There is a moment midway through the romantic drama The Longest Ride where Luke (Scott Eastwood)—a championship bull rider on the comeback trail— tells Sophia (Britt Robertson)— a college student with a bright future in the art world— that he loves her because she is one of the most unique people he has ever met.
Therein lies the problem with this film, which was inspired by a Nicholas Spark novel. It fails to offer any evidence as to why these characters are special and why the audience should yearn for their union.
Luke and Anna’s first interaction came at the former’s first bull riding event since his devastating injury took him out of competition a year prior. At the end of the race both characters share a glance with each other. During their first conversation at a party following the competition, Luke asks Sophia on a date. There is very little here in this scene to suggest that these two characters— and actors— share any special chemistry. The scene is cliché-ridden, artificial and contrived. This short interaction is illustrative of every single scene this young man and woman share together.
When Luke is driving Anna home at the end of their first date they stubble upon a car on the side on the road that is ablaze with flames. Inside the car is a ninety-year-old man named Ira Levinson (Alan Alda). Luke and Anna rescue Ira— and, at the elder’s request, a box full of letters— from the accident scene.
Anna bonds with Ira over these letters that touch on his favourite memories of a 60-year-old romance with his wife Ruth. As Alda narrates the letters, this love story plays out in flashbacks. Jack Huston (playing young Ira) and Oona Chaplin (who performs as Ruth) share much better on-screen chemistry than Robertson and Eastwood.
The lesson that our main couple is meant to learn by listening to these stories is that to share a great love, sometimes sacrifices need to be made. However, the film ends with neither character having to really sacrifice their dreams in order to make the relationship work. This pretty much negates any impact the Ira and Ruth scenes were supposed to have on Luke and Anna.
Besides the strong flashback sequences, a redemptive quality of this film is the performance of Alan Alda. He brings warmth and gentle humour to his role. It really says something about a film when a man confined to a hospital bed for the vast majority of the film can outshine the young man and woman at the center of the drama.
Ultimately, I was bored with these characters and this storyline a half hour into this 128 minute film. I am sure I wasn’t the only moviegoer that felt that way.
Two popcorn buckets out of five
