Happy, Texas (film)

Plot

Three prisoners escape from a chain gang, and two of them, Wayne and Harry (Zahn and Northam) run away to Happy, Texas, where they pose as the gay organizers of a beauty pageant. They put on a show with the small girls of the town while hiding from the law and waiting for the opportunity to rob the local bank.

Their scheme is complicated by the fact that the local sheriff (Macy) is gay, and he's attracted to the prisoner Harry. Straight Harry on the other hand is attracted to local lady banker Josephine (Walker). Meanwhile, "gay" David, also actually straight, gets it on with the local pageant coodinator, Doreen (Douglas).

Cast

Production

With the exception of a few scenes, the film was shot entirely on location in Piru, California. One scene was filmed at Oil Can Harry's in Studio City, Los Angeles.

Reception

The movie received a rating of 81% on Rotten Tomatoes, based on 83 critics, stating, "it's nothing epic or grand, but it's a simple, funny film that kicked off Steve Zahn's career." Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times gave it 3/4. Steve Zahn won three awards for his performance in the film.

Zahn's performance was hugely praised by critics, and although he had appeared in several hit Hollywood movies, this was cited as his breakout film.

Soundtrack

The soundtrack album for Happy, Texas features a mix of mostly country music by such artists as Emmylou Harris, Alison Krauss, Lee Roy Parnell, Pam Tillis, Brad Paisley and BR5-49. There are also bits of Tejano (Flaco Jimenez) and exotica (Yma Sumac).

Track listing

1. "Passin' Through" (Randy Scruggs and Joan Osborne) – 5:16
2. "Good at Secrets" (Kim Richey) – 4:20
3. "This Little Light of Mine"/"Fort Davis Contestant" (Carly Fink) – 0:17
4. "Are You Happy Baby?" (Lee Roy Parnell and Keb' Mo') – 2:27
5. "Ordinary Heart" (Emmylou Harris) – 2:58
6. "Baila Este Ritmo" (Flaco Jiménez) – 3:17
7. "After a Kiss" (Pam Tillis) – 4:10
8. "Me Neither" (Brad Paisley) – 3:22
9. "Stay" (Alison Krauss) – 3:26
10. "Half a Man" (Shannon Brown) – 2:35
11. "Gopher Mambo" (Yma Sumac) – 2:17
12. "Honky Tonk Song" (BR5-49) – 2:38
13. "That Buckin' Song (Saddle Sore Mix)" (Robert Earl Keen) – 3:51
14. "Hurdy Gurdy Monkey Shine" (Road Kings) – 2:17
15. "Happiness" (Abra Moore) – 4:28
16. "It's Oh So Quiet" (Happy Girls) – 1:29
17. Cover of song popularized by Björk