The Ride (1997)

So much average

The performances transcend the film's tropes, grounding it in characters that feel more complete than this subgenre often produces.

Great movie! If you want to be entertained and have a few good laughs, see this movie. The music is also very good,

Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

I have followed Michael Biehn through the years and have found his work interesting and often incredibly good. Starting with his role in THE FAN where he played a crazed fan of Lauren Bacall, also good. I have just viewed THE RIDE and thought he was wonderful as a sort of displaced rodeo bull rider with ghosts of the past. Working at a Boys Ranch as part of his small crimes from bar drinking and drunken fights, he suddenly finds a competition he never reckoned with. A young boy dying with cancer and dreams of being a bull rider like Biehn.Through trials both emotionally and physically they both seem to learn something from each other. Many of the scenes were touching and real and both actors brought something special to the table.I see Biehn has more on the rise in film, including directing and wish him well and more praise and honors that have overlooked him. He's that good.

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

I was forced to watch this movie at school in 8th grade & I thought it was pretty boring. It was kinda sad that the Danny kid had cancer but you KNEW he was going to die and then Smokey would be all "Oh I see now! I think I'll be a Christian!". In order for Christian movies to actually get out there and be a major force people need to re think how they write movies, who they're writting it for. As Paul(I think it was paul) said "to those with the law I became as those with the law. to those w/o the law I became as those w/o the law..." you finish the rest.

One of those movies that make you think a little about our fragile life is and how we take it for granted. A movie the whole family can enjoy. I have shared this movie with friends family and co-workers and others have went and bought since seeing it. Hope you watch and enjoy just like we all have.