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All the Pretty Horses

All the Pretty Horses January 14, 2012Film0 Comments

Unusually, we have not one movie with the horses, but two to review for you: War Horse, and Buck. And it is not like horses are a usual topic for film making either. So for those of us who love them, it is a real treat this month…

Unusually, we have not one movie with the horses, but two to review for you. And it is not like horses are a usual topic for film making either. So for those of us who love them, it is a real treat, this month.

We start with the Stephen Spielberg directed War Horse. It is the film translation of the Michael Murpurgo children’s book of the same name.

The much-loved book has been made into an amazing stage play in London (It was so well received it was then moved on to Broadway). The play has been received extremely well by audiences with its large horse puppets, and well written verse. It is the story of a large-hearted Thoroughbred, Joey, who is taken from his teenage master to be drafted into the war effort.

The film follows his epic journey to be reunited with his master over several years. During his journey Joey meets many different souls, all with a story: a doomed British Battalion, a pair of German brothers, a young French girl mourning the loss of her parents with the help of her elderly Grandfather.

There is a particularly dramatic scene to watch out for in the middle of the Battle of the Somme – but I don’t want to give too much away.

The war is looked at from all the different perspectives of the characters who share the universal sense of loss and grief.

This is a large, grand film with Academy Nomination written all over it. Though directed by an American, (Spielberg) with a great affinity for war films, it is mainly played with an excellent English cast. This would seem like a no-brainer, but the misuse of the English accent by American actors can be often described as nothing short of criminal at times.

David Thewlis plays the dastardly landowner to Jeremy Irvine’s crofter’s son. Emily Watson plays his mother Rose. With Benedict Cumberbatch (BBC’s Sherlock Holmes) and a host of other faces you will find familiar there is much to see in this big film.

Perhaps with its stage-based beginnings, this film has a very dramatic feel to it with lots of big battle scenes, hauntingly-lit farmland, and swelling music by none other than John Williams. It is a great family film (with the book originally pitched at children 10 years plus), but some of the scenes of battle are very grim, so I would be careful with the younger children. It is an emotional epic – with no apologies made for grabbing at the heartstrings. Take a hankie. War Horse is in cinemas 12th January 2012.

The second film we are looking at today is as far away from Hollywood and its razzle-dazzle as is humanly possible.

“Buck” is a quiet (no pun intended) little film about a horse whisperer in the US of A. Made with no budget, and very little in the way of interference, it is a look into the life of one remarkable individual. The filmmaker Cindy Meehl met Buck Brannaman at one of his horse clinics nearly 10 years ago. She found him such a compelling individual, and she learned more from him in four short days than she had learned in the decades she had been dealing with horses. This is also her first film. Brave girl.

Buck is a prominent advocate of natural horsemanship. He is a widely respected “horse gentler” whose approach to training horses has inspired and revolutionised the equestrian world. He spends a large part of the year travelling across the US (and beyond) in his horse trailer with his horses. He travels wherever there is work, into many small communities that have been welcoming him for years. He is a quiet, yet charismatic man with a remarkable touch with horses.

For those of us who know horses – what he does IS truly remarkable – but I don’t think you have to know horses to know that you are watching a great man. He came from a tortured childhood, which he speaks a bit about, but refused to let it destroy him, and went on to have a healthy family of his own.

The film follows him as he wanders with his horses from town to town. One of his daughters drops in for a time, as does his wife. It is slow film – letting you watch what he does with the many horses without fanfare and bluster.

It also talks about the time he spent on the set of the film The Horse Whisperer working as a consultant on the film with Robert Redford. Even the very private Redford talks about his time with Brannaman with great affection.

And just when you think all the stories will all be successes – they slide you a curveball near the end.

Even the soundtrack is a little pearler with Eddie Vedder’s Just Breathe in the closing credits.

Well, well worth the watch. Buck is in cinemas January 19th 2012.

By Anya Brighouse 14 January 2012