Goin' South (1978)
Review by HTQ4
Film:
DVD:

Written by John Herman Shaner, Al Ramus, Charles Shyer, and Alan Mandel
Directed by Jack Nicholson
Starring Jack Nicholson, Mary Steenburgen, Danny DeVito, Christopher Lloyd, John Belushi, Veronica Cartwright, and Ed Begley, Jr.

Released by: Paramount Home Video
Rating: PG
Region: 1
Anamorphic: Yes.

My Advice: Definitely Rent it

Henry Moon (Nicholson) is an outlaw who's finally caught and sentenced in a small Texas border town. Just before he is hanged, however, he learns of a law in the town that allows for any single woman who is a property owner to marry the outlaw and save him from the gallows. The woman that saves him just happens to be a nice southern virgin named Julia Tate (Steenburgen) who wants him to help her work the gold mine that is on her property. At first, it looks like their marriage is doomed, but over time, she manages to get him to settle down a bit and he manages to get her to let her hair down a little. They wind up being the perfect match for each other, and they'll stay that way... unless the gang from his past somehow manages to drive a wedge between the two.

What a weird but true performance from Nicholson. Even early on, he showed us what he is capable of with his acting. He took what would have been a very two dimensional character in anyone else's hands and turned in a wonderful performance that actually left you wanting more. He carried the movie pretty much by himself and it was his performance that really made the relationship with Steenburgen believable. Not that she is awful, but she just seems unclear in what is going on with her character. There is no clear arc for her. There is a definite journey for her in the writing, but she just doesn't seem to find it. Lloyd plays a very convincing "bad guy"--if you can really call him that. And it also doesn't hurt that this movie was also the first one for both Steenburgen and...you guessed it...John Belushi! Belushi is wasted in the movie, mind you, but it's neat to see his first performance in a feature film. However, the writing is really well done and it's a fun movie to watch. And, I must say that Nicholson is a fine director.

The DVD leaves a little bit to be desired, you might say. The trailer for the film isn't even present, which is sad. We have so many of the people in the film still with us; you'd think that a commentary track would be in order, especially considering that Nicholson hasn't gotten in the chair that often during his career. What was it like for him to direct the film? Or, perhaps more interesting, what was it like to be directed by him? Or even better yet, in the case of Steenburgen, what was it like to have your first film directed by him? Stuff like that. Even with a trailer and a ten-minute featurette interviewing people, I would have something to chew on--but alas.

So, rent the DVD. The film alone is worth it for an evening's entertainment. But I can't recommend you buy the thing, as good as the film itself is, until a better edition comes out.