RottenTomatoes.com
Log In | Register | What is RT?
Found a Bug? Squash It! Report Bugs Here
  • Home
  • Movies
  • DVD
  • Celebrities
  • News
  • Critics
  • Trailers & Pictures
  • CommunityBeta
  • Box Office
  • | Best Of
  • | Certified Fresh
  • | Showtimes
RT Search Powered by Google
help icon Enhanced RT
searches on Google
Click here to turn on enhanced search results from RT on your Google searches.
 
Movies / On DVD / Happy, Texas
Happy, Texas

Rate this Movie Help Icon

  • Write a Review
  • Read Reviews
  • Add to List
  • Buy Poster External Icon
Bookmark and Share

Happy, Texas (1999)

  • T-Meter Critics
  • Top Critics
  • RT Community
  • My Critics
  • My Friends
  • DVD
82 %
Tomatometer
Template ImageTemplate Image

How does the Tomatometer work Help Icon

Reviews Counted:49

Fresh:40

Rotten:9

Average Rating:6.8/10

Consensus: A smart, light-hearted romantic comedy, Happy, Texas uses its well-written script and exceptional cast to prove there's still life left in the fish-out-of-water caper genre.

Runtime: 1 hr 38 mins

Genre: Comedies

Synopsis: Harry Sawyer (Northam) and Wayne Wayne Wayne Jr. (Zahn) are two escaped convicts who find themselves in Happy, Texas. When they are mistaken for a gay couple who are in town to host a local beauty... Harry Sawyer (Northam) and Wayne Wayne Wayne Jr. (Zahn) are two escaped convicts who find themselves in Happy, Texas. When they are mistaken for a gay couple who are in town to host a local beauty pageant, they use the opportunity to slip into character and avoid the authorities. Obviously, the bumbling, heterosexual criminals don't have a clue as to what they're doing, and when romance appears in the form of a distraught banker (Walker) and a tacky teacher (Douglas), their real personas threaten to emerge and blow their cover. Zahn's hysterical performance won him a Special Jury Award at the 1999 Sundance Film Festival. [More]

Starring: Steve Zahn, Jeremy Northam, William H. Macy, Ally Walker

Starring: Steve Zahn, Jeremy Northam, William H. Macy, Ally Walker, Illeana Douglas, M.C. Gainey, Ron Perlman, Paul Dooley, Tim Bagley, Michael Hitchcock, Mo Gaffney

Director: Mark Illsley

Director: Mark Illsley
Screenwriter: Mark Illsley, Phil Reeves, Ed Stone
Producer: Mark Illsley, Rick Montgomery, Ed Stone
Composer: Peter Harris

[See More Credits]

Reviews for Happy, Texas

  • T-Meter Critics
  • Top Critics
  • RT Community
  • My Critics
  • My Friends
  • DVD
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by comments; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | 1 2 3 >> >|
Arrange By:Fresh | Rotten | Comments | Name | Source | Date
 
 

Happy, Texas is a light, breezy and very amusing comedy.

Full Review Source: Empire Magazine | comment Comment
01/01/00
Bob McCabe
Bob McCabe
Empire Magazine
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Time Out | comment Comment
02/09/06
Derek Adams
Derek Adams
Time Out
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Uneven in places but with a few choice hilarious moments, it is well worth the rental.

Full Review Source: Empire Magazine | comment Comment
01/01/00
Emma Cochrane
Emma Cochrane
Empire Magazine
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

...although it reverts to slapstick for its set-piece chase finale, for most of its length Mark Illsley's debut film offers an unexpectedly gentle, even sentimental comedy of sexual identities...

Full Review Source: Sight and Sound | comment Comment
12/02/02
Philip Kemp
Philip Kemp
Sight and Sound

Full of bumbling schemes, sexual deception and mistaken identities, the film occasionally lets some hambone moments creep in, but Zahn and the amazing Macy as the town's oddly secretive sheriff are the icing on this zany cake.

Full Review Source: E! Online | comment Comment
01/01/00
E! Online

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Reel.com | comment Comment
01/01/00
Reel.com
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Boston Phoenix | comment Comment
03/24/02
Boston Phoenix
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Atlanta Journal-Constitution | comment Comment
02/21/04
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Houston Chronicle | comment Comment
07/21/05
Houston Chronicle

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Film Threat | comment Comment
12/06/05
Film Threat

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Film Threat | comment Comment
12/06/05
Film Threat

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: rec.arts.movies.reviews | comment Comment
01/01/00
Bob Bloom
Bob Bloom
rec.arts.movies.reviews

Anybody with a soft spot for fakers, who either identifies with them or just admires their chutzpah, is going to get a kick out of Happy, Texas.

Full Review Source: San Francisco Chronicle | comment Comment
01/01/00
Bob Graham
Bob Graham
San Francisco Chronicle

Odd couple buddy picture with Rom-Com elements that work. Zhan gives one of his most hysterical performances to date. Lighthearted, watchable, and fun.

comment Comment
03/25/03
Brian Mckay
Brian Mckay
eFilmCritic.com

The set-up is so strong that it's impressive to see it progress so effortlessly.

Full Review Source: Film Threat | comment Comment
12/08/02
Chris Gore
Chris Gore
Film Threat

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Filmcritic.com | comment Comment
01/01/00
Christopher Null
Christopher Null
Filmcritic.com

A joyous entertainment, tinged with an appealing innocence both singular and welcome in contemporary American film.

