Directed by Alex Ranarivelo
Written by J.R. Reher & Jean Marie Sobeck, Hadeel Reda, Alex Ranarivelo
Based on The Life of John Buultjens
Starring Chris “Ludacris” Bridges, Shane Graham and Sasha Alexander

From the inspiring true story of extreme sports legend John Buultjens, THE RIDE follows John McCord, an athletically gifted youth who triumphs over a troubled upbringing. After a violent, racially-charged incident lands John (Shane Graham) in juvenile detention, he is finally placed with an unlikely set of foster parents, Eldridge (“Ludacris”) and Marianna Buultjens (Sasha Alexander), an interracial couple who want to provide a fresh start for the tormented youth. Eldridge makes it his mission to overcome the challenges of John’s white supremacist upbringing and slowly begins to forge a relationship through his foster son’s fascination with extreme sports by giving John his first bike. Rooted by this newfound passion, the family builds a bond of mutual respect, love and together they speed toward BMX glory and ultimately, redemption.

98 Minutes | Rated PG-13

If the trailer approximates an accurate barometer, this one looks like it’ll pull pretty heartily at the heart strings. And that is the intent. If it can pack any kind of a punch past a predominantly sentimental journey, “The Ride”, produced by amazon and based on a true story, has a really good chance to be affecting, and meaningful, entertainment.

All punctuated by some bangin’ BMX bike badassness.

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