Shot in four days during the 1968 National Rodeo Finals in Oklahoma City, this lyrical documentary takes you inside the arena atop a 2800 lb bull. Watch Freckles Brown, a legendary cowboy, conferring with a young Larry Mahan, the previous year's champion and see crowd favorite Myrtis Dightman trying to hold his own in a dramatic ride. "Rodeo" shows the classic struggle of man against beast, a matter of life and death. Dick Rosmini's hypnotizing folk-fusion soundtrack and an intricate sound mix add to the climatic result.
Cinematography
POV bull-riding shots that'll bruise your eyeballs.
Score
Dick Rosmini's freak-folk guitar sounds like a panic attack in a wheat field.
Editing
Four days of footage carved into pure kinetic poetry.
Director
Carroll Ballard
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Carroll Ballard later directed The Black Stallion and Never Cry Wolf—this was his thesis film at UCLA.
Myrtis Dightman was the first Black cowboy to qualify for the National Finals; the film never mentions this barrier-breaking.
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