Quantum Cowboys

I saw this at the Hell's Half Mile film festival in Bay City, Michigan and was absolutely mesmerized by it. It's one of those movies you need to see several times to fully understand it (i really doubt that I did) but it's such a wonderful visual experience that it aches to be seen on a big screen. It feels loose and improvised, though I doubt that it was, and the cast is just so damn cool. I mean, Neko Case and John Doe?! Come on!!! Stylistically, it's all over the place, which could hurt but really serves the film and the entire experience. I can't remember the last time I saw a movie where every moment was a surprise and every image a work of art.

Quantum Cowboys is a brilliant, mind and genre bending act of cinematic wizardry! Keeping the audience gleefully teetering on a time warping, paradoxical roller coaster ride through the old west. Beautifully acted and masterfully directed, and oh so clever in its scripting and storytelling.

Musical genius, Howe Gelb not only created the musical score and perfectly crafted songs, but appears as the legendary Blacky Ranchette. This character and his music are expertly woven throughout the film. My favorite thread within this film is the understated First Nations wisdom and commentary, that respectfully builds upon the ever growing cultural awareness and honoring of the Original people of North America. This film is a truly original romp through western quantum trickster medicine.

I did not expect to like this movie and i was more than pleasantly surprised& impressed. I had the opportunity to see this at AFF23 and you never know with indie films (especially westerns set in the past, present, and future) Not to get too religious, but I lowercase-b believe we live in a matrix & this movie shook hands with my already held ideas about life & the universe+ time and space. I can't wait to watch this again when it is available to screen at home for hidden treasures. Please also make more of this content for me to consume & absorb. I will buy mercy, share with my friends and family and anyone who will listen. I will make memes for Reddit. I will make tiktok videos with the characters. It will make everyone involved a lot of money.

Quantum Cowboys was a masterpiece, I couldn't take my eyes off all the different animation styles. Warped my vision but also tickled my brain in just the right spots. All for the trippy western vibes. Kept me intrigued, guessing & giggling till the end. Their journey and sweet friendship was fun to see; the perfect trio. Reminds me of all the challenges I've gone through in life, there is so many different perspectives to have on every little thing.

All the characters really pulled me in, the entire crew really MADE THIS FILM. To see Lily's comedic side show was also very refreshing. I've been recommending this to all my friends. I really hope we get to see more from this peyote fever-dream<3.

"Quantum Cowboys" is the most creative film I've seen in a while, maybe since "Fantasia" or "Rumble Fish." While it's clearly fiction, it's also unclearly truth.

I actually put down my phone while watching because I didn't want to get lost. Background: earlier today, I navigated my way along backroads, passing wild turkeys, beds of irises, fields of yellow wildflowers, donkeys, vultures, and other large birds, driving more than 100 miles, taking unplanned turns on roads named Blackberry, Bobtail, and Elder, yet still arriving at my destinations.

The point is: the movie resembled my day. It also budged my perspective, which recently has been stuck in an existential rut. I've been spending a lot of time on my phone playing "Cat Physics," complete with its wormholes, levers and tiny tinkerings, trying to pass a ball from one cat to the other, time after time again. I've also been trying to wrap my head around quantum mechanics and time travel because I haven't been delighted with the current trajectory of the future.

Back to this review: the film was a surprise mashup of live action, animation, space, and time. I loved it in my darkened living room, and I would love to see it again on a giant theater-screen.