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Concrete Cowboy

2020

Ricky Staub

Idris Elba, Caleb McLaughlin, Jharrel Jerome, Lorraine Toussaint ...

5.2

428

Drama Based on the award-winning novel by Greg Neri, "Ghetto Cowboy" follows 15-year-old Cole, who’s forced to live with his estranged father Harp (Elba) in North Philadelphia, where, despite the surrounding poverty and violence, he discovers the redemptive world of urban horseback riding.

	Author	Review
United States	Peter Debruge Variety	"Like Chloé Zhao’s “The Rider,” the movie embraces its subjects as characters while taking certain liberties with the details for dramatic effect (...) The film feels poetic but never patronizing"	POS
United States	David Rooney The Hollywood Reporter	"The occasional touch of cliché or corny dialogue can't dampen the vibrant spirit of this moving, well-acted drama"	POS
United States	Peter Travers ABC News	"Elba remains a commanding screen presence who never makes a false move. And his scenes with young McLaughlin cut a direct path to the heart"	POS
United Kingdom	Tim Grierson Screendaily	a heartfelt but ultimately hobbled coming-of-age drama (...) Idris Elba provides his usual effortless authenticity as an absent dad hoping for a second chance."	NEU
United Kingdom	Peter Bradshaw The Guardian	"This is an old-fashioned father-son story and none the worse for that, but there is something a little slick and subdued about the way the story is resolved (...) Rating: ★★★ (out of 5)"	NEU
United States	Eric Kohn IndieWire	"A sentimental father-son drama that doesn’t break new ground, but milks the fascinating backdrop for all its formulaic potential and winds up compelling enough."	POS
United States	Robert Daniels The Playlist	"A film I admired more than I loved (...) Even so, 'Concrete Cowboy' breathes new life into the western genre and sheds a brighter light on a faction of Black culture that was largely unknown by white audiences until today"	POS
United States	Johnny Oleksinski New York Post	"'Concrete Cowboy' introduces an unexpected new movie genre: the Eastern Western (...) It is more than a personal, father-and-son story (…) Rating: ★★★ (out of 4)"	POS

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