REVIEW: The Rider

Casting people who aren't actors is an enormous risk.  I don't have to think hard to remember what happened when Neil Blomkanp cast South African hip hop duo Die Antwoord to take up major roles in 2015's Chappie.  Both Yolandi Visser and Ninja did what they could, but, ultimately, acting isn't their bread and butter, and the movie suffered because of the casting choice.  I don't blame them.  They tried really hard.  The problem is that the scope of what they were supposed to do wasn't anything they could handle properly.  That being said, even if the casting had been better, I doubt it would have been able to save Chappie.

I had done very little research ahead of viewing The Rider, but it was quickly apparent that the people in the film aren't actors by trade.  I don't mean this in a bad way, though.  Instead of thespians trying to nail their roles with plenty of charisma, Chinese director Chloe Zhao milked an understated simplicity from those cast.  It was obvious that they weren't actors, but what they provided was extremely refreshing.  I put this down to Zhao knowing what she was able to get from them, what was needed, and them sincerely portraying the roles as best they could.  It was simple, but it was honest, and that honesty took this film a long way.

The movie is about a young rising star in the rodeo world, Brady Blackburn (Brady Jandreau), who had a near death experience when he was bucked from a horse that then stomped on his skull.  The severity of the injury casts doubt on him ever being able to ride a horse again.  We meet Brady shortly afterwards, and we get a sense of how tough this cowboy is as he uses a knife to pry staples out of his skull.  The film follows Brady as he needs to adjust to life outside of riding horses.  This is someone without a high school education that knows and loves something dearly, and the pain of them becoming separated from that.

Living in the world of the tough cowboy, Brady has friends that reinforce what we already know is going through his mind.  They believe that a true cowboy rides through the pain, not quite equating the situation of Brady to being a life and death matter.  The pressure is on him to recover and get back into the life, and Brady must work through what that means and the possible consequences of it.  We see Brady visiting a good friend of his, Lane Scott (Lane Scott), who was an even better rider that is now in a wheel chair and can barely communicate due to an accident.  On the one hand, we have the pressures from Brady's friends that he needs to be tough and keep going.  On the other hand, there is great pain in Brady seeing Lane's now ruined life, and knowing that he could end up in the same situation.

The entire movie is that struggle.  Being a young man, feeling invisible is part of life.  But a large part of Brady understands that tragedy can happen, while the other part sees nothing but personal identity in what he used to be able to do.  This is where the casting makes perfect sense.  I have read that the movie is somewhat based around what Jandreau went through in real life, and it is this reason why he is perfect for the role.  His eyes carry the pain of his realized mortality, and his passion for horses seeps through each scene.  The audience knows that what they are seeing is authentic, and that there really is a young man struggling to make sense of his life.

The home life of Brady isn't much for him to be content with.  His father gambles and drinks away their money, which ends up meaning they have to sell their horse to keep existing.  A shot of pure gold in his family is Brady's love for his autistic sister, Lilly (Lilly Jandreau).  She is infectious, so wonderful and natural in front of the camera.  If she was in every scene in the movie, I would have been perfectly happy.  Lilly and her innocence are dear to Brady, a shot of optimism during a time when hope is hard to be found.

Zhao works magic behind the camera, shooting a lifestyle and a landscape that become an ingrained part in Brady's story.  It becomes easy for us to understand how this young man came to have the passions that he does, as well as his unending desire to be able to integrate back into that world.  Sadly, we get to see him working behind a cash register instead of riding a horse.  There is a defeated side to Brady in this, but also pure determination to do what is needed to help provide for his family.  It is very easy for us to admire the struggle that Brady endures, and to see him making the decisions that he does.

Another reason why it was smart to cast Brady Jandreau in this role is because we get to see him working with horses that are very aggressive.  As he is healing, he does some work training a horse.  He also ends up getting himself a very temperamental horse, and the scenes of him interacting with these creatures are mesmerizing.  There is no way that an actor would be able to get into a pen with these horses and do what is needed without getting hurt.  It is again that sincere connection that Brady has with horses that magnifies these brilliant scenes, as he uses his real life skills to settle the beasts down.

When it comes down to it, there are two moments of incredible emotional payout, and both are nailed by Brady.  He may be a cowboy, but he can also act.  It is undeniable that he struggles to move on with his life, and his resistance to leave the rodeo behind bites through the dialogue, situations, and his genuine acting.  Through the constructive work of Zhao and the work of Jandreau, the emotion that needs to be nailed in the key scenes is delivered, giving us some extremely profound moments.

Perhaps most Westerns are about identity in some form or other.  The stranger who rides into town.  The retired gunman that choses to act again.  A solid Western investigates the heart of an individual while set in a physically gruelling world.  That is, in essence, what The Rider is about as well.  There may not be duelling pistols, and stage coaches may not get robbed, but this is a modern look at a landscape that hasn't changed, and the people living within it.

Rating - 4 out of 4 stars