Before Jon Voight became love and sex object Joe Buck in Midnight Cowboy he
did this film The All American Boy which was shelved. Released due to the
success of Midnight Cowboy, this film sadly provides the reason it was shelved
in the first place.
Voight is playing another Joe Buck, not that he's outright selling his body for sex,
but he's got good looks and charm and that's good enough for a lot to get by on
and he does. What puzzled me is why would he want to ruin all that and become
a boxer? A life of that sport and he'll wind up a version of himself that he
played in the remake of The Champ.
Sadly the film drags on in the telling. It has several spots guaranteed to give
you yawns. Did like that rather surreal ending.
Best in the film is the gay fight manager and Ned Glass takes one look at him
and he's an instant houseguest. A harbinger of Midnight Cowboy.
A half hour less this film might have been Voight's breakout role rather than
Midnight Cowboy.