start using their ropin' and shootin' skills to foil the bad guys. One measure of this film's credibility is the inevitable scene of the boys riding on horseback through the gridlocked streets of Manhattan. Uh huh. You know how it goes... you just have to go with it or marvel at the sheer stupidity of it all. Of course, forget all the sniping if you're a fan of Harrelson or Sutherland--they're both doing their best under the burden of disadvantage. --Jeff Shannon
The Magnificent Seven - The Complete First Season
by Christopher Cain
from MGM (Video & DVD)
PILOT: Seven men unite to save a Seminole Indian village from The Ghosts of the Confederacy, a group of renegade soldiers threatening complete annihilation. The Seven courageously defend the village from the pillaging soldiers in this electrifying series premiere. ONE DAY OUT WEST: J.D. (Andrew Kavovit) volunteers to serve as a sheriff when a Federal Judge comes to clean up the town, and Judge Travis enlists the Seven to protect it. WORKING GIRLS: The town takes in a group of 'working girls' escaping from their vengeful master. SAFECRACKER: An ex-safecracker traveling through town is forced to return to her nefarious ways by an adamant ex-partner. WITNESS: Mary's (Laurie Holden) young son visits, only to be haunted by his memories of a rogue townsperson. Erza's (Anthony Starke) con-artist mother comes into town. NEMESIS: Chris pursues the man he believes is responsible for the murder of his wife and sons. The rest of the seven try their best to keep Chris from doing something he might regret. A reporter follows the men around to get a story. THE COLLECTOR: The Seven get involved when a "collector," Guy Royal, attempts to buy a string of homes: the future home of the railroad. Royal's hired gun has a bone to pick with Chris over an incident many years back. Josiah (Ron Perlman) is excited with his former love, saloon singer Emma comes to town. MANHUNT: Vin takes the lead in a manhunt to catch an escaped prisoner who took a local woman hostage. The girl's father, the local preacher, seeks vengeance. INMATE 78: Chris is arrested and thrown into a gulag-type prison camp while intervening in the arrest of an innocent man. He's subsequently informed that the sheriff identifies drifters who look like they have money, and arrests them on trumped-up charges until their families pay the bail. Vin, Ezra and the boys search for Chris when he doesn't return.
Dodson's Journey
by Gregg Champion
from Studio Works
Only weeks after his father dies and his eleven-year marriage abruptly ends in divorce, James Dodson decides to go on a fly-fishing adventure with his unforgiv-ing child. His goal: to heal his wounded spirit and explain the vagaries of life and love to his seven-year-old daughter, Maggie, who can't come to terms with the sudden disruptions in her life. Together, they wander towards the spirit and lure of America's mighty rivers to find understanding within their fractured lives. Along the way, James discovers the special relationship that a father can forge with his child as it is handed down through generations of love and learning.
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