"The Rider" is a new American full feature film that premiered back in 2017 and it is the second theatrical release (after a handful of short movies) for writer and director Chloé Zhao and for that, these almost 105 minutes are a pretty respectable achievement. It is also much more known than her first already. Which may not necessarily have to do with the cast as pretty much everybody in here is even more of a rookie than Zhao. If you look at their bodies of work and also at their first names, you could almost say that this is a documentary movie. Brady Jandreau's own background emphasizes this even more. So good acting all along I would say. Speaking about the documentary element here, I am not sure how much of what we see in here really did happen as it gets a bit too melodramatic sometimes. The disabled fella, the severe injuries to the protagonist, the disabled sister, the near-death experience at the end, the horse shooting part and so on. It is a bit much probably, even if most of it is executed with precision. I thought the disabled sister was really good too, so good that I was genuinely worried something horrible could happen to her in the end that eventually causes the main character to lose his sanity the way he was close to in this wrestling moment already when we find out a great deal about the aggression he carries under his surface.
More words on the dad who may have been my favorite character: He was written so well, and he performed so convincingly too. He did care a lot for his son, but struggled with showing him, not just because of his gambling problems, but because of his character that just won't allow many emotions to the surface and prefers to work it cool instead. But the final scene in which he brings his daughter to the show at the end is maybe the most subtly touching father-son moment of the entire film and how he shows his son how much he wants him to live and what he is about to lose. And let's not forget about all the struggles his dad has been facing when it comes to his wife and his three children (that we know of). So yes this is a somewhat different western we have here, don't expect a great deal of Brokeback Mountain this time, in terms of style and tone it felt a lot more resembling "The Wrestler" in my opinion. So the title fits too. And the film does not lose itself in romance plots as there is so much other stuff going on in Brady's life. The one question that will be with you throughout the film from start to finish for over 1.5 hours is if he will live or die at the very end. Go and watch for yourself. Maybe you will be intrigued, maybe not by this slightly underseen film. But most likely you will not be disappointed. I give it a thumbs-up. Good cinematography too that many other westerns these days can learn something from for sure.
More words on the dad who may have been my favorite character: He was written so well, and he performed so convincingly too. He did care a lot for his son, but struggled with showing him, not just because of his gambling problems, but because of his character that just won't allow many emotions to the surface and prefers to work it cool instead. But the final scene in which he brings his daughter to the show at the end is maybe the most subtly touching father-son moment of the entire film and how he shows his son how much he wants him to live and what he is about to lose. And let's not forget about all the struggles his dad has been facing when it comes to his wife and his three children (that we know of). So yes this is a somewhat different western we have here, don't expect a great deal of Brokeback Mountain this time, in terms of style and tone it felt a lot more resembling "The Wrestler" in my opinion. So the title fits too. And the film does not lose itself in romance plots as there is so much other stuff going on in Brady's life. The one question that will be with you throughout the film from start to finish for over 1.5 hours is if he will live or die at the very end. Go and watch for yourself. Maybe you will be intrigued, maybe not by this slightly underseen film. But most likely you will not be disappointed. I give it a thumbs-up. Good cinematography too that many other westerns these days can learn something from for sure.