There is a movie slowly expanding across the country by the next great auteur you may not have heafd about yet. Actually, calling her “the next” insinuates she isn’t there yet. Based on “The Rider” it’s pretty clear Chloé Zhao has arrived and an auteur filmmaker that demands your attention.
Chloé Zhao’s deeply moving, entrancing western “The Rider” [Cannes Review]
Zhao’s second directorial effort debuted at the 2017 Cannes Film Festival and impressively screened afterward at Telluride, Toronto, New York and Sundance (a rare film to hit all four major fests). Based on my personal criteria for year end list’s (screened in the calendar year vs. release date) it made my top 10 films of 2017. The film earned five Independent Spirit Award nominations including Best Film and Best Director over stiff competition such as Best Picture winner “The Shape of Water.” Moreover, “The Rider” currently sits with a stellar 92 on Metacritic and 97% on Rotten Tomatoes. If that’s not enough to wake up the sleeping cinephille in your soul this spring we’re not sure what else could. But, we get it. “The Rider” is a film with no recognizable actors and could easily be pigeonholed as about a man and his horse. What’s so special about that, right?
What Zhao has actually fashioned is a story about a young man (first time actor Brady Jandreau) who, after experiencing massive head trauma, simply cannot imagine his life without competitive rodeo riding. It’s a heartbreaking tale about confronting the limits of your dreams and the harsh reality of your future. And, by the end, you may be balling in your seat more than you could have ever imagined.
During our this episode of the Four Quadrant podcast Zhao discusses her long screenwriting process to conceptualize “The Rider,” the freedom of working with non-professional actors and what may or may not be next (including a non-answer if Frances McDormand will star in her next film).
You can listen to this episode in the Soundcloud embed below or on iTunes. If you do listen on iTunes please rate, subscribe and share it with your friends!
Check out previous episodes with “Lean on Pete’s” director and screenwriter Andrew Haigh, “The Disaster Artist” screenwriters Scott Neustadter and Michael H. Weber, “Darkest Hour” screenwriter Anthony McCarten, two-time Academy Award winner Christoph Waltz, Ben Mendelsohn, “Blade Runner: 2049‘s” Denis Villeneuve, “Thor: Ragnarok‘s” Taika Waititi, “The Florida Project‘s” Sean Baker, John Boyega, get behind the scenes with “RuPaul’s Drag Race” producers and more on Soundcloud or on iTunes.
For more movie and Oscar insight follow me on Twitter @TheGregoryE
