It's not quite the timeless masterpiece you would hope it would be based on the acclaim it garnered, but 1969's "Midnight Cowboy" is still a powerhouse showcase for two young actors just bursting into view at the time. Directed by John Schlesinger and written by Waldo Salt, the movie seems to be a product of its time, the late 1960's when American films were especially expressionistic, but it still casts a spell because the story comes down to themes of loneliness and bonding that resonate no matter what period. The film's cinematic influence can still be felt in the unspoken emotionalism found in Ang Lee's "Brokeback Mountain".

The meandering plot follows Joe Buck, a naive, young Texan who decides to move to Manhattan to become a stud-for-hire for rich women. Full of energy but lacking any savvy, he fails miserably but is unwilling to concede defeat despite his dwindling finances. He meets a cynical, sickly petty thief named "Ratso" Rizzo, who first sees Joe as an easy pawn. The two become dependent on one another, and Rizzo begins to manage Joe. Things come to a head at a psychedelic, drug-infested party where Joe finally lands a paying client. Meanwhile, Rizzo becomes sicker, and the two set off for Florida to seek a better life. This is not a story that will appeal to everyone, in fact, some may still find it repellent that a hustler and a thief are turned into sympathetic figures, yet their predicaments feel achingly authentic.

In his first major role, Jon Voight is ideally cast as he brings out Joe's paper-thin bravado and deepening sexual insecurities. As Rizzo, Dustin Hoffman successfully upends his clean, post-college image from "The Graduate" and immerses himself in the personal degradation and glimmering hope that act as an oddly compatible counterpoint to Joe. The honesty of their portrayals is complemented by Schlesinger's film treatment which vividly captures the squalor of the Times Square district at the time. The director also effectively inserts montages of flashbacks and fantasy sequences to fill in the character's fragile psyches. Credit also needs to go to Salt for not letting the pervasive cynicism overwhelm the pathos of the story. The other performances are merely incidental to the journeys of the main characters, including Brenda Vaccaro as the woman Joe meets at the party, Sylvia Miles as a blowsy matron, John McGiver as a religious zealot and Barnard Hughes as a lonely out-of-towner.

The two-disc 2006 DVD package contains a pristine print transfer of the 1994 restoration and informative commentary from producer Jerome Hellman since unfortunately neither Schlesinger nor Salt are still living. There are three terrific featurettes on the second disc - a look-back documentary, "After Midnight: Reflections on a Classic 35 Years Later", which features comments from Hellman, Hoffman, Voight and others, as well as clips and related archive footage such as Voight's screen test; "Controversy and Acclaim", which examines the genesis of the movie's initial 'X' rating and public response to the film; and a tribute to the director, "Celebrating Schlesinger".

Midnight Cowboy has the dubious distinction of being the first and only X-rated film ever to win the Best Picture Oscar. Then the rules got changed and mere subject matter alone could not qualify a film for an X-rating. Today the sexual subject matter of this film wouldn't get a passing wink, male prostitution's been done quite a bit on the big and small screen.

Through a series of flashbacks we see what's created the character of Joe Buck that Jon Voight plays, living with a rather loose aunt played by Ruth White and finding his true love in Jennifer Salt to be not so true. Women are just sex objects to him, but when he decides to make use of his lovemaking talents in the biggest market of all, New York City, it's Voight who turns out to be the naive one.

Although street character Dustin Hoffman is among many who clip this Texan, later on Hoffman and Voight form an unusual bond. Hoffman's Ratso Rizzo is one veteran of the mean streets of New York, in fact he's lived in them for too long. When Voight and Hoffman meet, they don't know it, but Hoffman's health is beyond repair.

The pitiable Rizzo and the naive country boy Buck form one of the most unusual male bonding attachments ever brought to the screen. Rizzo is latently gay, but what upbringing he's had has told him that was wrong to have these feelings. Rizzo constantly uses the "F" word and rejects any companionship even when it's offered at that Sixties free love party with all kinds of substance aids.

As for Buck, he's gay when he's got to be though he hates it because of his upbringing. Note the scene with Bob Balaban making his screen debut in the movie theater when Buck needs money. And later on he robs Barnard Hughes who plays another self-loathing gay man. Hughes is quite good in the role, he could have been a US Senator he was that good.

Midnight Cowboy won Oscars for Best Picture, Best Director for John Schlesinger, and Best Adapted Screenplay for Waldo Salt. That last one must have been especially sweet for the formerly blacklisted Salt. John Voight and Dustin Hoffman were nominated for Best Actor, but with the competition being the man who put more people in movie seats than anyone else in history John Wayne, these two newbies didn't stand a chance that year. They both got Oscars eventually, but poor Richard Burton who was also up for Anne Of A Thousand Days never got the gold as did Peter O'Toole who was nominated for Goodbye Mr. Chips.

Sylvia Miles was up for Best Supporting Actress as the upper East Side grande dame who polishes off a quickie with Voight and turns the tables on him in the money department. It was Voight's introduction to New York and the scene is just brilliant. It was Miles's career role as an actress although she lost to Goldie Hawn for Cactus Flower. It's the highlight of Midnight Cowboy for me.

Midnight Cowboy coming out as it did in 1969 reflects its times quite accurately. It was the end of the Sixties and the Hippie generation, at the same time it was made just as people were rioting in the streets of Greenwich Village for their rights as GLBT Americans. People like Bob Balaban and Barnard Hughes's characters would no longer be the stereotypical self loathing gay men. Midnight Cowboy maybe even more than Boys In The Band is a glimpse of where we've come from.

It's not a pretty place, nor is Midnight Cowboy a pretty picture. But Jon Voight, that was indeed one beautiful cowboy.

"Midnight Cowboy" is not the sort of film I'd usually watch. I generally avoid films like this and is the first X-rated film I have seen. However, because it won the Oscar for Best Picture and is considered a classic, I decided to give it a try. For others out there who are also hesitant to watch, understand that the film today would receive an R rating, as there really isn't much nudity in the film at all. However, since the film is about a male prostitute, it still isn't what you'd call 'family friendly'!

The film begins with Joe Buck (Jon Voight) leaving his home in Texas. He's headed to New York to make his fortune as a male prostitute. Considering he isn't gay and isn't willing to sleep with guys, that makes his prospects REAL slim. On top of that, he's as dumb as a tomato and walks about town in cowboy gear--hardly the look that will drive women wild (he actually looks a bit like the cowboy from The Village People minus the mustache). Not surprisingly, he goes broke very quickly--partly because no women want to pay him and partly because people keep cheating him because he's so naive. He eventually meets up with a low-life named 'Ratso' Rizzo and the two of them BARELY scrape by--stealing, scamming and living in a condemned building. The film explores themes of fears of homosexuality and rape. It's all very sad and pathetic and isn't at all the sort of film to lift your spirits--particularly the awfully dark ending.

So did I enjoy watching the film? No. It's not the sort of film anyone could actually enjoy. It's more a film that is a joint character study--an unpleasant but oddly fascinating one. It's well made but not a film I could heartily recommend--you have to be the sort of person that would enjoy or at least appreciate the film.

By the way, you might already have noticed that the Muppet character, Rizzo (the rat), is a play on Hoffman's character from this film. Thank goodness they are alike in name only!