Plot Details: This Review Reveals Minor Details About the Plot.
Eight seconds can be a lifetime.
Plot Overview
Pretty, second-semester senior Sophia Danko (Britt Robertson) is a second generation (Polish) immigrant whose academic drive had earned her an art scholarship to Wake Forest U., North Carolina. On a lark she accompanies her sorority sisters to a rodeo and catches the eye of dyed-in-the-wool champion bull-rider Lucas Collins (Scott Eastwood.) He's making a comeback from a nasty spill. Sparks are kindled on a date, but since Sophia is slated to go to Manhattan for a coveted internship in less than two months, they figure nothing can come of it. On the drive home, though, Luke's keen eye picks out a recent wreck off the highway, and they rescue (“Call 9–1–1”) ninety-one-year-old Ira Levinson (Alan Alda) and his diary.
On repeating hospital visits, Sophia reads back from it to Ira whose eyesight is failing him. Coincidentally (!) the love of Ira's life was Ruth (Oona Chaplin) a Viennese immigrant who also loved art (“Vienna … has more artists than Paris.”) Ira's war wounds threw a monkey wrench into their marriage plans (“When I came back from the war, I wasn't the same”) and they had to deal with it.
In bull riding (“the toughest sport on dirt”) it's not a matter of if the rider will get hurt, but when … and how he will cope with his injuries. When Luke and Sophia encounter seemingly insurmountable obstacles to joining their two worlds (“I just don't know how to make this work”), they may be able to pick up a tip from an older generation (“Love requires sacrifice.”)
Ideology
Sophia tells Luke, “You are pretty smooth for a country boy.” Ruth told Ira, “For a country [b]umpkin, you're quite the philosopher.” The country song, “Cowboy Logic,” lists a sort of ethic that includes, “If she's a lady, treat her like a queen.” They did treat their ladies well, first by making dates with them (“You mean like a date?” ¶“Yeah. Call me old school”) which include the necessary element of prearrangement (“I'm free after Shabbat.”) This follows the example of Queen Esther in the Bible who prearranged a dinner date with the King giving God time to intervene in his dreams. In this movie the prearrangement gave God time to move to prompt Ira into a trip to Black Mountain whereby he met the other two.
Cowboy logic includes: “If it's a dollar bill, spend it / Before it burns a hole down in them jeans.” Luke hasn't got much money after supporting the ranch for his mom, but put him in a highfalutin art auction and he might spend what he's got on a portrait that looks good to him. Reminded me of the widow's two mites in Luke 21:1-4.
As for those "impossible" situations those country boys find themselves in, I bet there's a way out “That's cowboy logic, every cowboy's got it / He's got a simple solution to just about anything.”
Production Values
“The Longest Ride” (2015) was directed by George Tillman Jr. It was written by Craig Bolotin, based on Nicholas Sparks's novel, The Longest Ride. It stars Scott Eastwood, Britt Robertson, Alan Alda, Jack Huston, and Oona Chaplin. MPAA rated it PG–13 for some sexuality, partial nudity, and some war and sports action. It was filmed at Jacksonville, North Carolina, very scenic.
Its simplistic plot had two disruptions: How did a sheltered immigrant girl get to be a sophisticated seductress? and how did a mild-mannered Jewish boy get a rep in old age for being ornery with the nurses? Didn't make much sense in a plot that would have worked without those two elements.
Review Conclusion w/ Christian Recommendation
This is a movie where bucolic scenery is punctuated by brutal bull riding, a couple that seems meant for each other finds an excuse to fight so they don't have to confront the difference of their worlds, and an old man finds a bond with a young couple and with his memories. It's kind of sweet, and if you enjoy this kind of fare, it'll touch your heart strings. Me, I enjoy all kinds of movies, so I just went along with it.
Movie Ratings
Action factor: Edge of your seat action-packed rodeo scenes. Suitability for Children: Suitable for children 13+ years. Special effects: Average special effects. Video Occasion: Good Date Movie. Suspense: A few suspenseful moments and general tension. Overall product rating: three and a half stars out of five.
Works Cited
“Cowboy Logic,” by Michael Martin Murphey. WEB.
bibles.n7nz.org