''How the West Was Fun'' is a 1994

Revisionist western The revisionist Western (also called the anti-Western, sometimes revisionist antiwestern) is a sub-genre of the Western film. Designated a post-classical variation of the traditional Western, the revisionist subverts the myth and romance of the ...

film A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmosphere ...

starring

Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen Mary-Kate Olsen and Ashley Fuller Olsen (born June 13, 1986), also known as the Olsen twins as a duo, are American fashion designers and former actresses. The twins made their acting debut as infants playing Michelle Tanner on the television s ...

Synopsis

8-year-old twin girls Jessica and Susie Martin (

) live with their father, Stephen ( Patrick Cassidy), in

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

. They have a dream about a man saying, "This town ain't big enough for the three of us" and having a shootout but argue who makes their move first. One day, they receive a letter from their late mother Sarah's godmother, Natty (Phillips), inviting them to a

dude ranch A guest ranch, also known as a dude ranch, is a type of ranch oriented towards visitors or tourism. It is considered a form of agritourism. History Guest ranches arose in response to the romanticization of the American West that began to occur ...

. She, not knowing about Sarah's death, wants her to come help at the ranch. She is having financial problems because the ranch has too few paying visitors and, although she has offers, she does not want to sell it. The girls try to ask their dad's uptight boss, "The Dragon Lady" (Ms. Plaskett), for his vacation time, only to get him fired. They lie and say that she said that they could go. They go to the ranch and attempt to help Natty. As they arrive they meet George Tailfeathers (Cardinal), Natty's friendly but mysterious Native American ranch foreman, and they become fast friends. But Natty's dim-witted son, Bart Gifooley (Mull), immediately condescends to and patronizes the girls. Sarah's horse, Lightning, leads them to her secret hideout. They find half of a stone owl and bear, plus her diary which tells how Bart had once tried to set fire to the ranch, and about his secret hideout in a place called "The Bear's Mouth". As they finish reading, they see smoke and start running towards it, thinking it is another fire, but find it is Bart burning papers. They lie to him that an ember landed on the roof so they can find out what they are. They find out that he has been turning people away from the ranch. Trying to take a letter to Natty to show what he is doing, they are chased by him. He tears up the letter and snarls, "This ranch ain't big enough for the three of us", which brings the girls to a conclusion that he was the one in the dream. Right before Bart can do any more, George backs them up with a riding lesson. At lunch, despite Bart's orders not to, they convince Natty to fix up the ranch and open it again. Later, Bart finds out that Stephen was fired and is about to tell him the truth, but instead decides to give the girls a chance to tell it themselves. Despite Natty's offers, he turns down her job offerings. Later, the girls find a hidden trap door under a stuffed bear (The Bear's Mouth), go inside, and find out that Bart is selling the ranch to make it into Gifooley Land Theme Park. Before Natty is about to sign the deed to the ranch to him, the girls convince her what he is plotting. Heartbroken, she orders him off her land, or else he would "get a good spanking". Meanwhile, Stephen tries to get a loan but is turned down. What he does not know is that the bank is already with Bart on the whole deal. That night, the girls ride off to

Denver Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...

to convince Leo McRugger, the businessman to whom Bart is selling the ranch, to not go through with the deal. Their offers are so interesting, McRugger and his executives decide to come down for a week just to see if it is actually what they are talking about. It is fixed up with the help of George, Stephen, Natty, the girls, and Laura Forrester (Greene), Steven's girlfriend. The activities are set up. However, each is sabotaged by Bart. Just when all appears to be lost, the girls decide to find a lost treasure since they have a map. But first, they trap Bart so he cannot do any more damage. They and everyone else find the gold, which turns out to be fool's gold, but still pleases McRugger and his executives. He agrees to spare the ranch. As they head to the river, they are confronted by Bart. He tries to escape in a raft. The girls go after him only to be grabbed by him and taken down the river, after kicking his friend, Cookie in the water. He heads them down rapids and then realizes that they are headed for a dam. Down the river, the girls see a rope hanging off a bridge. They grab it and hang on. Bart plunges down the dam and gets severely injured as a result. The girls write their own diary. The movie ends with Everyone dancing at the ranch minus Bart who is sitting down

Cast

Ashley Olsen Ashley Fuller Olsen (born June 13, 1986) is an American businesswoman and former actress. She began her acting career at the age of nine months, sharing the role of Michelle Tanner with her twin sister Mary-Kate Olsen in the television sitcom ...

