The Rider: A True Tale of a Cowboy Who Lost His Way

By Ceili Cornelius, Field Cornet, Frontier Partisans Willamette Valley Field Force

As a student at the University of Oregon I have many opportunities to explore facets of knowledge, whether it be in the library (my Dad’s favorite place on campus), in the lecture halls with professors, or through films and speakers that come to the university.

A couple weeks ago, I took the opportunity to view The Rider, directed by Chloe Zhao, who also directed Song My Brothers Taught Me in 2015. The film tells the true story of bronc rider Brady Blackburn, played by himself, 22-year-old Brady Jandreau, who traded in his spurs for the acting chair. Brady is not a “pretty” cowboy. He’s got worn out Levi’s, a well-worn leather belt with his trophy belt buckle, old boots, chaps of purple, dirty boots and a worn-out bronc riding saddle.

In 2016, Brady suffered a massive head injury flying off a bucking bronco. The injury required surgery. The film opens with an intimate view of his head gash held together by staples: not a pretty sight. He has trouble sleeping at night and takes pills for the pain. He is living with his mentally handicapped sister Lily, and his deadbeat gambling father, Wayne in their trailer in the middle of the grasslands of South Dakota. Shortly after Brady is recovering from his injury he visits his good buddy Lane Scott — the famous bull rider who was left wheelchair bound and unable to speak after a massive accident. Scott, played by himself, was a playboy bull riding fool, and at just 18 suffered an injury that changed him forever. The connection between Brady and Luke is unwavering. Zhao said when they filmed his scenes, “Brady and Luke wouldn’t even have to act, they were just laughing and doing their thing and communicating through gestures”.

Throughout the film we see the family struggle and Brady’s tense relationship with his father. Brady knows he has to do something to keep his family afloat, so he goes to work for the local grocery store. Throughout his work, he encounters customers from around town, telling him to stick with it and get back in the saddle.

So, what does a 22-year-old horse riding fool do? He turns to colt breakin’. A profession not for the faint of heart. But he’s got the magic touch. Apollo, the main horse in the story, owned by a local rancher, barely lets Brady touch him and looks toward him with wide eyes of fear. After just a few runs around the corral and weight pressure shifts, Brady hops on Apollo bareback with ease.

The horse trusts him.

Throughout the film, I was thinking of my Dad’s good bud, Craig Rullman: a breaker of horses himself. I’ve seen him in action riding his new colt Remi. I’m always in awe of the cowboy’s connection to the horse and the focus and attentive, calm behavior it takes. Zhao said that’s what the true moral of this story is: “It’s the story of the connection between a man and his horse.” Not only did I see that connection, I’ve felt it. Seeing this film and being a horseback rider for 14+ years made me want to get back riding again, and back in the horse world I was so ensconced in for the majority of my young life. Horse ridin’ was my sport, and it’s tough to imagine being in the boots of Brady, not being physically able to do what you love to do. The film does a fabulous job of depicting the prosaic life of the Jandreau family, played by themselves and the importance of family, and connection with animals in order to keep on keepin’ on.

All the while, throughout the film, I was thinking up all the bronc ridin’, Western songs of Tom Russell and Ian Tyson and Corb Lund: Tom Russell’s “All This Way for the Short Ride” with the lyrics: “The man’s come a long way, just for the short ride,” and Corb Lund’s: “You Ain’t a Cowboy if You Ain’t Been Bucked Off.” All songs I grew up listening to.

The Rider is a film for anyone interested in the rodeo world and a story of perseverance, and the strength of the connection between human and horse.