- BOTTOM LINE: An Empty Biopic
Rating: 1.5/5
Platform: Netflix | Genre: Dramas based on real life |
What is the Story about?
Walk Ride Rodeo is a biopic of Amberly Snyder (Spencer Locke) an American rodeo racer who got paralysed waist down after an accident. It is an inspiring story of her comeback from career-ending injury.
Performances?
Spencer Locke playing Amberly Snyder is poor. The actress fails to convey depth to the various emotions and goes about the act at a surface level. She entirely fails to bring an emotional resonance with the character.
The happy and bubbly parts are alright, but the recovery portions are a struggle to watch due to Spencer’s weak act. The inner conflict and strength, and determination are never felt. Since it is not just her but the entire team which is operating on the same level, maybe the fault lies elsewhere.
Direction By Conor Allyn?
Conor Allyn has a simple and straightforward tale to narrate that is based on real life. The director fails in getting the right emotional connection needed for the biopic to come together as a whole and create an impact.
We first feel the issue after the opening rodeo course when the family talk happens at a yarn. The whole sequence feels rushed, and the acting looks substandard and gimmicky. It is as if everyone is in a hurry to finish the scene as soon as possible. There is that sense of rush, in a wrong way, and it is continued all the way.
All the crucial scenes are lifeless, and the narrative goes from one point to another without ever really engaging the viewer. It is like making a food item following the instruction and having all the ingredients in it, but yet the final dish feels tasteless with a lingering feeling of various components not mixing correctly.
Still, despite the entire travesty, the climax works because there is a sense of fulfilment and achievement. It is more to do with the real-life documentation than on-screen impact. If a half-baked product could give us that feel at the end, imagine the heights it would have attained had it been well made and neatly executed.
Walk Ride Rodeo, in the end, is a below-par biopic that has a neat ending. It is fulfilling on two levels, one is the real-life achievement and satisfaction it brings, and the other is the film actually ending and bringing in relief.
Others Artists?
Missi Pyle, playing the mother and Bailey Chase as the father, operate on the same level as Spencer Locke. In a way, they are all consistent, but the problem is that they are consistently bad. They all do their parts superficially. It is the same issue with all of them.
The rest of the characters appear briefly, and among them, Max Ehrich is noticeable even though he has less screen time. Sherri Shepherd makes a similar impression in further short duration.
Music and other departments?
Sean Murray’s music goes with the flow of the film and offers nothing worth memorable. The cinematography by Thomas L Callaway is decent. It fails in adding the depth to the narrative through the visuals. The editing is neat with a crisp runtime. The writing is another major area where the movie lacks big time. It is the reason for the shallowness that we feel in the biopic.
Highlights?
Climax
Length
Drawbacks?
Superficial Emotions
Shallow Writing
Acting
Did I enjoy it?
No
Will you recommend it?
No
Walk Ride Rodeo Review by Siddhartha Toleti
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