soundtechpro This is a great comedy western without being stupid satire and is nothing like Blazing Saddles by Mel Brooks. I personally hate satire on a high level. This is a hilarious movie with a great cast of characters. I first saw this movie when I was very young. But to ensure before I rated that I didn't remember this movie as funny just because I was a kid. I recently viewed it again. I am 44 and thing it is hilarious. I enjoy mostly serious westerns but also love comedic westerns when they are done well. Other good movies are Maverick, Support Your Local Sheriff, Support Your Local Gunfighter and John Wayne's "McClintock". So if you don't like any westerns that have comedy then this will not be for you. Perhaps you just go more for gritty reality such as Tombstone, Wyatt Earp, Unforgiven or classics such as True Grit and The Outlaw Josey Wales. But if you enjoy a laugh without being stupid satire you will like this movie. I am assuming that is why the reviews that have been written were mostly negative.

bkoganbing Cowboy James Stewart gets a letter that's followed him through many jobs for almost two years. It seems as though his prosperous brother from Cheyenne died and left him a going business, something called The Cheyenne Social Club. So Stewart quits his job in Texas and rides to Cheyenne to claim his inheritance and saddle pal Henry Fonda goes along for the ride. The Cheyenne Social Club rises and falls on the chemistry between its two stars and this one rises like the lightest of angel food cake. The two movie icons and best friends from Princeton days are so perfectly cast it's a shame they didn't make a sequel and have some further adventures.No doubt also these two helped director Gene Kelly over the rough patches in a movie genre he really wasn't familiar with. Kelly was wise enough to cast the film with a whole lot of players familiar with the western genre. And he was wise enough to give all these people their head and they don't let him down.It turns out that The Cheyenne Social Club is a bordello under the temporary management of Shirley Jones. It's quite an institution in Cheyenne, but it doesn't quite seem right for Stewart, something a working cowboy can enjoy, but not live off. Of course his friend Fonda seems to have settled down quite nicely there.Fonda's part could have been the great grandfather of the character he played in The Rounders. Apparently whatever suits Stewart just tickles Fonda plumb to death.Best moment in the film is when Jimmy Stewart gets the best of bad guy Robert J. Wilke in a gunfight after he beats up Shirley Jones. Of course it's with the help of Fonda and a noisy pecan. Has to be seen to be appreciated.This was James Stewart's last starring western and a great one to go out on as well.

MartinHafer I don't know about you, but the thought of a Jimmy Stewart movie where he is the new owner of a brothel just seems wrong. Would Elwood P. Dowd or Mr. Smith do this? Certainly not.It's sad, but in the late 60s and early 70s, there a string of "modern" westerns that featured amoral leads--Gregory Peck, Henry Fonda and Jimmy Stewart, among others, made them. Now it was nice to see movies that tried to be different, but these westerns generally weren't very good. And, it was very hard to really care about the movies as there no heroes and no sense of right or wrong--or at least a rather warped sense of right or wrong.While this movie isn't bad, it wasn't terribly good and was full of clichés--especially the "hooker with a heart of gold" cliché. Just once, I'd like to see a movie where a prostitute is a selfish alcoholic or has an STD.The film has decent writing and the dialog between Fonda and Stewart is good. The movie itself is pretty predictable and forgettable.

gmaloney1 After many years in the military, seeing few movies, I am still catching up on old flicks thanks to videos. Discovering Cheyenne SC is worth all my efforts. Cliches and all, it is a pleasure to watch the interaction of these two old "pros," Stewart and Fonda, and the superb supporting cast. I view this film often and laugh each time. I live close to the Eaves Ranch set, which I understand was built or expanded primarily for Cheyenne SC and where most of the movie was filmed. The set has changed some and the water tower was demolished a couple years ago. There is a piece of RR track and a couple livestock cars there, and the town buildings still exist, having been used for dozens of other movies since "Cheyenne SC" including "Silverado" and "Wyatt Earp." Unfortunately the owner/builder of the set Mr. J.W. Eaves just passed away on August 8 this year.(2001) A memorial service was held at his movie town.