Written by: Nancy Dowd

Directed by: Joe Pytka

Coolbaugh Comments:

I’ve never seen ‘Let it Ride.’ And I can safely say I’d never pick it up. I’m not a big fan of Richard Dreyfuss. And if, for some reason, I did pick it up and pop it in the DVD, I’d likely turn it off 5 minutes in and go back to whatever I was doing before. The opening was frightening, not only for me, but for everybody, especially Davis. You couldn’t have a more cheesed out, tagged by the 80s, opening to a film. Think ‘Beverly Hills Cop’ meets ‘St. Elmo’s Fire’ and you get the idea. I was saying to myself, “this is it – this is the let down we’ve been waiting for.” The Jenga tower was coming down.

The film requires a few scenes to get up and running, and it’s just as well, given the “oh shit the 80s are back” beginning. One needs a moment to get over that crap. I didn’t quite get who was who, or what was what, but about 15-20 minutes in, you start to see it all coming together. So relax out of the gate, and just know that it will get very, very good.

Richard Dreyfuss was fantastic. It was his least “in your face” role I’ve seen him in. In fact, I think this may have surpassed ‘Mr. Holland’s Opus’ as his greatest work ever. Wow. I never thought I’d say that. Anyway, the supporting cast is a bit odd, in terms of their disparate backgrounds, and how/why they’re there, but all of them fill a very specific Pytka need, whether it’s to deliver a line, or merely create a vibe; they’re all very good. Dreyfus ends up getting the kind of luck that every gambler dreams about, but never attains. And joining him on the ride was incredibly fun. Especially when he starts getting hot, and a very hot Jennifer Tilly tries to jump on his bandwagon.

To select this movie for this group was pure eagle-eye insight on the part of Davis. It was gutsy, not ‘Tootsie.’ It was big time, not ‘Big Lebowski.’ It was an executive decision, not ‘Executive Action.’ It managed to speak directly to the Movienight group on many levels – namely friendship and gambling. We’re all friends who like to gamble. What better movie? Thanks to Tooda for sharing. Up next, is Justine. When asked if she had her pick already, she turned her face gently toward the sky, half closed her eyes, and said, “it’ll come to me.”

Until then.

Onward.

Nubs Comments:

Joe Pytka is the king of the 30-second story. IBM, Pepsi, and others pay him loads to tell their quick stories. However, I would say that the only real story he's ever told is in ‘Let it Ride’ which takes him a whole 87 minutes to get out.

Yes, like Trotter, our hero sort-of, Ben risked a lot when he stepped up to the table Wednesday night. Sure, Ben loves the movie, but he also loves ‘Joe Versus the Volcano.’ With ‘Let it Ride’ there was a lot to lose. It's terribly marked by the eighties, has the worst theme song in Movienight history (passing ‘First Blood,’) is borderline too light, too unbelievable, and altogether too many question marks to risk it all. But, somehow, Ben just "knew it!"

This movie, though not a great movie classic, is a great Movienight classic. This is because it's a really good bar story, tavern-tall tale, loveable little guy legend. For an audience like us it's a perfect tale you want to hear. A normal likeable degenerate that we can all identify with prays for one good day and gets it. We sit with our mugs in hand, just like all the extras, listening to the legend. All of us who gamble (too much probably) love what this movie stands for. The elation of the win - till he counts his riches and realizes it's nothing. He's still the same loser and can only think of more gambling to solve his problems. Who cares if the main character makes terrible choices, or that the love story and conflict resolve themselves fairly easily. We want to see a man risk everything on luck. It is not about the racers. In the end, a beautiful shot of a whole stadium of fans and each one is rootin for, not a horse, but one of the crowd. The bettor is the race.

Before Wiener's favorite restaurant "Bastide" and all the commercial dough, Pytka cared to pass on this Tavern tale. Ben Davis looked at it in the eye and smiled, "I just knew it". Well, sometimes Mr. Never-folds, sometimes you're right or really lucky. Sometimes.

Wiener Comments:

‘Let It Ride’ is surprisingly dark for a feel good movie.   The story follows a down at his luck cab driver who has the day at the track every gambler dreams of.  And once we let go of the fear that Trotter is going to lose it all at the next turn, we sit back and enjoy his streak with him.  I know that the intention of the selection was to lighten the tone of Movie Night, but peel away the veneer of ‘Let It Ride,’ and it's a movie about a loser in a world full of other losers.  We've moved from anti-heroes to non-heroes.

