The Ride (1997)

I cannot think of one single thing that I would change about this film. The acting is incomparable, the directing deft, and the writing poignantly brilliant.

It's entirely possible that sending the audience out feeling lousy was intentional

This is one of the few movies I've ever seen where the whole audience broke into spontaneous, loud applause a third of the way in.

True to its essence, the characters remain on the same line and manage to entertain the viewer, each highlighting their own distinctive qualities or touches.

I clicked spoiler, but you'll know the end, long before you see it.What I liked: Mike, the owner, sounds like "Fat Tony" about 75% of the time. In fact, I waited for the credits to see his name, Clarence Felder. Checking "The Simpsons" cast, he's NOT "Fat Tony." Anyway, I loved to listen to his mobster voice throughout the movie. Smokey, the has-been bull rider will always be Johnny Ringo to me. I kept waiting for Val Kilmer to step out from the shadows and say, "I'm your huckleberry." Back to Mike, when he had the loan collectors in his office, it was like "Fat Tony" getting ready to pass judgment on Homer Simpson. Classic. What I didn't like: Just not reality. Of course, neither is "The Matrix," which I'll never watch, because people don't fly or walk up walls. At least "The Ride" didn't rely on anything more than stuntmen who were really physically at risk. Why I started to watch it: The Dish on-screen guide said it was about someone getting in an NYC taxi and things getting crazy from there or something like that. Why I kept watching it: I hoped it would get better. I have to change my rating from 4 to 3 before submitting this. By the way: I'm a Christian...a confirmed Lutheran, if that's considered Christian, anymore, with all the born-agains and revivalists.

This is a compelling story about some of the larger questions of life......childhood cancer, failure, love, life after death, spiritual questions..........and so on. Biehn brings the angst of his character to life. It is quite departure from what I am used to seeing him do, e.g. the military man. He still plays a tough guy, but in this case he is brought to his knees by the heart, mind and suffering of a boy. The movie is steeped in cowboy culture, which I very much liked. What is more utterly and uniquely American than the spectacle of rodeo. If you like rodeo you will like this movie. Admittedly, the movie is somewhat formulaic.....but not all formulas are bad. I thoroughly enjoyed it and thought the message powerful, poignant and ultimately uplifting without whitewashing the real pain of this world. There is a cameo appearance by Franklin Graham who speaks plainly about Jesus. I highly recommend this film

So here I am sitting in a hotel in Sanya, China with only one, sometimes, English TV station. This movie comes on and of course I have to watch, if only to hear English spoken. The movie revolves around a has-been rodeo cowboy played by Micheal Biehn of Terminator fame and his problems with life, alcohol, women, and his new problem, the Christian far right.The movie reminds me of those drivers ed type movies you may have seen in high school. There are predictable, barely believable issues that are resolved with prayer and faith. Smokey continues to have problems even as he is given a chance by the local sheriff to rehabilitate himself after a DUI. He is asked to be a counselor at a boys ranch and to teach one of the kids how to ride a bull. There are many predictable problems and even though Smokey keeps messing up the rest of the camp counselors continue to have faith in him and, as he eventually sees the error of his way, embraces Jesus thus making his life better.Unless you are also trapped on a remote island of the coast of China I recommend missing this one.

It's nice to just sit down every once in a while and have a film really touch the heart. Michael Biehn stars as a washed up rodeo star who now only rides the bottle and gambles until he gets stuck as a ranch hand. His life is changed as he trains a terminal 14 year old to ride. If you have a chance, see this film with the whole family.