Back Roads (1981) Reviews

• Sally Field on the glory road

  moonspinner552001-01-21

  There's nothing more exciting than seeing a slick Hollywood player like Sally Field getting down-and-dirty like she does in "Back Roads". At one point, she and her two male pals (Tommy Lee Jones and David Keith) are at a county fair and have no money. No problem! Sally fixes her hair and says to the guys, "Don't wait up." She knows how to make money (with her body) and nonchalantly sets out to do it. She's proving nothing to no one--it's second-nature to her--and when Keith calls her a 'whore' she tells him, "A whore is a sixteen-year-old with a bad reputation. I...am...a...hustler!" There are many moments to cherish in this rough jewel: Field standing outside the school where the little boy she gave up for adoption attends, running into his angry mother; Field writing a letter to the same child, telling him how sorry she is; Jones and Field getting off their bus after a fight and going their separate ways, each trudging down two dusty streets. It's a top-notch road comedy with Field and Jones overcoming the obvious sentimentality of the overall conception and making a memorable duo. *** from ****

• Good road movie

  igorfado2015-10-21

  Good road movie and pretty emotion provoking. There are so many involving moments where you may sympathize the characters or feel sad about them, feel their situation and live it with them. The story may lack direction or logically complete end but nevertheless it's worth watching for the warmth of the characters' relations, the sensual way they stick together. If you can enjoy movies without judging them too strictly and without expecting anything stunning or extraordinary and just want to spend time following the way and sharing troubles with the characters, this movie might be for you. I rate this movie for the warmth that is expressed by the protagonists

• Interesting movie about two marginal people

  thomandybish2001-04-04

  This little film has hooker Sally Field and drifter Tommy Lee Jones hitting the road together when Jones ruins Field's chances for, ahem, gainful employment in the one-horse Southern town where she lives after he decks a cop who tries to bust her. Along the way the two encounter various predicaments and characters, as well as revealing parts of their pasts. Fascinating study that gives two people on the fringe of society faces and intriguing stories. Keep an eye peeled for Nell Carter as a pistol-packin' waitress. Not a bad way to pass the time.

• romance lacks chemistry

  SnoopyStyle2013-08-02

  Amy Post (Sally Field) is a low rent prostitute in Alabama. She gets caught up with jobless drifter ex-boxer customer Elmore Pratt (Tommy Lee Jones) as they go off on a rambling road trip. Norma Rae director Martin Ritt reunites with Sally Field. I think it's intended as a grimy tough rom-com. Whether it's the script or the much rumored bad relationship between Field and Jones, the couple is plagued with bitter anger and the chemistry is never good. The movie is filmed in a low rent 70s style Grime-o-Vision. It works sometimes like playing pinball in a roadside bar but mostly it looks like a poorly made indie. In the end, the relationship never blossoms as it's suppose to. Sally Field does have a good breakdown, but Tommy Lee Jones have the acting range of a grumpy old man.

• Improves with repeated viewings--Did misguided ad campaign kill its chances?

  FilmNutgm2007-11-16

  Years ago, when the movie trailer ran on television, it was touted as a "wacky road comedy." SPOILER: They used this one scene where the two characters are trying to jump on a moving train and ultimately end up in a mud puddle. END OF SPOILER. Yes, that scene was funny in a slap-sticky kind of way, but it also set the audience up to expect a totally different movie. I didn't watch it at first; those two actors just didn't scream comic foils to me; eventually, it was on TV and I watched it expecting a comedy. I hated it! The grubby sadness of these characters' lives just didn't strike me as funny. Melancholy, seedy, frustrating--yes; Funny? No. Years pass. It's on TV again. I decide to watch it and forget that the ads and reviews and video stores place it in the comedy section. This time I liked the film so much better. I eventually got the DVD and have enjoyed it every time I've seen it. Don't get me wrong: It's no classic; but, if you expect a character study instead of romantic comedy, you might enjoy it more. Oh, and I'm embarrassed to confess that I even hated the theme song so much that I wondered if the singer got the job because she was related to the producer or something. Now,I realize the bittersweet lyrics and pleasant, but world-weary singing suit the movie perfectly. Again, if you're not expecting a comedy and can get modern movie themes' bombast out of your ears, it's another melancholy pleasure one can glean from this film.