Sports films have become a staple of cinema. As we enter over 100 years of sports in cinema, it’s become even more critical for these films to set themselves apart and offer a uniqueness to entice cinephiles. Clint Bentley’s Jockey not only gallops into the winner’s circle but is the biggest surprise of the festival thus far.

While horse racing has been explored on-screen several times, from Seabiscuit to Secretariat, very few films have looked at the man behind the horse – the jockey himself. The film effectively follows the same trajectory as one of my all-time favorite sports films, Darren Aronofsky’s The Wrestler. What The Wrestler did for films about pro-wrestling, Jockey has done for horse racing.

Jockey follows an aging jockey, Jackson Silva, who is driven by his desire to win one last championship before calling it quits. However, things take quite a turn after a young rookie jockey Gabriel Boullait arrives and claims to be Silva’s son. The revelation leads to a self-examination of Silva’s legacy and life choices.

Clint Bentley and Greg Kwedar’s screenplay handles Collins Jr.’s Jackson with great care and emotion that ultimately aids in the viewer becoming immersed in Jackson’s story. This choice works so well because it allows Jackson’s story to be more than just about being a jockey. The film enables an examination into not only Jackson’s career and choices but our own. Viewers will see how it all comes into play during the movie.

While Bentley and Kewdar’s screenplay aids in the film’s effectiveness, it’s the career-defining performance for veteran character actor Clifton Collins Jr. His performance is subtle and understated but incredibly powerful. Collins Jr. can evoke Jackson’s denial and fear with such a nuance that you feel every ounce of pain, whether physically or emotionally, that Collins Jr. is arousing.

Adolpho Veloso’s cinematography is stunning. Reminiscent to Joshua James Richards Oscar-nominated work on Nomadland, Veloso engrosses the viewers into the world of horse racing while imposing careful focus on Jackson and his journey.

Bentley’s gamble on directing a film that is honest and distinct in his directorial debut rather than relying on typical sports film tropes pays off. Jockey not only shows us a fresh new talent and voice with his direction and writing but an engaging look at aging, legacy, and mortality.