Other Sellers on Amazon
94% positive over last 12 months
93% positive over last 12 months
Image Unavailable
Color:
-
-
-
- Sorry, this item is not available in
- Image not available
- To view this video download Flash Player
Ride with the Devil
Return this item for free
Free returns are available for the shipping address you chose. You can return the item for any reason in new and unused condition: no shipping charges
Learn more about free returns.- Go to your orders and start the return
- Select the return method
- Ship it!
Return this item for free
Free returns are available for the shipping address you chose. You can return the item for any reason in new and unused condition: no shipping charges
Learn more about free returns.- Go to your orders and start the return
- Select the return method
- Ship it!
Return this item for free
Free returns are available for the shipping address you chose. You can return the item for any reason in new and unused condition: no shipping charges
Learn more about free returns.- Go to your orders and start the return
- Select the return method
- Ship it!
Additional DVD options | Edition | Discs | Price | New from | Used from |
DVD
April 27, 2010 "Please retry" | The Criterion Collection | 1 |
—
| $27.10 | $14.03 |
Watch Instantly with | Rent | Buy |
Purchase options and add-ons
Genre | Drama, DVD Movie, Military & War, Blu-ray Movie, Westerns, Action & Adventure |
Format | Multiple Formats, Anamorphic, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, NTSC, Widescreen |
Contributor | Jewel, Thomas Guiry, Ang Lee, Tobey Maguire, Jim Caviezel, Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Ted Hope, Simon Baker, Tom Wilkinson, Robert F. Colesberry, James Schamus, Mark Ruffalo, Jeffrey Wright, Skeet Ulrich, Jonathan Brandis See more |
Language | English |
Runtime | 2 hours and 19 minutes |
Customers usually keep this item
This product has fewer returns than average compared to similar products.
Frequently bought together
Similar items that may ship from close to you
- The Hunley (Tvm)Armand AssanteDVDFREE Shipping on orders over $35 shipped by AmazonGet it as soon as Monday, Mar 25
- Field Of Lost ShoesJason IssacDVDFREE Shipping on orders over $35 shipped by AmazonGet it as soon as Monday, Mar 25Only 1 left in stock - order soon.
- GloryMatthew BroderickDVDFREE Shipping on orders over $35 shipped by AmazonGet it as soon as Monday, Mar 25
- Cold MountainPhilip Seymour HoffmanDVDFREE Shipping on orders over $35 shipped by AmazonGet it as soon as Monday, Mar 25
- One False Move (The Criterion Collection) [4K UHD]Bill PaxtonBlu-rayFREE Shipping on orders over $35 shipped by AmazonGet it as soon as Monday, Mar 25
Product Description
Product Description
Ride With The Devil follows four people who are fighting for truth and justice amidst the turmoil of the American Civil War. Director Ang Lee takes us to a no man's land on the Missouri/Kansas border where a staunch loyalist (Skeet Ulrich), an immigrant's son (Tobey Maguire), a freed slave (Jeffrey Wright) and a young widow (Jewel) form an unlikely friendship as they learn how to survive in an uncertain time, in a place without rules and redefine the meaning of bravery and honor.
Bonus Content:
- Jewel "What's Simple is True" Music Video
- Theatrical Trailer
- Production Notes
- Cast and Filmmakers
- Recommendations
Amazon.com
Great period pictures make you feel as if you've stepped into another era, heard its language, breathed its spirit, and come away with a fresh perspective on that time as well as your own. Ride with the Devil is one of those special films--why wasn't it more widely embraced by reviewers and filmgoers? Did it rely too much on our patience for slow accumulation of unforced rhythms and meanings (as opposed to The Patriot, which "moved" audiences with cattle-prod simplicity and manipulation)? Ride with the Devil--smart, handsome, tenderly awed by how individual lives get ambushed by history--is ripe for rediscovery.
