The Rider

While watching the end credits of this film, I noticed that Brady Jandreau is mentioned twice: as the lead actor, and as the horse trainer. It's a way of telling the audience that Jandreau is, in fact, playing himself, or at least a version of his personality.

Brady Jandreau - only his last name is changed for his movie role - is a rodeo rider who is recovering from a near-fatal head injury. Doctors tell him he should never ride again, but after having spent some weeks working in a supermarket, he comes to the conclusion that there's only one thing that makes him happy: riding rodeo's.

It's a simple story, but it is told with lots of empathy for the heart wrenching choices Brady has to make. We can see him wrestling with his fate and in the end, he knows that he is meant to ride horses, 'just as a horse is meant to run across the prairie'.

There are several side stories deepening the insight in Brady's predicament. His teenage sister is mentally challenged, the family is poor and lives in a trailer, and he has to say goodbye to two of his favorite horses.

The film can be interpreted as a heroic tale of perserverence and dedication. Brady lives for the rodeo, and the viewer understands why he gets a kick out of the horses, the clothing, the masculinity and the competition. The director indicates this in subtle scenes. For example when he decides to pawn his custom made saddle, because he needs the money. At the last moment, he changes his mind.

But you can also interpret this film a a sad story of a man who has only limited possibilities in life because of the environment he grows up in. Brady really has nothing else in his life, and is not capable of even imagining changing it. One of the saddest scenes in the film is when Brady visits another rodeo hero, who is paralyzed for life after a fall, and lives in a care facility. Helped by three assistants, Brady lifts his friend on a wooden horse, puts a cowboy hat on his head and makes him move as if he is riding a horse. Even this terrible example doesn't deter Brady from continuing rodeo riding.

The cinematograpy is beautiful, with plenty of shots showing the treeless prairies of the empty American heartland in all its beauty. It also gives a nice insight into the rodeo world, a cultural phenomenon as essential to the American West as bull fighting is to Spain. But it's essentially a film about a man fighting the odds to do what he wants to do.

What a magnificent film. It's a simple story, one that has been told before, but the execution has almost never been better. It has a lot in common with The Wrestler, but it's way less flawed than that. Visually the film is incredibly beautiful, with some amazing shots and really accomplished editing. As strong as the screenplay is, it's the acting and directing that make this as powerful as it is. I had an actual visceral reaction to it in a way I rarely do to any type of film. The portrayal of the disintegration of body and the sacrifices people take to accomplish these dreams was captured in such a raw, painfully realistic way. Consideing the background of the people who act in the film, it's not a surprise. In particular, Brady Jandreau is a true revelation. There's a profound sadness that he is able to capture in the close-ups of his face. The camera is able to capture so much of his nuances and every little reaction to the comments said by others hits deep. In line with the entire film, it's hard to see this as an "acting" performance because everything feels so genuine.

There have been many great films this year but this now stands as easily the best so far.

Saw this at Sundance. Great film. None of the people in the film are actors. It aids in the realism but also is a testament to the director's ability. This is a subtle, emotionally impactful experience. By the end of it your heart breaks but is also hopeful. Good story of friendship and also coming to grips with not being able to do what you truly love to do. How does one make life meaningful?

A silent, serene & subdued portrait of small-town life in the American heartland, The Rider is a gently crafted, elegantly narrated & sincerely acted contemporary western drama that's heartfelt in its storytelling, authentic in its execution, and makes for one fascinating character study of a rodeo who grapples with his identity after suffering a near-fatal injury.

Written & directed by Chloé Zhao, the story is more or less a dramatisation of a real-life incident and even employs the same people in lead roles whose lives it attempts to render on screen. Enriching the imagery some more is the exquisite photography & unhurried approach, not to mention the care & understanding Zhao exhibits while sketching these characters on paper & film.

Zhao shows ample empathy for her characters, depicts the tender moments with a deft touch, and creates a comfortable enough environment for the untrained actors to give their best shot. The actors here are merely playing a fictionalised version of themselves, and they all end up doing a pretty neat job at it, for their performances are honest, arresting & emotionally resonant from start to finish.

Overall, The Rider is a tragic, soulful & poignant story of what it means to lose one's lifelong dream, the inadequacy that fills the life in its absence, and the unfathomable hardship of making peace with oneself by letting it go. There isn't really much wrong with anything Zhao does here yet for some reason, the film never immersed me into its world or made me care as deeply about the characters as Zhao does. I just like it fine.

The joy of doing what you love burns away any pain. For Brady, a rodeo rider who just emerged from a coma, the joy and pain come in equal measure. Brady is told not to ride again. "Play the cards you are dealt," says his father "let it go." Yet Brady's purpose in life is hitched to riding horses. Also, living in a trailer and eating rabbit soup is not the stuff of champions. In the starlight, around a campfire with friends, listening to his little sister sing simple yet beautiful songs, and in dreams, Brady ponders his next moves.

This authentic and heart-rending film integrates the real lives of the actors into the story. It is balanced in its portrayal and rightly does not cast judgment. The cinematography is up close and intimate so that emotions are revealed in faces and eyes (horse and human) as much as words. While the director, actors and horses are just starting out in their film making careers and it shows, there is power and magic in how genuine they are in their portrayals. In a sense, they have been preparing for this film their entire lives. Human nature and the real West are on display here, and there is as much beauty in that as there is in the prairie sunrise. Seen at the Toronto International Film Festival.