Ryland "Ry" Peter Cooder is an American prominent guitarist, singer and composer. He is known for his slide guitar work, his interest in blues-rock, roots music from his native North America, and for his collaborations with traditional musicians from many countries. Cooder's solo work has been an eclectic mix, taking in dust bowl folk, blues, Tex-Mex, soul, gospel, rock, and much else. He has collaborated with many important musicians, including The Rolling Stones, Van Morrison, Neil Young & Crazy Horse, Earl Hines, Little Feat, Captain Beefheart, The Chieftains, John Lee Hooker, Pops, Mavis Staples, Gabby Pahinui, Flaco Jiménez, Ibrahim Ferrer (Buena Vista Social Club), Freddy Fender and Ali Farka Touré. He formed the Little Village supergroup with Nick Lowe, John Hiatt, and Jim Keltner. Cooder was ranked 8th on Rolling Stone magazine's list of "The 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time." A 2010 ranking by Gibson placed him at #32.
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Biography from TMDB.
- March 15, 1947 (79)
- Los Angeles, California, USA
- Composer and actor
- 21 on MovieCove · 33 credits in all
What are Ry Cooder's films like?
Across their 19 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Morality and Survival.
Genres
Their MovieCove films by primary genre. The badge is the typical Midcredits score of the genre's films, the median percentile; an up arrow marks a genre at or above their average across these genres.
Themes
What they feel like to watch
Ironic 1 · Wry 1 · Earnest 17
A split, not a type: Light 5 · Serious 4 · Dark 10
A split, not a type: Grounded 10 · Stylized 6 · Heightened 3
A split, not a type: Gentle 3 · Charged 7 · Intense 9
Steady 7 · Shifting 11 · Whiplash 1
Straight-faced 17 · Some laughs 1 · Funny 1
Slow burn 7 · Even-paced 9 · Relentless 3
Casual 6 · Engaged 13 · Full focus 0
Easy watch 4 · Affecting 9 · Heavy 6
Resolved 14 · Open-ended 3 · Ambiguous 2
Moods and endings
- Happy3
- Bittersweet11
- Tragic1
- Ambiguous4
AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.
Where can I watch Ry Cooder's films?
As of October 24, 2026, 13 of their 21 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on Tubi (9).
- Paris, Texas (1984) · composer · free
- Dead Man Walking (1995) · composer · free
- Tales from the Crypt (1989) · composer · free
- Crossroads (1986) · composer · free
- Southern Comfort (1981) · composer · free
- The Long Riders (1980) · actor, composer · free
- My Blueberry Nights (2007) · composer · free
- Last Man Standing (1996) · composer · free
- The End of Violence (1997) · composer · free
Subscription and free streaming for Ry Cooder's titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.
Filmography
33 credits, 21 with a MovieCove page; 16 appearances as themselves are hidden until asked for.
Amoramar (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2023)
My Blueberry Nights(2007)
Midcredits score: 64th percentile of all films
Chavez Ravine: A Los Angeles Story (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2003)
Buena Vista Social Club(1999)
Midcredits score: 95th percentile of all films
Primary Colors(1998)
Midcredits score: 70th percentile of all films
The End of Violence(1997)
Midcredits score: 31st percentile of all films
Last Man Standing(1996)
Midcredits score: 53rd percentile of all films
Dead Man Walking(1995)
Midcredits score: 94th percentile of all films
Ry Cooder & David Lindley: Live at the Fillmore Auditorium (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1994)
Midcredits score: 62nd percentile of all films
Trespass(1992)
Midcredits score: 53rd percentile of all films
John Lee Hooker and Friends 1984-1992 (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1992)
Johnny Handsome(1989)
Midcredits score: 46th percentile of all films
Tales from the Crypt(1989)
Midcredits score: 90th percentile of all shows
Rabbit Ears - Pecos Bill (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1988)
Ry Cooder & The Moula Banda Rhythm Aces: Let's Have a Ball (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1988)
Texas, Osijek (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1987)
Extreme Prejudice(1987)
Midcredits score: 68th percentile of all films
Annie Oakley (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1986)
Blue City(1986)
Midcredits score: 6th percentile of all films
Crossroads(1986)
Midcredits score: 86th percentile of all films
Tall Tales & Legends (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1985)
Brewster's Millions(1985)
Midcredits score: 60th percentile of all films
Alamo Bay(1985)
Midcredits score: 44th percentile of all films
Paris, Texas(1984)
Midcredits score: 98th percentile of all films
Streets of Fire(1984)
Midcredits score: 72nd percentile of all films
The Border(1982)
Midcredits score: 55th percentile of all films
Southern Comfort(1981)
Midcredits score: 83rd percentile of all filmsWitzleben (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1981)
The Long Riders(1980)
Midcredits score: 79th percentile of all films
Blue Collar(1978)
Midcredits score: 94th percentile of all films
Rockpalast (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1974)
Ry Cooder: How Can a Poor Man Stand Such Times and Live? (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1970)
Career shape
A full career of 33 titles from 1970 to 2023.
Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Midcredits score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on MovieCove, shown from 5 scored.
How do Ry Cooder's films land?
Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 66th percentile, the median of all 20; across their 19 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 62nd percentile for acclaim.
- 75th and up8
- 50th to 74th9
- 25th to 49th3
- Below 25th1
Shape of the crowd
13 of their 21 titles are Crowd Pleasers.
- Universally Loved4
- Crowd Pleaser13
- Broadly Agreed2
- Mixed2
Reviewers score the sound and music 79/100 in their films, across 16 reviewed titles; fans 86, detractors 62. The element that speaks to their work as a composer.
Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.
Is Ry Cooder's work okay for kids?
Across up to 11 MovieCove titles with content scores, profanity runs heavier than most films.
Severity 0–100 from the Content Guide. Categories with under 10 votes on a title are not counted. The band's colour is the severity of their median, named beside it.
Who does Ry Cooder work with?
People who share at least 2 of Ry Cooder's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Walter Hill shares the most, 10.
Directors
- Walter HillShared titles: Last Man Standing (1996), Geronimo: An American Legend (1993), Trespass (1992), Johnny Handsome (1989), Blue City (1986), Crossroads (1986), Brewster's Millions (1985), Streets of Fire (1984), Southern Comfort (1981), The Long Riders (1980)See all 10 shared titles with Walter Hill
- Wim WendersShared titles: Buena Vista Social Club (1999), The End of Violence (1997), Paris, Texas (1984)See all 3 shared titles with Wim Wenders
Writers
- Larry GrossShared titles: Geronimo: An American Legend (1993), Streets of Fire (1984)See all 2 shared titles with Larry Gross
Actors
- Bill PaxtonShared titles: Trespass (1992), Streets of Fire (1984)See all 2 shared titles with Bill Paxton
- Peter JasonShared titles: Johnny Handsome (1989), Brewster's Millions (1985)See all 2 shared titles with Peter Jason
- Scott WilsonShared titles: Johnny Handsome (1989), Blue City (1986)See all 2 shared titles with Scott Wilson
- Harry Carey Jr.Shared titles: Crossroads (1986), The Long Riders (1980)See all 2 shared titles with Harry Carey Jr.
Cinematographers and editors
- Freeman A. DaviesShared titles: Last Man Standing (1996), Geronimo: An American Legend (1993), Trespass (1992), Johnny Handsome (1989), Crossroads (1986), Brewster's Millions (1985), Streets of Fire (1984), Southern Comfort (1981), The Long Riders (1980)See all 9 shared titles with Freeman A. Davies
- Lloyd Ahern IIShared titles: Last Man Standing (1996), Geronimo: An American Legend (1993), Trespass (1992)See all 3 shared titles with Lloyd Ahern II
- Ric WaiteShared titles: Brewster's Millions (1985), The Border (1982), The Long Riders (1980)See all 3 shared titles with Ric Waite
- Peter PrzygoddaShared titles: The End of Violence (1997), Paris, Texas (1984)See all 2 shared titles with Peter Przygodda
Producers
- Mae WoodsShared titles: Johnny Handsome (1989), Crossroads (1986), Brewster's Millions (1985), Streets of Fire (1984)See all 4 shared titles with Mae Woods
- Deepak NayarShared titles: Buena Vista Social Club (1999), The End of Violence (1997)See all 2 shared titles with Deepak Nayar
- Ulrich FelsbergShared titles: Buena Vista Social Club (1999), The End of Violence (1997)See all 2 shared titles with Ulrich Felsberg
- Neil CantonShared titles: Geronimo: An American Legend (1993), Trespass (1992)See all 2 shared titles with Neil Canton
Mixed roles
- Matt DamonShared titles: The People Speak (2009), Geronimo: An American Legend (1993)See all 2 shared titles with Matt Damon
