Jockey

Twilight is an ongoing theme in this debut film from Clint Bentley - not just the half-light scenes that frequently occur, whether at dusk or dawn - but the twilight of jockey Jackson Silva's career.

This measured drama, which should definitely be seen in a cinema if at all possible, as it's shadowy scenes won't translate so well to small screen, sees the ageing horseman facing up to infirmity at the same time as grappling with the arrival of a much younger jockey, Gabriel Boullait, who claims to be his son. It may sound like a plot ripe for melodrama, but Bentley puts the emphasis on naturalism and low-key human connection, so that his film achieves a constant simmer rather than bubbling all over the place.

The director, writing with Greg Kwedar, draws on his own experience of hanging out at the racetrack as a child watching his dad ride and uses the horse races in an interesting way, so that he focuses completely on Jackson rather than pulling out to the wider cut and thrust when he's in the race. Just like the rider, there are no distractions for us, so we feel the moment as Jackson feels it. While this choice is a smart one in terms of budget, it also gives the film a distilled feel that fully coalesces around the jockey's mental state.

Away from the races, Bentley captures the rigours of being a jokey, including the near-starvation diet many adopt and the litany of injuries each man carries with him as a result of being thrown. These scenes, bolstered by non-professional actors, make you realise that its not just the horses that have been ridden hard for years but their jockeys, too - with more than the suggestion that the end can come just as quickly for the rider as the horse, both physically and professionally.

Both Clifton Collins Jr and Moises Arias (playing a much lower key role than he often gets) lean back into the roles, employing quiet and calm, so that you want to lean towards them, although this quiet approach might not be for everyone. Molly Parker (who should be getting much bigger roles in films than she does these days),brings additional emotional heft as the trainer who is torn between her old friend and the prospect of owning a winner when she realises Jackson is facing the end of the line. Beautifully shot by DoP Adolpho Veloso, whether in its night time scenes, with sparks flying up from fires, or in the day as horses hooves kick the dust up, and with a feeling of real authenticity, Jockey celebrates the sport and the riders dedication as its small but well-crafted story unfolds underneath and its hero contemplates riding off into the sunset for a final time.