As others have said, this movie is a gentle, loving, homage/send-up of early Westerns. The basic premise is what would happen if a '40s B Western were updated to modern realism. The results are very funny. "Rex O'Herlihan, The Singin' Cowboy", played terrifically by Tom Berringer, pulls a traveling armoire (you gotta get those outfits from somewhere) stacked with white hats, terrific outfits and guitars. He spends time washing and ironing (someone's gotta do it) and is through-and-through a "good guy". There are so many scenes and lines that we love:Spoilers may follow:It's the old theme of Sheep Herders vs Cattle Ranchers. Andy Griffith is terrific as the power-mad cattle baron "Colonel Ticonderoga". You hear lots of cows, but you never see one. Blackie is one of his men, in town to give the sheep herders a bad time.Blackie (black hat) in the saloon: "I smell sheep!" Sheep herders son, standing up and opening his jacket to demonstrate: I'm-a not wearin' a gun, and I'm not going to do ANYTHING that in ANY way ..." "Blam blam blam" Blackie shoots him. Real Estate Guy: "You can kill me too, Blackie, but it's just this kind of violence that drives down property values here in Oakwood Estates" "Blam!" Property values! ha ha haBlackie to Rex: "You look like one of those fellers who's attracted to other men" Rex: "How a person dresses is nobody's business but his or her own" Politically correct Rex.I guess you have to see it to appreciate it. Along with the general send-up of early westerns, I see a sub-text of the difficulty men have in being "good" while navigating this difficult world. That may be a stretch, but I see it. Great movie!!!

Maybe you have to be very familiar with old B-movie American westerns to fully enjoy Rustler's Rhapsody and since I'm not all that familiar with the genre I don't think too highly of this film.That's not to say it's unfunny, it truly has it's moments but they're not very many and a bit far between. Tom Berenger does well as The Singing Cowboy who rides alone and squares matters in every town. The main spoof here is that every western followed the same formula and so Berenger can predict what's gonna happen each time.The cast is earnest. G.W. Baily is sporadically funny as the town drunk who becomes Berenger's sidekick, Fernando Rey is very good as the embodiment of a Spaghetti Western villain (one of the film's more funnier scenes is the spoof on their wardrobe and better background music) and the rest (Andy Griffith, Marilu Henner and Sela Ward) fare well enough. I just wished they could have used Jim Carter more (Déja Vu from Top Secret). His confrontation with Berenger in the beginning is a riot.The problem is mainly that it's paper thin premise doesn't go many places. Berenger's ability to predict what's gonna happen takes up most of the film's jokes. As said I'm not all that familiar with the genre apart from a few movies so I could well enough have missed some jokes.Rustler's Rhapsody is thus an O.K. way to spend an hour and a half but I didn't laugh out loud that often.

I usually enjoy parodies, and this one is my absolute favorite. Tom Berenger shows a rare lighthearted side of himself as Rex O'Herlihan, The Singing Cowboy. Andy Griffith is the best I've ever seen him as Colonel Ticonderoga, the gay cattle baron. Sela Ward (the Colonel's daughter) and Marilu Henner (Miss Tracey, the town prostitute) are both entertaining and easy on the eyes. G.W. Bailey gives a hilarious performance as Peter, the town drunk turned overeager sidekick.The humor is more subtle than the slapstick of "Blazing Saddles," which seems to be the only Western parody that most people have seen. Personally, I greatly prefer "Rustler's Rhapsody." Some of my favorite movie quotes come from this movie. I've seen it at least a dozen times and it never fails to make me laugh out loud.Thankfully I now own a copy of the DVD, as my videotape has been watched so often that it's wearing out.

No, it's not the best movie of all time -- but it's got a lot of good laughs, and some of the better lines out there. The last reviewer has it down really well. You have to pay attention and listen as the movie comes from a time that the humor wasn't based on bodily functions, or insulted your intelligence because the jokes are simplistic enough for an idiot to understand. Things are understated in some places, and overdone "western style" in others.Overall, light and funny: a good movie to watch for fun - and for the most part, family safe -- there's only a few suggestive jokes, and they are obscure enough that only parents should get them.