... Jessica Martin *

Mary-Kate Olsen Mary-Kate Olsen (born June 13, 1986) is an American businesswoman, fashion designer, equestrian, and former actress. She began her acting career nine months after her birth, sharing the role of Michelle Tanner with her twin sister Ashley Olsen ...

... Susie Martin *

Elizabeth Olsen Elizabeth Chase Olsen (born February 16, 1989) is an American actress. Born in Sherman Oaks, California, Olsen began acting at age four. She starred in her debut film role in the thriller ''Martha Marcy May Marlene'' in 2011, for which she wa ...

... Girl In Car *

Martin Mull Martin Eugene Mull (born August 18, 1943) is an American actor, comedian and musician who has appeared in many television and film roles. He is also a painter and recording artist. As an actor, he first became known in his role on ''Mary Hartman, ...

... Bart Gifooley *

Michele Greene Michele Dominguez Greene (born February 3, 1962) is an American actress, singer, and author. She is known for her role as attorney Abby Perkins on the TV series ''L.A. Law'' from 1986 to 1991, for which she was nominated for a 1989 Primetime ...

... Laura Forrester * Patrick Cassidy ... Stephen Martin *Ben Cardinal ... George Tailfeathers *

Leon Pownall Leon Pownall (April 26, 1943 – June 2, 2006) was a Welsh Canadian actor and director. He was born in Wrexham, Wales and moved to Hamilton, Ontario with his family in 1957. He performed at the Stratford Festival during the 1960s and return ...

... Leo McRugger *

Peg Phillips Peg Phillips (born Margaret Linton, September 20, 1918 – November 7, 2002) was an American actress best known for playing storekeeper Ruth-Anne Miller on the television series ''Northern Exposure''. Early life Phillips was born Margaret L ...

... Natty *Wes Tritter ... Cookie *

Georgie Collins Eileen Georgina "Georgie" Collins (née Given; June 12, 1925 – May 3, 2017) was a Canadian film, stage, and television actress. Collins is known for her role in the 1981 cult horror film ''Ghostkeeper'', as well as her part in '' Lonesome Dove: ...

... Mrs. Plaskett *Heather Lea MacCallum ... Leona *

Shaun Johnston Shaun Johnston is a Canadian movie and theatre actor best known for his role as Jack Bartlett on the CBC drama ''Heartland'', which debuted in October 2007. He co-founded the Shadow Theatre in Edmonton and made his first professional forays ...

... Phil *Daniel Libman ... Roger *Bartley Bard ... Mr. Sutton

Production

The film was filmed in the

Canadian Rockies The Canadian Rockies (french: Rocheuses canadiennes) or Canadian Rocky Mountains, comprising both the Alberta Rockies and the British Columbian Rockies, is the Canadian segment of the North American Rocky Mountains. It is the easternmost part ...

, one hour west of

Calgary Calgary ( ) is the largest city in the western Canadian province of Alberta and the largest metro area of the three Prairie Provinces. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806, makin ...

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...

at Rafter Six Ranch Resort. Shots in the city were done within Calgary, including a ride on

Calgary Transit Calgary Transit is the public transit agency which is owned and operated by the city of Calgary, Alberta, Canada. In 2019, an estimated 106.5 million passengers boarded approximately 1,155 Calgary Transit vehicles. It operates light metro (LRT), u ...

C-Train CTrain (previously branded C-Train) is a light rail rapid transit system in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Most of the network functions as a light metro, though in the free-fare zone that runs through the downtown core the Red and Blue lines opera ...

Trivia

The title "How the West Was Fun" is a reference to the 1962 ensemble Western film ''How the West Was Won''.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:How The West Was Fun 1994 television films 1994 films American television films Warner Bros. films Films about twin sisters ABC Motion Pictures films Twins in fiction 1990s English-language films Films directed by Stuart Margolin