My Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys is a fine contemporary western written by Joel Don Humphreys and directed by Stuart Rosenberg. Scott Glenn is H.D. Dalton, a middle-aged rodeo performer who returns to his hometown in Oklahoma after being seriously injured by a wild bull. His sister and her husband have put his father in a nursing home. H.D. earns her ire by retrieving their dad and bringing him back to the farm.
In caring for his worn-out father, this macho cowboy gets in touch with other long submerged feelings for nurturing. He realizes that he must shed his chauvinism to win back the love of Julie, a widow with two children who was his girlfriend in high school. And while H.D. trains for one last rodeo competition with a $100,000 top prize, he becomes a mentor to Julie's son.
In parenting his father and dealing with unfinished business in their relationship, H.D. salvages a lost part of himself and becomes a more rounded man. That's why My Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys is tailor-made for reflective male filmgoers. Others in the cast include Tess Harper, Gary Busey, Ben Johnson, Kate Capshaw and Balthazar Getty.