The Civil War of battlefields and plantation houses is nowhere to be seen here. Instead we see the war as an improvised and largely blundering but very bloody feud among neighbors in the border state of Missouri. In this bucolic war zone--more than a little reminiscent of the Balkans in the late 1990s--the Taiwanese-born director Ang Lee (Sense and Sensibility) traces the destinies of several young Southern bushwhackers (guerrilla fighters) as they experience violence, the seasons, and different kinds of love. Skeet Ulrich draws the aristocratic glamour role (and top billing), but he's overshadowed by Tobey Maguire as a first-generation American, the magnificent Jeffrey Wright (a shameful oversight at Oscar time) as a freed slave fighting beside his former master, and singer Jewel in a very natural acting debut as the young widow who graces all their lives. The title The Birth of a Nation was already taken, but by the end of this movie you feel it would have applied here. -- Richard T. Jameson
Product details
- Aspect Ratio : 2.35:1
- Is Discontinued By Manufacturer : No
- MPAA rating : R (Restricted)
- Product Dimensions : 7.5 x 5.5 x 0.55 inches; 1.6 ounces
- Item model number : 2219748
- Director : Ang Lee
- Media Format : Multiple Formats, Anamorphic, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, NTSC, Widescreen
- Run time : 2 hours and 19 minutes
- Release date : July 18, 2000
- Actors : Tobey Maguire, Skeet Ulrich, Jewel, Jeffrey Wright, Tom Wilkinson
- Subtitles: : French
- Producers : Ted Hope, Robert F. Colesberry, James Schamus
- Language : English (Dolby Digital 5.1), French (Dolby Digital 5.1), Unqualified (DTS ES 6.1)
- Studio : Universal Studios Home Entertainment
- ASIN : 0783241909
- Writers : James Schamus
- Number of discs : 1
- Best Sellers Rank: #6,768 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)
- #73 in Military & War (Movies & TV)
- #111 in Westerns (Movies & TV)
- #678 in Action & Adventure DVDs
- Customer Reviews:
Customer reviews
Customer Reviews, including Product Star Ratings help customers to learn more about the product and decide whether it is the right product for them.
To calculate the overall star rating and percentage breakdown by star, we don’t use a simple average. Instead, our system considers things like how recent a review is and if the reviewer bought the item on Amazon. It also analyzed reviews to verify trustworthiness.
Learn more how customers reviews work on AmazonReviews with images
-
Top reviews
Top reviews from the United States
There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later.
This film came out all the way back in 1999 yet the Criterion Collection version of this film rivals modern-day 4K upscales in terms of the film’s visual and auditory quality! Most Blu-Ray versions of “older” films that I have are annoyingly grainy and just seem to be glorified DVD releases. That was definitely not the case with this Blu-Ray version of the film which is leaps and bounds ahead of its DVD version.
This is a *must-have* for fans of the film and it’s even worth an upgrade if you already have the VHS/DVD version of the film! It’s an entirely different experience with Ang Lee’s sensational camerawork and Mychael Danna’s timeless score being taken to the next level!
Not to mention that this also happens to be the original Director’s cut of the film which also comes with new interviews and a Director’s commentary recorded a decade after the film’s release!
Now, on to my *SPOILER FREE* review the movie:
The final Civil War film of the 20th century was certainly the greatest! I've already mentioned this before but Ang Lee's love of nature was truly the cinematic highlight of this film! If you're into escapism, then this film will certainly throw you right in with Phil Roedel, Jack Bull Chiles, Daniel Holt, and the rest of the gang!
This film isn't set in one week or even one month but over the span of a few years! You can really feel the dynamics of the characters' relationships change as they get to know one another better or when the unpredictable Civil War thrusts them into intimate situations that none were ready for.
There is a heavy emphasis on character development in this film and how the Civil War slowly but surely affects their outlooks on life but never once is it boring as it has just as much wonderfully choreographed action to compensate!
Despite being told from the perspective of the Confederacy, this film has a brilliant and bold motif for the Bushwhackers during its action scenes (Confederate militia) and historically accurate traditional southern music for the rest of its scenes. Because after all, every group are the heroes of their own story!
Unlike most films that deal with the topic of racism, this film is not too blunt nor is it flat-footed as it deals with a controversial issue. This film implicitly shows the audience throughout the film how merely being exposed to a member of another race can ultimately shift your perspective of that race by getting to know them as a fellow human being.
This is wonderfully demonstrated by Ang Lee's use of Holt (emotionally played by Jeffrey Wright) as an emerging protagonist. He is originally introduced as the sidekick of a secondary character before an arbitrary series of events thrusts him into the forefront of the rebellion. You'll have to watch this film for yourself, but overall it is just superb subtext and visual storytelling that skillfully conveys this film's messages and themes.
