Drugstore Cowboy (1989)

This was my introduction to Gus Van Sant, and I still consider it his best movie. The outstanding feature of Drugstore Cowboy is its magically non-judgmental portrayal of people living on the fringe of society. The characters are vividly portrayed, and exceedingly memorable -- yet it feels effortless to watch this movie, and as though it has been effortless to make. The *sound* of the movie is outstanding, giving the action and the story an ethereal sheen.

I have seen the movie three times, but have not watched it in more than four years. And yet, a number of the visual, and auditory, images are still easily retrievable, still vivid. The memories of most movies are simply that for me: memories of movie scenes. In this case, it takes some reasoning to get straight that I was not actually present at the action, and that the memories are not of something from real life.

Remarkable. Highly recommended!

Fmovies: If you're one of the so-called `art-film' aficionados who was disappointed, as I was, by Requiem for a Dream (and even if you weren't), you'll love Drugstore Cowboy. Directed by the man who gave us such classics as To Die For and Good Will Hunting, Drugstore Cowboy is, without doubt, Van Sant's greatest work. It's a magnificent time capsule from the early seventies, having no reference to the Vietnam War, Kent State, or any other icon of the period. It's purely about the drug subculture.

Set along the affluent north Atlantic seaboard, where pharmacies and drugstores litter the urban landscape, the drama revolves around four friends who support their drug habits by robbing the official dispensaries of addictive substances. An interesting and compelling setup all by itself, in lesser hands, the script and action would be enough to produce a decent flick; but, it goes way beyond that. Matt Dillon gives what I think is his best performance ever, a perfectly charming substance abuser who has created a little cocoon of a world all to himself. Like little moons revolving around his dreamy and sometimes terrifying little world, the drugstores he stalks all promise a one-way trip to a different place. As viewers, we're all sucked in by the gravity of his world, such that we even begin to understand and believe his peculiar little superstitious rituals. In this special existence, they make sense. To transgress against the rules is to court disaster. And like Adam in the garden, he eventually breaks his own rules, and pays the price.

But it's a fortunate fall from grace. Drugstore Cowboy is completely realistic in its portrayal of the full-blown addict's hitting rock bottom, an experience that is foundational in the wisdom of AA. The recovery scenes are moving in their sincerity and simplicity, none of which is sugarcoated or saccharine. And yet, the recovery scenes are both joyous and heartbreakingly poignant. God, what a great movie.

'Drugstore Cowboy' really knocked my socks off when I first watched it about 12-13 years ago, and it still impresses me every time I view it again. An unsentimental drug movie that doesn't resort to knee jerk moralizing, it is one of the very best movies of the 1980s, and still one of the best movies of its kind (Alison Maclean's underrated 'Jesus' Son' is one of the few recent movies to come close to it). Gus Van Sant looked like he was going to be one of the most exciting directors of the 1990s, but after the excellent 'My Own Private Idaho' it quickly proved not to be so, his career ending up with awful saccharine "uplifting" Hollwood dreck and his misguided remake of 'Psycho' that's best if we pretend never happened. Whatever he went on to make there's no denying that this is one brilliant movie. Matt Dillon gives one of his strongest and most complex performances, and he is backed up by an equally impressive supporting cast of Kelly Lynch (easily her best role), the wonderful James LeGros ('Floundering'), future sex symbol Heather Graham ('Boogie Nights'), and quirky character actor fave Max Perlich ('Truth Or Consequences, NM'). Also keep an eye out for the shoulda-been-a-star James Remar ('The Warriors') and a cameo by the legendary William S. Burroughs as "the Priest". 'Drugstore Cowboy' has energy, humour, depth and honesty. I love it. A wonderful movie and highly recommended.

Drugstore Cowboy fmovies. In 1971, in Portland, Bob (Matt Dillon), his girlfriend Dianne (Kelly Lynch) and his friends Rick (James Le Gros) and his girlfriend Nadine (Heather Graham) are smalltime thieves of drugstores and hospitals. They spend their lives drugged and Bob is chased by the abusive police detective Gentry (James Remar). They decide to move to another city and soon Nadine has an OD, affecting Bob that decides to return to Portland and be clean. But he is haunted by his past.

"Drugstore Cowboy" is still a great film after almost twenty years. Gus Van Sant discloses a true story and based on an autobiographical novel by James Fogle. Matt Dillon is amazing and the rest of the lead cast is also fantastic. My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): "Drugstore Cowboy"

Matt Dillon igives his best performance in this movie, gives an minimalistic, sympathetic portrayal of a junk addict trying to go straight.

The subject matter may be a bit dark for those that like to see life from the "sunny side". It is set after all, in gray, gray, Portland Oregon in the 70's. It deals with a crew of four, two couples, that go around ripping off drugstores for opiates. It does not attempt to judge or condemn this behavior, it just tells the story of a group of junkies, and one of their attempts to go clean and find out what the straight life is like.

Those of you that have experience with any form of substance abuse may find that this movie rings true. I loved the quote by Bob something to the effect of: "In life, you never know one minute to the next how you're going to feel. But a dope fiend just has to look at the labels on the bottles." By no means does this movie glamorize drug use. In fact, it shows it for what it is, a temporary fix that leads nowhere but destruction.

Drugstore Cowboy takes a look an element of the drug/crime subculture without glamorising, sensationalising or demonising it. I honestly can't think of another film on a similar subject that has managed to pull off this balance so successfully.

We care about the characters, but are completely aware of their (many) flaws. We are shown that drugs are pleasurable, but given a realistic portrayal of the great damage they can do. The crime scenes are exciting but we never lose sight of how risky and sometimes pathetic the crimes are.

This film is moral without moralising and humane without romanticising or sentimentalising the subject. Drugstore Cowboy may lack the visceral punch of a film like Trainspotting, but has a subtlety, depth and heart missing from other more voyeuristic cinematic treatments of drug use.