Concrete Cowboy

"Alma de Cowboy" lindo e sensível filme no Netflix. Se você, como eu, gosta de cavalos, saiba que existem Cowboys no meio da cidade em Filadélfia! Sim, até hoje! Idris Elba mandou muito bem como ator e produtor desse filme. Super recomendo. Beautiful and sensitive film on Netflix. If you, like me, love horses, know that there are Cowboys in the middle of the city in Philadelphia! Yes, even today! Idris Elba nailed it as an actor and producer for this film. I highly recommend it. #movieslover #netflix.

It is hard not to like or respect the work of Lee Daniels. This coming of age story coupled with the reality of urban blight facing the coming gentrification has all the elements of great filmmaking. It's good to see Idris Elba taking roles that allow the world to see him light years away from his London accent and roots. New star Caleb Mclaughlin gives us more than just a troubled young man coming into maturity and gaining respect for his father and a new perspective on life.. The fact that this is based on real characters in a little known tale about Cowboys in modern day Philadelphia is even more amazing. . If you're looking for a happy ending this may not be for you. But if you're looking for a well produced, directed, written, and edited film don't pass this by.

"There's a horse in your house." hidden gem of the first half of 2021. A film about a young man reconnecting with his father in Philadelphia sounds like it can be a cliched drama. I was surprised by how much I enjoyed it. It tackles a subject not seen much in film, the urban cowboy. On the surface it felt like watching a film about a man learning the cowboy ways but in a ghetto environment.

Caleb McLaughlin shows that he's a talented actor. He gives a fantastic performance as Cole. If he wanted to move away from Stranger Things, I think this performance shows that he has the talent to tackle adult roles. I also like his bond with Idris Elba. At first I wasn't sure if his character had much going on under the surface, but he shines in the second half. He seems like the father figure that can be a good father in the toughest circumstance.

I do wish that the screenplay could've developed Cole's relationship with Smush alot better. I felt like when we get to those scenes, they felt like typical black drama that I've seen before. When we get to Smush's gang life, I felt like the screenplay didn't have enough to develop. Anyway, it doesn't take away too much since the best parts are when Cole is on this self-discovery journey.

If you have Netflix and want to see a cowboy drama from the black perspective, this is worth checking out.

I think that this movie will never be fully appreciated by the casual viewer, because we can't even imagine how these people are living. I really needed to get used to this way of living, just as much as are protagonist. That makes the movie so odd and strange in the beginning, but after we get to see how much these characters care about their horses, I was fully on board. On a technical level, it's fantastic. The score and soundtrack fit really well to the story and the cinematography makes the movie at times look stunning. On an exceptional level however it lacks focus. The concept as a whole is really interesting, but I think the movie focuses too much on the troubling son negative. That storyline has been done so many times now, that it makes it so predictable. The movie is at his best, when the actual cowboys and stables are one screen. They are just so interesting and entertaining. Their way of living and seeing the rest of the world just intrigues me. It's just a waste that it focuses a lot on predictable storylines. But if you can look past the predictability of the movie, there is still a lot to enjoy.

As an African American who grew up in rural adjacent Mississippi (Memphis Metro), went to graduate school in Philly, and currently lives in DC, I appreciated the mash up of so many different worlds in this film, despite the clumsiness of the overall storyline.

Also, Philadelphia is such an interesting and diverse city! I enjoyed learning about the Fletcher Street cowboys, but viewers aren't really given a snapshot into much else in the city except for drugs and violence. That's really a shame considering Philly's amazing food scene, mural arts, rich music tradition, etc.