Bronco Billy (1980)

Bronco Billy (1980)

Plot In A Paragraph: Bronco Billy (Clint) an idealistic, modern-day cowboy struggles to keep his Wild West show afloat in the face of waning interest.

I always thought that this was another Malpaso Company production, (especially since it cast is full of Malpaso regulars) but it's actually produced by Second Street Films. Making this Eastwood's first film since Kelly's Heroes (10 yeas ago) not produced by his own company.

A personal favourite of Clint's, Bronco Billy is a charming little movie, very similar to Every Which Way But Loose in that it just ambles along pleasantly from one scene to another. Like EWWBL, this is another movie I'd have expected from Burt Reynolds at the time, and could easily imagine Reynolds in the role. Once again Sondra Locke is playing an unappealing character, and it's worth noting that she is once again the victim of a sexual assault (What's with that??) along with Locke, previous Eastwood Co Stars Bill McKinney, Geoffrey Lewis, Sam Bottoms, Walter Barnes, Dan Vardis and William Prince all appear.

Like their character in The Gauntlet, Eastwood and Locke are constantly at each other's throats, until the win is each other's hearts. There is a sweetness to Eastwoods Billy who frequently performs for free at orphanages and hospitals. He holds the doors for old ladies and loves kids, always taking the opportunity to warn them away from cigarettes, booze, telling lies and playing Hookey from school!!

Annoyingly, it always irritates me that Bronco Billy does not get any form of revenge on the Sheriff who humiliates him. (Much like Gazzo's driver in Rocky and the douche who humiliated Rocky in Rocky 2. "Can't you think of anything tougher to say than ooops!!")

Bronco Billy grossed $24 million at the domestic box office to end the year as the 26th highest grossing movie of 1980.

Fmovies: Bronco Billy (1980)

** 1/2 (out of 4)

The cowboy/dreamer Bronco Billy (Clint Eastwood) is barely keeping his Wild West show going but his luck's about to change when he gets involved with a woman (Sondra Locke) recently dumped by her husband. This is a rather interesting film as I've read that Eastwood says it's his favorite but at the same time I've read what a bomb it was at the box office when originally released. It's certainly understandable why most people would avoid this thing but that's a shame as it's a cute little film that manages to have enough charm but I doubt those wanting Dirty Harry will have much use for it. I wouldn't say I enjoyed the film all the way through as I did think there were some flaws including the ultra-long running time. A dreamy comedy like this one really didn't need to go on for nearly two-hours but some of that is due to the screenplay, which is quite predictable in regards to the ending. With that said one still has to admire Eastwood for trying a film like this because it's basically just about making your dreams come true. In the case of Eastwood's character, he always wanted to be a cowboy and he's doing whatever it takes to keep his show going even though modern audiences have grown tired of it. Eastwood gives a very good performance and once that will keep a smile on the viewers face. The actors hasn't had too many chances to play a nice and charming person but he handles the role very well. Locke is also quite good in her performance as the rich brat who eventually buys into the show of dreams. I found her performances to be quite good and she was very believable in the turns her character takes. Scatman Crothers. Geoffrey Lewis, Bill McKinney, Sam Bottoms and Sierra Pecheur all add nice support as well. I think a little editing would have helped the picture but then again I'm sure this is the type of film that would getting better on repeat viewings. I'm sure even today this isn't a title that Eastwood fans rush out to view but they should certainly give it a shot if for no other reason that to see the legend in a different light.

(Credit IMDb) An idealistic, modern-day cowboy struggles to keep his Wild West show afloat in the face of hard luck and waning interest.

This movie has sporadically enjoyable moments. My problem is there aren't nearly enough of them. Clint wanted a change of pace at this juncture, and I respect him heavily for it. It has a great cast, and it just doesn't deliver like it should. Sondra Locke (Eastwood's love interest at the time) is abrasive to the extreme. Her whiny, demanding, and know it all character ruined a lot of this movie for me as well. She's on the road with Eastwood a lot in this movie, and it gets tiresome quickly. Some of the circus scenes are admittedly fun to watch. Eastwood is fun as always, and managed to nail his part as the wily vet, Bronco Billy. I should have garnered more emotional stimulus out of this than I did. The story was there to be memorable, they just couldn't capitalize. I don't remember a whole lot about it, but it was a bit of a misfire

5.2/10

Bronco Billy fmovies. This movie obviously wasn't made to break any box office records. It's just a sweet little comedy with great characters that deserves more recognition.

Maybe the biggest problem with "Bronco Billy" is that it tries to have too much story. I wouldn't had mind seeing the movie focusing on Clint and his gang alone, plenty of great characters for that! Instead we now have the movie mainly focusing on the love story.

This isn't really a comedy with "haha" moments. It more is a movie with a warm and fun feeling, which is mainly thanks to the great characters. I especially enjoyed Scatman Crothers in his role but also Clint Eastwood did a good job as a character that basically wanted to be like the western characters Eastwood previously played before.

Fun comedy by Eastwood! Give it a shot, you might end up liking it.

7/10

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I am a Clint fan..this was one of my favorites. Not a red carpet Oscar type flick...even better. One that is enjoyable to watch and leaves you feeling good when it is over. It's been a long time since I've seen it. I have seen it several times. The chemistry between Clint and Sondra is pretty noticeable. Living in Texas, I can say that in many ways it touches upon the nature of things here, the way friends stick together, and the overall feeling of kinship that exists between people from all walks of life. So, if you want to kick back and watch a hoot of a little movie, this is it. After watching it, you may just find out how many people you have touched in your life without realizing it.

This film is not about Eastwood doing the stock 70's Eastwood, it is not about Sandra Locke, or about any other person's performance. The people in this film are lost, both in the social space of a world they cannot live in and in time. They lack most of the usual human equipment, like faith and hope (see Thomas McGuane's 'Panama'). But they blunder on, as much by default as by will, in the illusory world of Bronco Billy's road show and guided by Billy's real values, with each other. Like most of Eastwood's films, Bronco Billy is built around a story, but in this story how it comes out is not important, it is how Billy and this cast of lost souls get there. And the film has one the greatest lines in cinema history: The one Bronco Billy used to tell Antoinette what happened to his wife.