Ride the Divide

I really wanted to like this film, the subject is so interesting (especially to a cyclist)but the film has very little focus. The film makers seem unsure what the focus of the film is (despite the blurb), sometimes we focus on the ride, sometimes the places we are going through, sometimes the film makers themselves. We meet riders that we never visit again or only for two seconds, riders that often seem interesting and engaging. We listen to phone conversations about or with people that we have no idea who they are and we switch focus on to different riders all the time but with no depth or follow up. It misses the human element, there is very little back story to the riders, how they trained and prepared for the event or why they are doing it. The emotions and struggles they go through is very poorly covered and with little understanding, the whole event and feelings of an event like this seem to come as a constant surprise to the film makers. We don't even get to know who came where in the results. Mary's story is the only one that is almost followed through but even then it's patchy and very surface. It's a real shame, this film and subject could be so interesting but a lack of focus, preparation and editing leave this one of the most disappointing films I have seen by no means the worst, it's still watchable but just too surface and nothing really to engage you.