Full Review Source: Film Journal International | comment Comment
01/01/00
David Noh
David Noh
Film Journal International

A sitcom type of nonsensical comedy, one that has abolutely no bite.

Full Review Source: Ozus' World Movie Reviews | comment Comment
01/01/00
Dennis Schwartz
Dennis Schwartz
Ozus' World Movie Reviews

Steve Zahn shines in Illsley's feature debut, elevating this eccentric small-town comedy two notches above the level of writing. Using the fish out of water format, this Sundance premiere begins well but then declines rapidly.

Full Review Source: Variety | comment Comment
01/29/07
Emanuel Levy
Emanuel Levy
Variety
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: EricDSnider.com | comment Comment
09/18/02
Eric D. Snider
Eric D. Snider
EricDSnider.com
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by comments; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | 1 2 3 >> >|
See All

More DVDs

Top Rentals
Tomatometer Percentage Movie
14% 14% The Ugly Truth
98% 98% Up
36% 36% G.I. Joe: The Rise of …
52% 52% The Taking of Pelham 1…
45% 45% Ice Age: Dawn of the D…

More Rentals…

New On DVD This Week
Tomatometer Percentage Movie
36% 36% Angels & Demons
68% 68% Funny People
25% 25% Four Christmases
45% 45% Shorts

More New Releases…

What’s Hot On RT

Twilight Saga: Eclipse

Twilight Saga: Eclipse

5 facts straight from the cast.

Disney Animation

Disney Animation

We chart the studio's classics.

Avatar

Avatar

An exclusive look at the human hardware.

Eric Bana

Eric Bana

The Star Trek star talks cars with RT.

Other News

  • Top Stories
  • Popular
  • Interviews
 
 

Comments

 
 
Top Stories
Headlines Comments
  
  • Weekly Ketchup: Zombieland 2 in 3D?
54
  • First Look (Sort Of) at New Nightmare's Freddy Source: ShockTillYouDrop.com
24
  • First Look at Shrek Forever After Source: USA Today
48
  • Woody Harrelson Will Battle Zombies in 3-D Source: Moviehole
26
  • Natalie Portman Says Kat Denning Is in Thor Source: MTV
34
  • Disney Restructuring Has Broad Implications Source: Los Angeles Times
10
  • Joel Silver Talks Ninja Assassin, Sgt. Rock, Lobo, and More Source: Collider.com
1
  • Weekly Ketchup: Idris Elba cast in Thor, more Spider-Man 4 rumors
128
  • Idris Elba Joins Thor Source: Hollywood Reporter
112
  • Jackass 3D Coming in 2010? Source: Collider.com
32
Popular
Headlines Comments
  
  • Box Office Guru Wrapup: New Moon Shatters Records
182
  • Total Recall: John Travolta's Best Movies
92
  • Friday Harvest: The Road, Avatar, and more!
88
  • Ban Them All! 10 Infamously Controversial Movies
82
  • 5 Facts About The Twilight Saga: Eclipse
71
  • Critics Consensus: Flee From Ninja Assassin
45
  • Five Favorite Films With Zombieland Director Ruben Fleischer
22
  • Weekly Ketchup: Zombieland 2 in 3D?
18
  • "I Don't Hate Women": Lars von Trier on Antichrist
16
  • Duncan Jones Reteams With Kevin Spacey
3
Interviews
Headlines Comments
  
  • "I Don't Hate Women": Lars von Trier on Antichrist
16
  • Eric Bana talks Love the Beast - RT Interview
11
  • Fight Club Sound Designer Reflects on Film's 10th Anniversary
21
  • James Schamus talks Taking Woodstock - RT Interview
8
  • John Hurt Talks Harry Potter, Quentin Crisp and Alien - The RT Interview
15
  • Terry Gilliam Talks Doctor Parnassus
21
  • Wes Anderson Talks Fantastic Mr. Fox - RT Interview
8
  • Wolverine Creator Len Wein Talks About the Film
28
  • Gavin Hood Talks Wolverine; Possible Sequel
28
  • Duncan Jones talks Moon, Sam Rockwell, and Mute
14
 
 

Sponsored Links

Around The Network

  • Happy, Texas at Rotten Tomatoes

Fresh Links

Featured
RT on YouTube
RT on YouTube External Link

Subscribe to RT's YouTube channel and don't miss a second of our cracking video content.

RT on Twitter
RT on Twitter External Link

Follow Rotten Tomatoes and join us as we tweet about the week's releases.

 
 
About| Site Map| Help| RT To Go| Contact Us| Critics Submission| Linking to RT| Licensing| Movie List| Celebs List| Newsletter
IGN Logo

IGN.com | GameSpy | Comrade | Arena | FilePlanet | GameSpy Technology
TeamXbox | Planets | Vaults | VE3D | CheatsCodesGuides | GameStats | GamerMetrics
AskMen.com | Rotten Tomatoes | Direct2Drive | Green Pixels


By continuing past this page, and by the continued use of this site, you agree to be bound by and abide by the User Agreement.
Copyright 1998-2009, IGN Entertainment, Inc. About IGN | Support | Advertise | Privacy Policy | User Agreement | Subscribe to RT's XML feed! IGN RSS Feeds
IGN's enterprise databases running Oracle, SQL and MySQL are professionally monitored and managed by Pythian Remote DBA
Certain product data ©1995-present Muze, Inc. For personal use only. All rights reserved.