Pure Country (1992)

I'll take Sam Elliott or Randy Travis in a starring role any day long before George Strait -- but when George sings country love songs (as he does a lot in this movie), it's like eating butter creams. So let's be clear: You don't watch Pure Country for stellar acting. (Perhaps the only name besides George Strait that you'll recognize is Leslie Ann Warren.) The settings are not picturesque -- concert arenas, arena basements, honky-tonks, and tour buses -- until you get back to the land where George (as country-music star Dusty Dustin) got his start an' he starts ropin' an' singin'. The story is sufficiently perfunctory to carry it along just fine if you don't nitpick. You watch Pure Country for the good-as-sweetgrass country music and for the love story. Isabel Glaser holds her own fairly well as Harley Tucker, a love interest with a talent of her own. I also like her taciturn father. Be sure to see Pure Country if you love George Strait, country music, love songs, cowboys, rodeos, ranch life, Texas, and songs about good American folks who hold down their jobs and love their families. See it esp. if you're a Texan or own a pair of cowboy boots you've worn more than once. Over time, see it enough times that you can sing along with the words. Enjoy! 3.5 stars. (6-17-10 posted 7-9-10)