The Good Old Boys
Someone on Twitter (who likes Matt Damon) posted a tweet about this movie being on a TV channel I didn't recognize, Get TV. It was originally aired on TNT and hails from 1995, so I knew it was pre-Good-Will-Hunting not to mention The Talented Mr. Ripley, The Rainmaker, Saving Private Ryan -- a lot of early Matt before the Bourne and Ocean movies made him a huge movie star.
I discovered that I had that channel, so I recorded the movie and watched it last night. It starred Tommy Lee Jones, Sissy Spacek, Sam Shepard, Frances McDormand and a few other familiar faces, so it had good credentials. The story took place in Texas just as the first cars where appearing. Tommy Lee's character was an aging cowboy, who'd spent his life wandering wherever he wanted, leaving the responsibility for the family farm to his brother. He comes back to the brother, sister-in-law, and two nephews just as they face a crisis.
Matt was twenty-five when he made the movie, so he did not, of course, have the lead. His character, who was named Cotton Calloway, was one of the two nephews and had a subplot that played into the major plot (which a subplot is supposed to do). Cotton was excited about all the advances coming into the world, especially the cars. He wanted to be a part of that and had a vision of helping to bring it all to fruition. His parents thought otherwise; they needed him to stay on the farm. Matt had a lot of screen time and the movie, a gentle affair which was more like an indie film, was fun to watch.
I recently read an article about a drama teacher Matt had in middle school. He said that Matt was always 100% committed to the role he had in whatever school play they were doing no matter what that role was. He'd practice and practice with the same intensity whether he had the lead or was a minor character only on stage for a moment. That's what he displayed in this movie. He was twenty-five when he did it, but he seemed every bit as committed to his character as he's been in every role I've seen him in. The guy? He loves acting!
Here's the cool thing. After the movie started, I realized that I'd watched Matt talk about this movie while he was doing press for "Jason Bourne." Tommy Lee Jones was in "Jason Bourne," and Matt thought it was so cool to reunite with an actor who'd been so significant to him. Why? Well, back in the early nineties, Matt and Ben were living in L.A. They were writing "Good Will Hunting," but not making a whole lot of money. Like many actors, they were broke and desperate. That particular summer, when "The Good Old Boys" was shot, Matt made $20,000, enough to keep the two friends afloat. The rest, as they say, is history! And Matt? Well, he's not the kind of guy to forget something like that.
Anyway, the movie is on Amazon, on DVD or video. It's not HD, but it has lots of good ratings and is a film many people said they loved. If you like gentle, funny, and, yes, romantic cowboy movies with Tommy Lee Jones, Sissy Spacek, and Matt, you might like it. Me? I'm buying the DVD!
I discovered that I had that channel, so I recorded the movie and watched it last night. It starred Tommy Lee Jones, Sissy Spacek, Sam Shepard, Frances McDormand and a few other familiar faces, so it had good credentials. The story took place in Texas just as the first cars where appearing. Tommy Lee's character was an aging cowboy, who'd spent his life wandering wherever he wanted, leaving the responsibility for the family farm to his brother. He comes back to the brother, sister-in-law, and two nephews just as they face a crisis.
Matt was twenty-five when he made the movie, so he did not, of course, have the lead. His character, who was named Cotton Calloway, was one of the two nephews and had a subplot that played into the major plot (which a subplot is supposed to do). Cotton was excited about all the advances coming into the world, especially the cars. He wanted to be a part of that and had a vision of helping to bring it all to fruition. His parents thought otherwise; they needed him to stay on the farm. Matt had a lot of screen time and the movie, a gentle affair which was more like an indie film, was fun to watch.
I recently read an article about a drama teacher Matt had in middle school. He said that Matt was always 100% committed to the role he had in whatever school play they were doing no matter what that role was. He'd practice and practice with the same intensity whether he had the lead or was a minor character only on stage for a moment. That's what he displayed in this movie. He was twenty-five when he did it, but he seemed every bit as committed to his character as he's been in every role I've seen him in. The guy? He loves acting!
Here's the cool thing. After the movie started, I realized that I'd watched Matt talk about this movie while he was doing press for "Jason Bourne." Tommy Lee Jones was in "Jason Bourne," and Matt thought it was so cool to reunite with an actor who'd been so significant to him. Why? Well, back in the early nineties, Matt and Ben were living in L.A. They were writing "Good Will Hunting," but not making a whole lot of money. Like many actors, they were broke and desperate. That particular summer, when "The Good Old Boys" was shot, Matt made $20,000, enough to keep the two friends afloat. The rest, as they say, is history! And Matt? Well, he's not the kind of guy to forget something like that.
Anyway, the movie is on Amazon, on DVD or video. It's not HD, but it has lots of good ratings and is a film many people said they loved. If you like gentle, funny, and, yes, romantic cowboy movies with Tommy Lee Jones, Sissy Spacek, and Matt, you might like it. Me? I'm buying the DVD!