The Reckless Rider: A dusty, dusty time

Is it worth your time?

Honestly, only if you have a soft spot for grainy, black-and-white horse operas where the morality is as simple as a Sunday morning. If you need tight pacing or a script that feels like it wasn't written on the back of a napkin, you’re gonna be bored stiff. But for the folks who love seeing Raven the Horse do more acting than half the cast? You’ll probably have a decent enough afternoon.

The whole thing kicks off with a classic setup: a marshal needs to get inside a gang, so he pretends to be a outlaw. It’s a trope older than dirt, but it works fine here. Ben Corbett plays the lead with that specific kind of stoic energy that usually means he’s thinking about his lunch more than the scene, but he fits the frame well enough.

Wait, that horse

I found myself watching the horse more than the humans. Raven has this way of looking at the camera that feels almost judgmental. There’s a specific scene where the gang is posturing near a fence, and the horse just… stands there, looking bored. It’s the most honest performance in the movie. 🐴

The bad guys in this flick aren't exactly criminal masterminds. They spend a lot of time shouting at each other and waving pistols that look like they’ve seen better decades. It feels a bit like watching a neighborhood scrap in slow motion. Sometimes they just wander out of frame for no reason.

It’s funny to compare this to something like Stolen Kisses, which feels like it comes from a completely different planet. While that movie has layers and grace, The Reckless Rider is just a blunt instrument of a film. It hits the plot points and keeps moving, never bothering to ask if we’re actually having fun.

The silence in the desert scenes is weird. It feels like the audio guy just gave up and went home early.

There’s a moment towards the end where a character explains his entire plan to the bad guy for way too long. It’s like, buddy, just shoot him. We don't need a summary of the last thirty minutes. But hey, that’s just how these things go sometimes.

I’m not sure if I’d call it a great western. It’s just a movie that exists in the space where people ride horses and wear big hats. If you like that, cool. If you don't, there’s nothing here to change your mind.

Whatever. It’s done now. My coffee is cold and the movie is over. ☕️