The movie “Concrete Cowboy,” starring Idris Elba and Tucker Tooley, tells a fictionalized story of the Fletcher Street Riding community in North Philadelphia. 

The 2021 film was released in April and is now streaming on Netflix. For a lot of different reasons, this film is new and different from other movies recently released. The actual Fletcher Street Urban Riding community is a riding club in North Philadelphia. They are currently facing issues with gentrification and city seizures of their stables. 

Elba takes on the role of Harp, a character different from the suave and collected roles he usually plays. Harp is gritty and tough, and Elba delivers a convincing performance. However, Elba might not give the most impressive performance in the film.

Jamil Prattis gave his first professional performance with little prior acting experience. His character, Paris, was affiliated with the concrete cowboys, and in real life, Prattis is a street rider himself.

The movie is about a troubled teenager who is sent to live with his dad in Philadelphia for a summer. His dad (Elba) keeps horses and races them. Over the summer he learns to ride and care for horses as well as maintain responsibility for them. 

The actual Urban Street Riding Club in Philadelphia aims to do exactly that. They pride themselves on being an alternative to the streets by teaching local youth to rescue and care for horses, according to their official Facebook page.

Overall, the movie was uniquely different from recent films and the performances delivered were all convincing and authentic. 7/10.