The Rider

The 486th film I have seen in theaters…

Chloe Zhao, a director to watch, delivers her second film- a true tale of a rodeo cowboy played by the people that actually lived through it.

Brady Blackburn is a rodeo cowboy who is injured during a ride. He is told he can never ride again. This is the story of how he copes with the complete loss of his identity and his urge to ride again.

This film stars The Jandreau family and friends. Untrained actors, they retell the real life story of Brady’s injury in 2016.

Brady Jandreau plays Brady. The character is based on his own real life injury while riding a rodeo bronco. He carries the film, offering a sense of authenticity to the events, as he actually lived them.

His real life father and sister, Tim and Lilly, play the roles in the film as well. Lilly is particularly adorable.

Paralyzed Rodeo rider Lane Scott plays himself. His scenes were heartbreaking and powerful.

Cat Clifford plays himself, Brady’s friend.

This film was awesome. Zhao is a master of setting the mood in a film with little dialogue. She uses the Badlands scenery, a place I’ve been to and loved, to great effect. The Jandreau family also gives us a chance to see how real horse training is done, something that was fascinating for me, a horse novice, to watch.

This movie is an early contender for some Oscar love. 9/10