Robert Redford has no trouble with playing an aging cowboy named Tom. He pulls off the quiet, but sturdy cowboy image with perfection. Kristin Scott Thomas portrays Annie Maclean, a woman whose daughter's horse has been injured in an accident. The same accident caused her daughter, Grace, portrayed by Scarlett Johansson, to lose one of her legs. She goes to Tom to get help for the "out of control" horse. Sam Neill plays her husband, and appears to be an afterthought. For animals lovers, this movie has a disturbing beginning. The movie is about relationships, daughter to mother; child to horse; husband to wife; man to horse. The scenery in this movie is breath taking, and Redford took full use of it while directing the movie.
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fanofkim14 June 1999I liked this movie very much. A girl and her horse are both seriously injured in an accident. The girls friend died in the accident. With time and love, the girl and her horse eventually are healed, physically and emotionally. It is a good family movie.
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Gothmog-48 May 1999Yes, I agree the film is slow and, perhaps, overlong. Yes, there appears little in common between the methods presented in the film and documented 'horse whispering'.
However this film needed to show the passage of time, which is, after all, the greatest healer. I found the film to be moving.
I was interested in a comment that there was no 'motivation' for the disfunctionality in the family unit. As one who has witnessed many divorces I feel that I can safely say that in real life these forces can be subtle enough to elude the participants; let alone an audience.
I was greatly relieved that the trite ending I envisaged didn't occur.
Overall if you want a gently paced but powerfully emotive film then it is to be recommended; a liking of horses helps greatly!! -
Iceman-1526 August 2003I must have seen this movie at least five times, and somehow I never tire of seeing it even though it's not really my kind of movie.
I won't go into plot, and things like that, I'll just say it's exquisitely shot, beautifully acted by all with young Scarlett Johannson being a standout. But of course, Robert Redford deserves special mention for this is not only one of his best directed films, but also he gave himself one of his better roles. He's very good here. There's a close-up on him at the end of this film that has to be seen to be believed. Everything his character is feeling at that moment is revealed perfectly on his face. It's one of those moments that happen every once in a while. One of those moments that make you glad there is a thing called film. -
awlauter8 March 2001I read the book before seeing the movie and was thus, not expecting it to be as good ( I thought the book was extremely well-written) HOwever, I did enjoy the movie. Redford is a terrifc actor and director and I thought the cinematography was great. I found it interesting that the end in the movie does not parallel the book, but I guess they wanted a Hollywood ending. Anyway, good overall movie, and as another viewer eloquently stated, this movie is a refreshing break from all the special effects one sees in many other films.
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ccthemovieman-16 October 2006Here's a beautifully filmed "horse opera" about a New York teenage girl (Scarlett Johannsson, who is now a well-known actress but wasn't when this was made) and her horse, both of whom are badly injured in a mishap and are healed by a Montana horse expert, played by Robert Redford.
Redford also directed this film and being such an outdoors-man, you know this is going to show nature in a beautiful way....and it does. The Montana scenery is just awesome.
After a dramatic opening scene in which we see the horse and daughter hurt, the mother (Kristin Scott-Thonas) takes the girl and the horse out West to see if the horse can be salvaged. Unfortunately, the mother - who is married - falls for the horseman "Tom Booker" (Redford) and an adulterous relationship almost comes to fruition. That romance is the soap opera part of the film but it's nice to see everyone, including Redford's character, healed of emotional as well as physical wounds.
Some of the teen's bad attitudes are not fun to watch, but otherwise the people in here are very nice. Ranchers Redford and Chris Cooper and Cooper's sons are all nice people, especially of one Cooper's little kids. This film is a bit too much of a melodrama at times which makes it a long in spots, but it's a long movie to begin with (169 minutes). It's so beautifully filmed, however, that for that alone the movie is worth seeing. -
janela10 October 2005This is a unique, moving story about a girl whose tragic horse-riding accident and subsequent trauma led her family to Montana in search of the man known as the Horse Whisperer. Little did they know that their lives were about to change forever during these few, memorable days spent on the farm. This is a truly beautiful story, a story for sensitive souls, a story for those who care about animals as much as people. The characters are finely drawn and it is a pleasure to watch them unfold as the film progresses. The dialogues are often memorable and wonderfully devoid of the clichés that most Hollywood productions are sprinkled with.
This is a film for people who understand that the 'little' moments in life are the best; a film where pictures truly speak more than a thousand words.
