Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Measured
- Intensity
- Mild
- Complexity
- Easy to follow
- Violence
- Mild
- irreverent
- witty
- shaggy
- lazy afternoon
- classic western night
What critics said
Critics found the film amiable and occasionally inventive, but broadly agreed that its thin later story, indulgent comic performance, and unconvincing romantic chemistry weakened the western farce.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Henry Moon's sentence is suspended when Julia Tate offers marriage under the town's unusual ordinance.
Julia marries Henry to secure labor for her gold mine, while Henry seeks freedom from the gallows.
The town's special rule allows condemned men to escape hanging if unmarried women claim them as husbands.
Nicholson's direction and Henry's comic outlaw persona create a deliberately loose, larger-than-life western tone.
Films like Goin' South, and why
The Apple Dumpling Gang
irreverent western comedy, eccentric outlaw protagonist, and playful anti-romantic pairing
Support Your Local Sheriff!
comic western setting, marriage and social arrangements, and broad fish-out-of-water humor
The Missouri Breaks
offbeat western comedy built around an antihero, frontier absurdity, and romance under pressure
Maverick
period western farce with unconventional romance and clashes between lawlessness and domestic expectations
Movie Details
- Director
- Jack Nicholson
- Release Date
- 1978-10-06
- Runtime
- 109 min
- Rating
- 5.8 / 10 (176)
Cast
- Jack Nicholson
- Mary Steenburgen
- Christopher Lloyd
- John Belushi
- Veronica Cartwright
- Richard Bradford
- Jeff Morris
- Danny DeVito
- Tracey Walter
- Gerald H. Reynolds
Where to watch in United States
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is Goin' South about?
- A swaggering Texas outlaw escapes the gallows through a marriage of convenience, only to find frontier domestic life harder than prison.
- What is Goin' South like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Goin' South as measured, its intensity as mild and its storytelling as easy to follow.
- Is Goin' South violent?
- Only mildly. Ember rates the violence in Goin' South as mild.
- What did critics think of Goin' South?
- Critics found the film amiable and occasionally inventive, but broadly agreed that its thin later story, indulgent comic performance, and unconvincing romantic chemistry weakened the western farce.
- Which films are like Goin' South?
- Films with a similar feel include The Apple Dumpling Gang, Support Your Local Sheriff!, The Missouri Breaks, and Maverick.
- How long is Goin' South?
- Goin' South runs 109 minutes.
- Where can I watch Goin' South?
- In United States, Goin' South is available to rent or buy from Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home.