Every single performance here is absolutely phenomenal too, and it made me realize why Tobey Maguire is such a compelling lead actor despite his usually mild-mannered and shy demeanor. Even at the age of 23 (as he was at the time of this film's release), Tobey is able to convey a plethora of emotions just through his facial expressions, particularly through his luminescent blue eyes. Uncertainty, fear, happiness, confusion, and anger are all immediately knowledgable on his face whether it be on the passionate or subtle spectrum of emotion.
Overall, the best war film I have ever watched and a film that I would recommend to anyone!
Reviewed in the United States on May 12, 2022
This film came out all the way back in 1999 yet the Criterion Collection version of this film rivals modern-day 4K upscales in terms of the film’s visual and auditory quality! Most Blu-Ray versions of “older” films that I have are annoyingly grainy and just seem to be glorified DVD releases. That was definitely not the case with this Blu-Ray version of the film which is leaps and bounds ahead of its DVD version.
This is a *must-have* for fans of the film and it’s even worth an upgrade if you already have the VHS/DVD version of the film! It’s an entirely different experience with Ang Lee’s sensational camerawork and Mychael Danna’s timeless score being taken to the next level!
Not to mention that this also happens to be the original Director’s cut of the film which also comes with new interviews and a Director’s commentary recorded a decade after the film’s release!
Now, on to my *SPOILER FREE* review the movie:
The final Civil War film of the 20th century was certainly the greatest! I've already mentioned this before but Ang Lee's love of nature was truly the cinematic highlight of this film! If you're into escapism, then this film will certainly throw you right in with Phil Roedel, Jack Bull Chiles, Daniel Holt, and the rest of the gang!
This film isn't set in one week or even one month but over the span of a few years! You can really feel the dynamics of the characters' relationships change as they get to know one another better or when the unpredictable Civil War thrusts them into intimate situations that none were ready for.
There is a heavy emphasis on character development in this film and how the Civil War slowly but surely affects their outlooks on life but never once is it boring as it has just as much wonderfully choreographed action to compensate!
Despite being told from the perspective of the Confederacy, this film has a brilliant and bold motif for the Bushwhackers during its action scenes (Confederate militia) and historically accurate traditional southern music for the rest of its scenes. Because after all, every group are the heroes of their own story!
Unlike most films that deal with the topic of racism, this film is not too blunt nor is it flat-footed as it deals with a controversial issue. This film implicitly shows the audience throughout the film how merely being exposed to a member of another race can ultimately shift your perspective of that race by getting to know them as a fellow human being.
This is wonderfully demonstrated by Ang Lee's use of Holt (emotionally played by Jeffrey Wright) as an emerging protagonist. He is originally introduced as the sidekick of a secondary character before an arbitrary series of events thrusts him into the forefront of the rebellion. You'll have to watch this film for yourself, but overall it is just superb subtext and visual storytelling that skillfully conveys this film's messages and themes.
Every single performance here is absolutely phenomenal too, and it made me realize why Tobey Maguire is such a compelling lead actor despite his usually mild-mannered and shy demeanor. Even at the age of 23 (as he was at the time of this film's release), Tobey is able to convey a plethora of emotions just through his facial expressions, particularly through his luminescent blue eyes. Uncertainty, fear, happiness, confusion, and anger are all immediately knowledgable on his face whether it be on the passionate or subtle spectrum of emotion.
Overall, the best war film I have ever watched and a film that I would recommend to anyone!
Briefly: at the beginning we see a young man (we find out just how shockingly young, only near the end of the film) attending a wedding. The bride and groom are only seen at a distance, The story seems to be about why he joins the Cause (these will be Confederate soldiers) because all his friends are doing it, and "of course" they expect him to also.
His father, actually a stanch abolitionist, advises his son against it. But peer pressure wins over family and off he goes. It is the flimsiest of reasons, and maybe he even has second thoughts. But then a Yankee soldier, finding out that the old man is the father of a "Rebel" - a "Traitor", brutally guns the ofather down. Of course there are no second thoughts after that. The war creates its own cause, its own logic. On the other hand, his friends, whose opinions seemed so important once, die, one by one, until he is the only one of that group left. It is a war.
But of course, he gains new friends, in fact men who are more then friends, men bonded by the scars of death and of killing. One of them is a Black man, legally a slave, but also a Confederate soldier and a good one. It is complicated, how a man ends up where he does.