It is a story of love and courage, the courage to fight for you want, or accept things the way they are; the courage to risk losing everything, the courage to accept that loss. There is a wonderful message in this film for all of us - for all those who care enough to see it, that is. -
mm-393 September 2000Warning sorta spoiler of story I gave it a 6 and my wife gave it a 8 so we voted 7. I am a restless sort who usually likes action films, and my wife is the romantic type. This film is a love story slash western; my wife felt sorry for the horse and little girl in the movie. The scenery is unbelievable, and the portrayal of western life is on the mark. The horses were the true stars and this story is more then the taming of a horse and its change of heart; its much deeper with a parallel of the horses pain relating to the hurting girl and the heart of her mother. My wife loves this movie, and would recommend this story to romantics everywhere.
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wbhome12 January 2006It is one of Robert Redford's best - the quiet rancher - meets the pushy high powered NYC editor who is determined to help her daughter after a traumatic riding accident.
As others have mentioned the experience not only changes the horse but most of the "supporting" characters.
The cinematography was powerful - while I am not a student of the discipline I could see that the angles chosen for the subject, the landscape scenes of the beautiful Montana ranges and sunsets - one could watch and understand the movie without the dialog.
I believe Ansel Adams - if he were alive - would love some of these scenes.
I vote this as a "must see" for everyone. It not only has a powerful plot but beautiful cinematography... -
Marwan-Bob9 December 2019A Bit Melodramatic, But beautifully filmed, if you want a gently paced but powerfully emotive film then it is to be recommended.
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mustangsforever-356-31422010 July 2012I was actually enjoying the movie for a bit. It had a good story line in the beginning and you got emotionally into it during and after the tragic accident with Grace and Judith. Being a horse person, I knew the behavior of the horse afterwords was a little far fetched, but thats what happens with most movies. From the get go, I noticed the training methods of "The Horse Whisperer" were based on fear. This is definitely never the way to go while training horses, so I was skeptical. But I continued t watch, assuming I was mistaken. And for a bit, I believed I was! But the thing that really set me off was in the scene near the end where Tom got Pilgrim saddled. He tied the horse's leg to the saddle horn and made him run around and buck! This is extremely dangerous and could've resulted in a broken leg, snapped neck, even death for the horse. And I know what you're saying, its just a movie. But they had to get the shot somehow, didn't they? This "training" method could be considered abuse, using fear and force to get the horse to lay down. On top of this, the wife is cheating on her husband with Tom! This is downright unnecessary to the story and wrong. Her husband isn't a bad guy or anything, she just wants to be in the country. Overall, the 3 stars I gave the movie were for the beginning. I consider it animal abuse what he did to the horse. I have been riding for most of my life, I know what I'm talking about. Also, it is just wrong how they had the wife cheating. I, personally as a horse lover, do NOT recommend this movie.
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More so than "Horse Whisperer", the movie deals with life altering changes for the four characters (the mother, the father, the daughter, the horse whisperer) and the horse of course. Even the affair is positive. It helps Tom Booker get over his wife when he puts that record back in it's sleeve, and it helps Annie get off her so called "high horse attitude." It's a movie of changes for the better all around. Enjoyable, real, well done.The scenes interacting with the horse are wonderful. Sitting in that field waiting for the horse to feel comfortable enough to deal with Mr. Booker was an enormous hurdle. The best scene is after two and a half hours when Tom brings the horse down to Grace's level, so that they both rise together. That scene,is to joyfully cry for, and laugh yes.
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jluis198421 March 2007While of course he'll always be remembered for his remarkable work as an actor and as the mind behind the Sundance Film Festival, Robert Redford has also slowly build up a solid reputation as a very good director despite his somewhat limited output (only 6 films in 20 years). Ever since his debut in 1980 with the highly successful "Ordinary People", Redford has demonstrated a natural talent at directing actors, as well as a good eye when choosing collaborators for his projects; two important skills that have earned him awards and recognition through the years. In his fifth film as a director, 1998's "The Horse Whisperer", Redford not only directs, but for the first time in his directorial career, he also plays one of the main characters in his movie. In "The Horse Whisperer" Redford is once again back in his element, as this is also the story of a troubled family, however, small problems arise that sadly diminish the power of the film.
