Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #6497 in DVD
• Released on: 2000-02-01
• Rating: Suitable for 18 years and over
• Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
• Formats: Dubbed, PAL, Widescreen
• Original language: English, German
• Subtitled in: English, Spanish, German, Portuguese, Swedish, Danish, Dutch, Finnish
• Dubbed in: Spanish
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 108 minutes

Amazon.co.uk Review
The first, and only, X-rated film to win a best picture Academy Award, John Schlesinger's Midnight Cowboy seems a lot less daring today (and has been reclassified as an R), but remains a fascinating time capsule of late-1960s sexual decadence in mainstream American cinema. In a career-making performance, Jon Voight plays Joe Buck, a naive Texas dishwasher who goes to the big city (New York) to make his fortune as a sexual hustler. Although enthusiastic about selling himself to rich ladies for stud services, he quickly finds it hard to make a living and eventually crashes in a seedy dump with a crippled petty thief named Ratzo Rizzo (Dustin Hoffman, doing one of his more effective "stupid acting tricks," with a limp and a high-pitch rasp of a voice). Schlesinger's quick-cut, semi-psychedelic style has dated severely, as has his ruthlessly cynical approach to almost everybody but the lead characters. But at its heart the movie is a sad tale of friendship between a couple of losers lost in the big city, and with an ending no studio would approve today. It's a bit like an urban Of Mice and Men, but where both guys are Lenny. --Jim Emerson

Video Description
DVD Special Features

8 page booklet revealing an insight into the making of the film
Chapter Search
Original Theatrical Trailer
Soundtrack: English/German/Spanish/French/Italian
Subtitles: English/German/Spanish/Dutch/Finnish/Swedish/Norwegian/Danish/Portuguese/French/Italian/Hard of Hearing - English

Synopsis
John Schlesinger's Oscar-winning film, which features brilliant performances by Jon Voight and Dustin Hoffman, brought an unusually gritty realism to the screen and offered a then-rare portrait of New York's street scene. Joe Buck (Jon Voight - DELIVERANCE, MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE), a male prostitute from Texas, heads to Manhattan where he hopes to find plenty of wealthy women willing to pay for the services of a handsome man. When he arrives, the naive country boy befriends Ratso Rizzo (Hoffman – THE GRADUATE, KRAMER VS. KRAMER), a tubercular, homeless con artist who dreams of moving to Florida. As they go about trying to get the money Ratso needs, the two men see and confront all the seediness, corruption, and cruelty that flourish in the big city.

MIDNIGHT COWBOY is a gritty portrayal of low level hustlers, one that pushed the boundaries of what was permissible during the late 60s and would become the first 'X' rated film to win Best Picture at the Oscars. The British Schlesinger (BILLY LIAR, MARATHON MAN) was also award the Oscar for Best Director. The film has aged extremely well and its themes are as poignant today as they were when it was first released.

Customer Reviews

A fusion of great directing and acting
This film is proof of what a great cast and director can do when inspired by a great script. Jon Voight (in his first major feature) is superb as Joe Buck, the naive twentysomething who comes to New York to seek his fortune by becoming a gigolo to the wealthy women of NYC. Invariably the dream goes sour, especially after he is ripped off by con man Ratso Rizzo (Hoffman) who eventually see's Joe as a lost soul just like him and a friendship forms. Voight is terrific and it is a shame that he now plays a Hollywood 'Rent a Villain' when he is capable of a performance like this. Hoffman too is fantastic and brilliantly grubby as the underclass who is suffering from TB. As a snapshot of the 60s Scheslinger portrays a New York that is both wealthy yet contains abject poverty. His location shooting of the city is atmospheric in a way that only Scorsese has since been able to capture (in Taxi Driver). Overall a film that is both poignant, political (remember the civil unrest in the country at the time) and a study of humanity in the face of abject misery and suffering. A classic film that uses its musical soundtrack brilliantly to get just the right feel to each scene. Incidentally, considering that the two stars and the director are still alive (as is Brenda Vaccaro in a small but important role as one of Joe's 'clients'), why don't MGM go to town and put together a definitive version of this DVD with commetaries etc? It would be well worth it!

Overlooked masterpiece.
Jon Voight stars as the likeable but not-too-bright Joe Buck, a dishwasher from Texas who decides to move to New York and work as a hustler.
The film is a very cheery affair to start with and an absolute joy to watch due to Voights fantastic performance and the characters endless enthuiasm. As Joe Buck starts to realise that his dream job isn't all it's cracked up to be and the money runs out he bumps into "Ratso" Rizzo, a small time conman. Over time they develop a strong friendship and are one of the best on screen partnerships since Butch and Sundance. Dustin Hoffman's performance is deeply moving and he's very funny when he has to be. Ratso is one of his career best performances along with those in Rain Man and The Graduate. Overall this is a beautiful peice of film making and a touching story. Highly recommended for anyone who loves movies.

SIMPLY AMAZING... GIVE IT RESPECT!!
Absolute class. From the crisp acting to the passionate directing John Schlesinger's moving adaptation of James Herlihy's bestseller is a movie that stuns and amuses to great extent. Dustin Hoffman is brilliant as a small time con man with big dreams of the Florida high life, and Jon Voight proves his acting talent as a Texan with dreams of his own, and as they wind their friendship through 'get rich quick' schemes and the sleazy side of the big apple, this film has emerged as a cult classic, with a top notch soundtrack, an unforgettable ending. And the all round pure heart that should be embodied into every film. It is an overlooked masterpiece and one of the best productions of all time.