There is a climatic battle in the film too. Very well done. The film had the necessary budget to do it right. The viewer will not be disappointed in this as a war movie.
And, even though we only see the bride at a distance, as an extra in the beginning. This turns out to be her story too, She is a civilian, but war takes total control her life (and everyone's) as well.
It is a very nuanced story, and unfortunately turned out to be too nuanced for some of our "woke folk". As the film was about to be released to the theaters the NAACP announced it would urge picketing the film because of the political incorrectness of a "Black Confederate". The film was withdrawn and released straight to video. But make no mistake, this is no "straight to video" film. This is "Grade A" all the way... one of the finest War Films ever made.
Top reviews from other countries
Je n'ai pas été déçu!
This is a great teaching instrument for children and adults Christians and Non Christians alike. Many lessons to be learned and learning how to understand and respect each other and one and all alike.
"On the Western Frontier of Missouri, the American Civil War was fought not by armies, but by neighbours. Informal gangs of local Southern Bushwhackers fought a bloody and desperate Guerrilla war against the occupying Union Army and pro-Union Jayhawkers. Allegiance to either side was dangerous. But it was more dangerous still to find oneself caught in the middle"
Made for $38 million and intended to be a sweeping epic for the summer blockbuster crowd, Ride with the Devil was a considerable financial flop. With a limited release both in America and abroad, the financial figures are hardly surprising. More so considering it was given next to no promotion by the distributors. Factor in a little controversy about the events featured in the story, some cuts made by the studio (Lee didn't have final cut) and a delay in home release formats because the distributor incredibly wanted Jeffrey Wright's presence removed from the cover art! Well you would be forgiven for thinking that the film has to be something of a stinker. Not so say I.
Part rites of passage drama, part reflective war movie, Ang Lee's film is a grand film viewing experience. Dealing as it does with the often forgotten part of the war down on the Missouri/Kansas border, where Lee also shoots on location, film manages to be both savage and lyrical in equal measure. The savagery comes with the fights, bloody, frenetic and high on potency, while the lyricism comes with the human relationships, internal conflicts and the political awareness of the men (boys) fighting for their cause. All given deft treatment by Schamus, whose screenplay contains crisp period dialogue and a narrative correctly showing that this part of the war was not just driven by racist Dixie's hell bent on revenge, violent lust and political allegiance, but often for family, land and rights. Picture is at pains to let us know the youth of the main characters, ramming home the point of boys forced to become men, killing machines, very quickly. Case in point, the culmination of the violence in the film that comes by way of the Lawrence Massacre, a tragic and upsetting slaughter that saw 180 people murdered under the leadership of a vengeful William Quantrill (John Ales). Lee and Schamus aren't interested in showing heroism in this particular war, they show it as futile, nasty and it leaves the taste of bile in the throat.
From here the film slows considerably, as the lead characters withdraw from the action of war, to awakenings and friendships forming. It's here where Lee is at his best. No great director of action, as evidenced by the previously mentioned Lawrence Massacre; which lacks the cutting edge to really grab us by the throat and never let go, but for human interest aspects and bucolic scenes with characters framed within, Lee owes film fans absolutely nothing. The latter of which he is aided considerably by Elmes' widescreen photography. Ulrich and pop star Jewel nicely handle their parts, he puts a confident swagger into Jack Bull Chiles, she is tender and unassuming in the pivotal female role of Sue Lee Shelley. Caviezel gives Black John Ambrose a brooding menace, while Jonathan Rhys-Meyers is on overdrive as sadistic loony Pitt Mackeson. But it's with Maguire and Wright that the acting plaudits go. Maguire has arguably never been better, he gives Jake Roedel an effective sensitivity as a virginal boy receives a violent initiation into manhood. Wright is sublime, said to be one of his favourite performances, Wright as freed slave Daniel Holt is the heart beat of the film. Conveying most of the good traits available to man, Holt fights not just out of loyalty to his friend George Clyde (Baker), but to gain ultimate catharsis in is life. It's a beautiful measured turn from Wright, and it deserves more appreciative attention.
The last third of it may be too talky for some, and a couple of dangling narrative threads left unanswered stop it from being a masterpiece. But it's close to being just that, a savage, beautiful and lyrical movie. The stupid studio execs had no idea: Putz's. 9/10