A rollicking comedy-adventure for the middle-aged man, City Slickers boasts a cactus-sharp script by the writing team of Lowell Ganz and Babaloo Mandel (Splash, Parenthood). The dialogue is quick and funny, but the movie also achieves some surprisingly affecting moments among its rag-tag group of men on a journey of self-discovery. Director Ron Underwood does an excellent job of contrasting the urban and desert settings, and keeps the pace at a steady clip. Western veteran Jack Palance is particularly memorable as the leathery, misanthropic Curly; the role garnered him an Academy Award. Though many films in the late 1980s/early 1990s tried to capitalize on this kind of lucrative mix of comedy, drama and action, City Slickers was one of the more successful, both critically and commercially.
