The Longest Ride 2015 (Movie Review)

Dir: George Tillman Jr.
Cast: Scott Eastwood, Britt Robertson, Alan Alda, Oona Chaplin
Dur: 128 mins
Rating: 1/5
PG: Few kissing scenes and one love-making scene.

My first thoughts on hearing the name of the film were hopes of a fast-paced, action-packed thriller. The movie instead turned out to be a romantic story. Well, romance needs a couple and so the lead couple is Luke Collins (Scott Eastwood), a famous bull-rider and Sophia (Britt Robertson), an art enthusiast and student. Luke is making his comeback in the sport after suffering a horrific accident. He happens to meet Sophia at one of his events and sparks fly. As things begin to progress between them the story twists and a new story is inserted into the narration of the first story. We are introduced to Ira (Alan Alda), an old Jewish man who suffered a heart attack while driving but was rescued by Luke and Sophia.

Ira has with him a box of letters written to his beloved Ruth (Oona Chaplin). Sophia offers to read him the letters and he begins the narration of his own story of romance. I must confess that I am not a big fan of the romantic genre but I enjoy good romantic tales. Unfortunately, this wasn’t one of them. Romantic stories are in themselves long-drawn and dramatic. But two stories being played out simultaneously was a bit too much for me. Anyway, as Sophia is travelling with Ira down memory lane, she has to handle the roller-coaster of her own romance. As Ira delves into his romantic past, Sophia and Luke are discovering their present.

The film too naïve and has all the material traditional love stories are made of. The ending is rather simplistic and a bit too idealistic for our times. Fans of the romantic genre will find this film satisfying but for those among us who are realists, this film is the stuff of dreams.  


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