Concrete Cowboy Parent Guide

Growing up in Detroit isn’t easy for anyone, but Cole (Caleb McLaughlin) is really struggling. He’s been expelled from a few schools already, and when he gets kicked out of the latest one for fighting, his mother Amahle (Liz Priestley) has had enough. She sends Cole off to north Philadelphia to spend the summer with his estranged father, Harp (Idris Elba).

Cole doesn’t find life in Philly to be any easier than life in Detroit, and he’s soon hanging around with Smush (Jharrel Jerome), a small-time drug dealer with big dreams…none of which endears him to Harp, who would prefer that Cole spend his time working on the horse stables he maintains. Cole isn’t interested in horses (or the amount of manure they produce), but he does find the stables strangely compelling…

Most parents are going to be immediately deterred by this script’s constant barrage of profanity. It might not set any records, but it’s bad enough that I had to rewind the movie a few times to ensure that my “swear count” was accurate. That is a pretty good indicator that the close to 200 cusses I counted are “too much for a family audience”. There’s also a lot of casual marijuana use, although I should point out that small time possession has been decriminalized in Philly. You might not agree with the decision, but pot use isn’t illegal in this jurisdiction. Whether that bothers you or not isn’t something I’d venture to guess.

Concrete Cowboys is one of those movies that plays with your expectations; namely that it isn’t as wild a ride as you might expect. It’s not a crime thriller about Cole and Smush: it’s a family drama and is paced accordingly. That said, the slower pacing means more time to flesh out the characters’ motivations, which is the only way a story like this can be compelling. You can’t focus on characters for as long as this movie does and get away with lazy two-dimensional personalities. Thankfully, these characters are interesting, complex, and intriguing. Idris Elba is, as usual, spectacular, but he’s aided by a cast that includes a lot of the real cowboys from the Fletcher Street urban stables. It’s hard to come by that kind of authenticity as an actor, so this is a huge bonus to the tone and character of the film as a whole.

Concrete Cowboy still isn’t what I’d call family entertainment, but it is a good character drama with important messages about home, family, and self esteem. If you’re not deterred by the bombardment of profanity, this movie could provide a quieter, more introspective viewing epxerience. viewing experience. You can saddle up and enjoy the ride.