The premise of John Ford's seminal 1956 western The Searchers is by now iconic - it details the attempts of racist and psychologically beleaguered Ethan Edwards (John Wayne) to hunt down his kidnapped daughter, Debbie) (Natalie Wood), whom he initially intends to kill given the racial "defilement" that her perceives in her. The motion picture influenced a panoply of American films, from Taxi Driver to Hardcore, and receives an official update in this independently-produced effort by tyro director Jason Wulfsohn. Tracing Cowboys brings audiences a new Ethan (Sacha Grunpeter), this one a Briton with musical ambitions. He nurtures dreams of country and western superstardom, but gets waylaid by his search for his girlfriend Debbie, who apparently sought refuge and asylum in a Mexican small town. Thus begins a cross-country odyssey for Ethan that witnesses him journeying to the said village - a trip that enables Wulfsohn's film to reflect on such themes as betrayal, romantic devotion, obsession and self-myth.
~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide