Plot
'Bud' Davis moves from the small town of Spur, Texas to Pasadena, Texas, located near the heavily industrial eastern side of Houston, and a better paying job in the city's oil refinery in hopes of saving enough money to move back to his hometown and buy some land. Bud moves in with his Uncle Bob (Barry Corbin) and his family, whom Bud is close to. Bob takes Bud to the local honky tonk, Gilley's (at the time, an actual bar in Pasadena, co-owned by singer Mickey Gilley and his record producer Sherwood Cryer which was then claimed to be the largest indoor (enclosed) bar in the world.). Bud quickly embraces the local nightlife there. Most of the events take place in and around Gilley's.
At the club, Bud is approached by Sissy (Debra Winger), who asks if he is a real cowboy. The two dance together, showcasing Travolta's dancing abilities, and they fall in love. After a fight, Bud suddenly asks Sissy if she wants to marry him, and they are married in Gilley's. Bud and Sissy have many lovers' quarrels, some very intense, mainly due to their different views of men and women in society. Sissy is a fiery independent woman, with a strong belief that anything men can do women can do, while Bud still believes in very traditional gender roles, and that "there are just some things girls can't do." However, their love for each other always brings them back together again. Their lives settle into a routine of hard work during the day and living it up at Gilley's during the night. (The movie's tagline is "Hard hat days and honky-tonk nights.")
The movie also highlights the many fights between cowboys at Gilley's and the mechanical bull, which leads to a break-up of Bud and Sissy's relationship, and to Sissy moving in with Bud's arch-rival, Wes (Scott Glenn). Bud seeks solace with Pam (Madolyn Smith).
Pam eventually realizes that Bud still loves Sissy and encourages him to reconcile with her. Meanwhile, Wes has been beating Sissy, and then steals the prize money from the bull riding competition, resulting in a fight with Bud. Bud punches Wes and all of the money that Wes had stolen falls from his jacket. The club's manager, discovering the attempted robbery, detains Wes at gunpoint. Bud and Sissy finally depart Gilley's (the source and location of most of their troubles) together.
Read more about this topic: Urban Cowboy
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