Ride With the Devil

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Ride With the Devil

R

1999

2h 18m

History

Drama

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Popcornmeter

65%

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68 Reviews

66%

Popcornmeter

5,000+ Ratings

On the fringes of the Civil War, Missouri Bushwackers engage in guerrilla warfare with Union Jayhawkers. Bushwackers Jake Roedel (Tobey Maguire) and Jack Chiles (Skeet Ulrich), out to avenge the murder of Jack's father, are joined by George Clyde (Simon Baker) and his former slave, Daniel (Jeffrey Wright). Hiding out for the winter, Jack has a short romance with a war widow (Jewel) before dying. Jake steps in to take care of her and her newborn before joining Quantrill's famous Kansas raid.

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Critics Consensus

A well-acted, eccentric Civil War film, Ang Lee's Ride With the Devil is often more visually striking than it is emotionally engaging.

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Jeff Strickler

Minneapolis Star Tribune

Lee appears to have been torn between making a character study and an action movie, so both elements get short shrift.

Rated: 1/4

Nov 6, 2002

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Rick Groen

Globe and Mail

The intriguing (if not always successful) result is an oddly contemplative picture about a horribly bellicose time.

Rated: 3/4

Mar 22, 2002

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Peter Matthews

Sight & Sound

While the movie intermittently revs up for some showy combat scenes, its real mtier is a texture of fine-grained observation that brings history to life on the molecular level.

Apr 17, 2001

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Matt Brunson

Film Frenzy

Lee may have chosen to relate a tale about the Civil War from the POV of the South (always an irksome angle), but it’s made clear that his loyalties rest not with either side of the cause.

Rated: 3/4

May 28, 2025

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David Lamble

Bay Area Reporter

The acting gem in this two-and-a-half-hour epic is the hair-raising rivalry between Maguire and a feral young killer.

Jun 12, 2020

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Joe Leydon

The Moving Picture Show

Like too many other young men in too many other wars, Maguire's Jake Roedel sees too much, and grows up too fast.

Jul 19, 2014

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Johannes S

Acting and cinematography are solid. It is overly long and sometimes slow though.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

04/29/25

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Carolyn O

Good historical movie with a compelling cast. Sympathetic to all victims of the war and aftermath.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

07/18/23

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Christopher B

Some great performances and a strong cast make this a solid film detailing the Civil War and the devastation, both physically and socially, inflicted on the people caught within. At two and a half hours the film is slow at times but uses the scenes between skirmishes to further develop its characters and the impact war has on them.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

12/03/22

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trevor t

Long. On the whole not a bad film. A pretty good depiction of the motivations of the irregulars that fought for the South in the American Civil War and the reasons behind the Lawrence Raid. A little point i know and of no interest to those with no interest in period firearms but they seem to have used proper cap-and-ball pistols as opposed to modern blank firers. Much more authentic sound.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

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Audience Member

Ride With the Devil blew me away. From the first shot to the last of Ang Lee's sweeping Civil War epic centering on Southern Missouri Bushwackers fighting a guerrilla war against Northern Jayhawkers. Tobey Maguire is fine in the leading role, but his relationships with Skeet Ulrich's fellow Bushwacker and childhood frien in the first half of the film and then Jeffery Wright's kind of free slave, which takes up the last half make the movie what it is. The brotherhood that grow between the characters is fantastic. There's more that can be said about Ride With the Devil, but frankly I'm just not educated enough to talk about the themes of the film and the reason behind the Civil War. I just know Ang Lee directs the hell out of this film, beautifully shot, edited and with tremendous action and battle scenes. I highly recommend this film for everyone.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/14/23

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Audience Member

Not a bad flick on the Civil War in Missouri between independents: Jayhawks for the North and Bushwhackers for the South. Glad to see an African American fighting for the South as there were a few units of Free Blacks or Mulatoes.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

01/27/23

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Ang Lee

Director

Skeet Ulrich

Jack Bull Chiles

Tobey Maguire

Jake Roedel

Jewel

Sue Lee Shelley

Jeffrey Wright

Daniel Holt

Simon Baker

George Clyde

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Synopsis

On the fringes of the Civil War, Missouri Bushwackers engage in guerrilla warfare with Union Jayhawkers. Bushwackers Jake Roedel (Tobey Maguire) and Jack Chiles (Skeet Ulrich), out to avenge the murder of Jack's father, are joined by George Clyde (Simon Baker) and his former slave, Daniel (Jeffrey Wright). Hiding out for the winter, Jack has a short romance with a war widow (Jewel) before dying. Jake steps in to take care of her and her newborn before joining Quantrill's famous Kansas raid.

Director: Ang Lee
Producer: Ted Hope, Robert F. Colesberry, James Schamus
Screenwriter: James Schamus
Production Co: Good Machine
Rating: R
Genre: History, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Streaming): Mar 18, 2014
Box Office (Gross USA): $630.8K
Runtime: 2h 18m
Sound Mix: Surround

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