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Dumped by his girlfriend, Mick (Tim Woodward) – an unemployed cowboy - resolves to remain on a barstool for the next three months while he tries to find some answers to his life at the bottom of a beer bottle. Then he meets Arcy (Rachel Lien), an aspiring artist. A friendship quickly develops between the two and, as it does so, they begin to transform each other’s lives. Mick, especially, finds himself becoming happier, healthier and much more motivated.
When I read back over that one paragraph summary, it doesn’t sound like a lot. And, to be honest, there isn’t a great deal of plot in this film – it takes place over a couple of days and Mick and Arcy limit their activities to drinking, dancing, talking and walking.
Where the film does score very strongly, however, is in its two main characters, both of whom are well rounded and genuinely sympathetic. It helps, of course, that both Tim Woodward and Rachel Lien put in such strong performances that really do bring their characters to life. So much so that you quickly develop a very real sense of who Mick is and how he gets so burned so easily. And, as the characters come to life on the screen, you do find yourself wanting to know whether, and how, things will work out between the two of them.
The other real high point of this film is the soundtrack from Natalie Illeana which is beautifully integrated into the film is such a way as to very effectively convey both the tone of the film and the mood of the characters.
Although Barstool Cowboy is a very straightforward story, it’s also one that is very well told. The two lead characters are both well rounded and genuinely sympathetic characters are beautifully brought to life by a cast and crew with a very evident talent for visual storytelling. Your reaction to the film’s central message will probably depend largely on the extent to which you identify with Mick but, whatever your reaction, this is a film well worth seeing.