The folks who hang around the dive bar across from the track are greedy, horny, gutless venal scum who can't master their own indulgences.  The rich folks who hang around the Jockey Club are no better.  They've just traded sallow barfly complexions for leathery tans and face lifts.  Maybe ‘Let It Ride’ is trying to make the point that the only thing that separates the rich and the poor is money.  But it's a pretty cynical view of humanity on display in the film.  The characterizations are very well done, however.  There are a lot of stock characters in the film who resist descending in to caricature.  Richard Dreyfuss is who he is.  I can't say it's a good or a bad performance from him in the film.  What makes the movie so fun to watch is the actors playing the supporting parts and their performances.  Jennifer Tilly takes what could be a throwaway part and brings real charm to it.  She looks good in that dress too.  Just about every performance down to the snooty waiters in the Jockey Club hits the right notes.

If we only showed "Great" movies on Movie Night, we could exhaust the AFI top 100 and quit.  And we'd be earning Zack's criticism that Move Night was in danger of becoming too much like a class we all want to skip.  ‘Let It Ride’ is not a great film.  But it was a great Movie Night movie.  And Ben Davis was kind enough to share with us a film he really loves.  That's what Movie Night is about.

Happy 4-20.  See you all next week.

SELECTOR Comments:

I was nervous about this Selection. I had remained undecided until the night before and worried whether it was too well seen or to light weight to join the ranks of our elite canon. It is in many ways a mundane film.

The opening titles didn’t ease my uncertainty much as crappy Eighties music rolled over helicopter shots of Miami.   But as the credits end and we enter Trotter’s bar I was reminded why I remember this film so well and fondly. A broken man praying to God over an empty toilet in a desolate bar for one lucky day, is both a striking and pitiful image and the true launch of this film.

This is a film about station, class, friendship, renewal and risk. But at its core it is the story of Job, part II: The Anti-Job. After a life of hardship and demons a man is reduced to almost nothing but still has faith that God is listening. He is tempted first to selfishly cut his penniless friend out of the bet, but he shares half of his rainy day hundred with Looney. His second temptation is to blackmail the criminals on the tape, but he virtuously returns the evidence of their crime. Thirdly a beautiful snake, aptly dressed in green, encourages him to blow it all on Lord Byron, and even though Trotter takes the bait, divine intervention keeps his money in his shoes. Trotter realizes he didn’t lose and begins to think he cannot and we are off and running. The Job motif had never really been clear to me before last night, and happily Trotter’s God is much easier on Trotter than Job’s had been on Job.

Movienight keeps surprising me, and the simple magic of a large projected wide screen transforms even films you know too well. I have seen ‘Let it Ride’ on video and television over and over, and yet in The Back Yard it is reborn. This is an unknown gem, and it is largely built on the beautiful performances of its large and varied ensemble. Looney is as lovable a loser as he is because David Johansen never plays him as unhappy. He is who he is and is at peace with it. In fact that is the case with everyone we meet save Trotter and his wife (a wry re-teaming with Teri Garr, his suffering bride from ‘Close Encounters.’) The film makes this point quite clearly when Trotter returns to his Old Bar and invites everyone to pool their money for the last race. The opportunity isn’t seized because they are all where they mean to be, idling the hours on small bets and good company. Of all the supporting performances none stands out more than Robbie Coltrane’s turn as the Ticket Seller. His journey from the gruff rebuke about the Two Dollar window being right over there to his reverence for Trotter as the best he has ever seen, is one of the film’s strongest through lines and it delights every time I see this movie.

One must end with Trotter. Richard Dreyfuss carries this film, as he must, and his work as Trotter may be his best performance ever. The ever chatty Mr. Coolbaugh said after one point in the film, that he liked Dreyfuss for the first time in that moment. Dreyfuss makes Trotter human and whole. He plays it broad but never peaks, or becomes shrill. He allows us to meet him halfway (unlike many of his other performances that reek of thoughtful nuance and don’t invite the audience so much as push it around) and we are eager for the journey. He makes the film, but makes ample room for his accomplished cast members to shine as well. Simply, we root for him. By the end of the film everyone roots for him, and all their prayers are answered.

I was glad this film was so well received. My hope was to choose a film that affirmed whimsy and joviality, and this title kept winking at me. I went all in on the horse, and I hope you agree it was a good bet. 

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