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OPEN CLASSIC CINEMA · 377

The Wild Ride

196059 minUnited States

Video edition: YouTube · Channel’s colorized edition
Original language: English
This copy runs: 60:00
Subtitles: English

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Synopsis

A young racing enthusiast dominates his friends through reckless driving and demands for loyalty. When his closest companion begins a relationship and questions the gang's behaviour, he treats the change as a personal challenge. Parties and road contests become tests of obedience, pushing the group toward consequences that bravado cannot undo.

Cast

Jack Nicholson

Johnny Varron

DirectorsHarvey Berman

Behind the scenes

Director Harvey Berman made the film around Concord, California, involving students from his high-school drama classes alongside professionals. Jack Nicholson's early leading performance gives the small production a notable connection to the later course of American cinema.

Sources and availability

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Work catalogued as public domain in the United States.

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Availability checked on September 10, 2026.

Photograph credit

Photographs cropped, resized and optimized as WebP, displayed in monochrome.

Jack Nicholson — Georges Biard · CC BY-SA 3.0

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