Saturday movie review: The Rider

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Saturday movie review: The Rider

What can I do now? Who am I? What am I worth? Is my past the best I'll ever be?

Many folks ask themselves such questions when circumstances or age put an end to beloved careers, the pursuit of dreams and goals not yet realized. The existential quandary usually rears its head around retirement age or perhaps amidst some midlife questioning.

Lakota Indian cowboy Brady Jandreau was far from retirement, not yet even near midlife, when he was forced to weather such weighty wondering. In 2016, Jandreau was riding higher and higher as a professional bronc rider on the rodeo circuit. Then a tumble from a bronc and a foot snarled in the stirrup resulted in his skull being crushed by the animal. Brady’s professional riding career ended in an instant—at the age of 20.

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Saturday movie briefs: My top four true tales seen in 2017

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Saturday movie briefs: My top four true tales seen in 2017

I'm a fan of films of a vast range of sorts. There's something about films based on true stories, though, that seems to smack me in the heart the most. (Which is a good thing.)

In 2017, four films in particular smacked my heart hard and firmly established for themselves a forever spot on my list of memorable movies as well as top spots of those seen in 2017.

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Saturday movie review: Only The Brave

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Saturday movie review: Only The Brave

Prepare to cry when watching ONLY THE BRAVE, the movie based on the true story of the Granite Mountain Hotshots, an elite team of wildland firefighters that battled the deadly Yarnell Hill (Arizona) fire in 2013. I shed tears, my daughter teared up, my husband did as well. Even Josh Brolin cried.

Brolin, who stars as Eric Marsh, the superintendent and founder of the Granite Mountain Hotshots team of 20, had no qualms about admitting so during a recent interview session I participated in with him, Jennifer Connelly who plays Eric's wife, Amanda Marsh; James Badge Dale who portrays Jesse Steed, captain of the Granite Mountain Hotshots; and Miles Teller who stars as  Brendan "Donut" McDonough, a late yet pivotal addition to the hotshot team.

"It's a tough story," Brolin said. Not just because of...

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