The Horse Whisperer (B+ or 3.5/4 stars)
The mother of a severely traumatized daughter seeks aid from a unique horse trainer to help heal the girl's equally injured steed in 'The Horse Whisperer', directed by Robert Redford. The film opens on a cold winter night. 14 yr. old Grace (Scarlett Johansson) & her best friend Judith go for a pre-dawn ride on the newly fallen snow with their horses. The scene is one of a perfect winter wonderland. But tragedy strikes when one of the girls' horses loses its footing on an icy incline. Grace & Pilgrim (her beloved horse) are badly injured; physically & mentally. And Grace's parents, Annie & Robert (Kristin Scott Thomas, Sam Neill), are not equipped to help Grace cope with her physical disability, the mental scars, or her impaired horse. Some people even advise that he be put to sleep.
In an attempt to heal Grace AND recover her horse from his severely-damaged condition, Annie takes the both of them to Montana in search for famed 'horse whisperer', Tom Booker (Redford). A horse whisperer is a cowboy with the innate ability to communicate with horses. Initially, Tom is hesitant to help Annie & co. But after meeting Pilgrim, he agrees to help. And so begins a long, slow period of healing & restoration; not only for Pilgrim, not only for Grace ... but for Annie & Tom, as well. Out in the western wilderness, away from her husband, away from the hectic city, Annie will change the way she views life forever.
'The Horse Whisperer' is a quietly powerful tale of love & loss. It's honest. And the movie does well to cover 2 separate stories as convincingly as one whole. One storyline involves the burgeoning love story btwn. Annie & Tom. And the other involves Grace, her caustic relationship with a similarly frosty Annie, her own recovery, & her worry for Pilgrim. Both stories blend into one & another providing a full-bodied dramatic experience. Redford's direction illustrates how difficult it is to recover from tragedy, & how the ripples from said tragedy can directly impact those not directly involved. Those viewers who want an emotionally resonant, life-affirming film with good characters & an interesting story should not pass this movie up.
Each character has personal demons to deal with. Kristin Scott Thomas' Annie is a bit cold, used to being in charge, & realizes that her lack of humanity has put a strain on both her marriage & relationship with Grace. Tom, a man at peace with himself, has his own challenges; which makes his touch-&-go relationship with Annie an intriguing one. KST is not a conventional beauty; and Redford, while ruggedly handsome, is many yrs. her senior. You believe they can fall for each other. But the best performance comes from Johansson. Resenting her mom's emotional distance, it takes a long time for Grace to let her guard down. Like mother, like daughter. And using subtle nuances, she conveys the mental pain of being deformed (from the accident); & worrying if anyone would ever love her.
The cinematography of 'The Horse Whisperer' is gloriously beautiful. Wintertime forests are shown in wonderful shades of blue, silver, & white. The low, grey clouds which hover over Montana's amber waves of grain are awe-inspiring. The Rocky Mountains are filmed impeccably. And yet, while the landscapes & skylines are impressive, so too is the filming of the actors. The light they are in; camera angles; the glances they give, etc. Robert Redford's directing is astute. The day-to-day ranch activities are interesting. The musical score is gentle, but effective. If I have issue with the film, it's that it is a bit overlong. Approaching 3 hours, the film did not deserve to go that epic. And the basic story is not really engaging enough to maintain the length. I was absorbed in the melancholic material, but sometimes found myself staring at my lap, or the wall. But the positives far outweigh the negatives. I really enjoyed 'The Horse Whisperer'.
In an attempt to heal Grace AND recover her horse from his severely-damaged condition, Annie takes the both of them to Montana in search for famed 'horse whisperer', Tom Booker (Redford). A horse whisperer is a cowboy with the innate ability to communicate with horses. Initially, Tom is hesitant to help Annie & co. But after meeting Pilgrim, he agrees to help. And so begins a long, slow period of healing & restoration; not only for Pilgrim, not only for Grace ... but for Annie & Tom, as well. Out in the western wilderness, away from her husband, away from the hectic city, Annie will change the way she views life forever.
'The Horse Whisperer' is a quietly powerful tale of love & loss. It's honest. And the movie does well to cover 2 separate stories as convincingly as one whole. One storyline involves the burgeoning love story btwn. Annie & Tom. And the other involves Grace, her caustic relationship with a similarly frosty Annie, her own recovery, & her worry for Pilgrim. Both stories blend into one & another providing a full-bodied dramatic experience. Redford's direction illustrates how difficult it is to recover from tragedy, & how the ripples from said tragedy can directly impact those not directly involved. Those viewers who want an emotionally resonant, life-affirming film with good characters & an interesting story should not pass this movie up.
Each character has personal demons to deal with. Kristin Scott Thomas' Annie is a bit cold, used to being in charge, & realizes that her lack of humanity has put a strain on both her marriage & relationship with Grace. Tom, a man at peace with himself, has his own challenges; which makes his touch-&-go relationship with Annie an intriguing one. KST is not a conventional beauty; and Redford, while ruggedly handsome, is many yrs. her senior. You believe they can fall for each other. But the best performance comes from Johansson. Resenting her mom's emotional distance, it takes a long time for Grace to let her guard down. Like mother, like daughter. And using subtle nuances, she conveys the mental pain of being deformed (from the accident); & worrying if anyone would ever love her.
The cinematography of 'The Horse Whisperer' is gloriously beautiful. Wintertime forests are shown in wonderful shades of blue, silver, & white. The low, grey clouds which hover over Montana's amber waves of grain are awe-inspiring. The Rocky Mountains are filmed impeccably. And yet, while the landscapes & skylines are impressive, so too is the filming of the actors. The light they are in; camera angles; the glances they give, etc. Robert Redford's directing is astute. The day-to-day ranch activities are interesting. The musical score is gentle, but effective. If I have issue with the film, it's that it is a bit overlong. Approaching 3 hours, the film did not deserve to go that epic. And the basic story is not really engaging enough to maintain the length. I was absorbed in the melancholic material, but sometimes found myself staring at my lap, or the wall. But the positives far outweigh the negatives. I really enjoyed 'The Horse Whisperer'.