Loosely based on Nick Evans's novel of the same name, "The Horse Whisperer" is the story of Annie MacLean (Kristin Scott Thomas) and her daughter Grace MacLean (Scarlett Johansson), who travel to Montana looking for the famous horse healer Tom Booker (Robert Redford), in order to ask him to cure their horse Pilgrim. The problem is that on a cold winter day, Grace and her best friend Judith (Kate Bosworth) were riding their horses when a terrible accident happened: a truck hit them, instantly killing Judith, and tragically hurting Grace and Pilgrim. Both horribly injured, horse and rider are taken to the Horse Whisperer hoping to recover not only their health, but also the will to live. Not only Grace and Pilgrim will try to find peace in the West, but Annie too will discover a new way of seeing life under the care of the Horse Whisperer.
Written by Eric Roth and Richard LaGravenese, "The Horse Whisperer" looks at first sight as another typical movie about a person's recovery after a traumatic event (in this case Grace's losing a leg and her best friend), however, more than dealing with the physical and psychological healing of the horse and it's rider, the movie deals with the emotional problems of a group of souls. The screenplay is not exactly faithful to the source novel, although it keeps the main story lines intact and despite the changes done the essence of the story is still well translated to screen. Some may disagree with me, but I think that the way Roth and LaGravenese build up the plot was considerably superior to Evan's book, and the toning down of the melodrama (although it's still a passionate story of romance) was for the most part beneficial for the story.
An excellent director of actors, Redford lets his cast to completely domain this character driven melodrama, creating a very natural and real portrait of human emotions. As in the book, Redford makes a nice analogy between the healing of horses and the healing of emotions (of course, with the advantage of a visual medium), although in a subtler, less melodramatic tone. This is very notorious in the way he lets his actors to use body language to express themselves, using silences, stares and face expressions as ways to communicate emotions. Still, even when the movie is certainly focused on the actors and their characters, Redford allows himself to give the film an extraordinary good look with Robert Richardson's brilliant cinematography, which captures the majestic landscapes of Montana in a very impressive and beautiful way.
Being a character driven story, the performances of the cast are essential for the success of the film, and in this case one could say that overall the cast did a good job in the movie. As Annie, Kristin Scott Thomas truly transmit the confusion of her character, torn between her life and the one represented by Tom Booker. As Tom, Redford is excellent, very effective in his role and completely becoming a character who expresses more with silence than with words. A young Scarlett Johansson appears as Grace, delivering a remarkable performance considering her young age. It's not a surprise that she went on to become a major actress as she grew up. In small but important roles, we find Sam Neill, Dianne Wiest and Chris Cooper as the main supporting cast of the movie, all giving an excellent performance despite their limited screen time.
If a movie is really well directed, has good performances and a nice script, what could be wrong about it? The answer this time is sadly so simple that it hurts: it's unnecessarily long. Pointing out this as a problem may sound like nitpicking, but it's long runtime truly damages the movie as it makes the film to drag a while, becoming tedious and boring at some point. I'm not saying that movies should not be long, what I'm saying is that in this particular case the long runtime feels unnecessary and out of place. I find the way Redford slowly develops his characters a notable feature of the movie, given that he allows us to really known them; however, I think that a better job of edition would have improved the final results a lot.
Overall, "The Horse Whisperer" is a very good movie on its own right, and while not being exactly faithful to the source novel, it keeps the whole spirit of the book intact. While the long runtime truly damages an otherwise good film, it's still a very good recommendation to those looking for a character driven love story without exaggerated melodrama. It seems to me that once again, Redford has made a classy film. 6/10 -
easmith0310 November 2002I couldn't get past Robert Redford being the leading man while looking to be in his mid 60's. Annie MacLean (Kristin Scott Thomas) looked to be someone who was approaching middle-age, mid 30's perhaps, looking young and vibrant. Going to great lengths to help her young daughter. She obviously loves her daughter and her family. She takes a trip from the city, leaving a loving husband back at home to wait for her. Then she finds "The Horse Whisperer" a wrinkled, stoop shoulder old man living in the middle of no where. He looked like he could have been in his 70's. So, what happens when a mother in her 30's takes a trip from the city, leaving her loving husband behind, to find help in the country... Obviously she will fall in love with a wrinkled up 80 year old toad who walks around in cowboy boots and hats while grunting through his meals prepared by the women folk, and eaten off of checkerboard table cloths.
There probably was an interesting story in there somewhere, I just couldn't see past the "fish out of water" city girl, falling in love with some 90 year old guy that seemingly had absolutely nothing in common with her. -
jennpye89 February 2006as always ,anything Robert Redford does is pure class.i really enjoyed this movie.the acting ,superb.there is nothing worse than seeing a movie with what i call,over dramatic actors.unfortunately,there are many of them around.the horse whisperer,really left me thinking about the whole story,you feel as though you are part of it.i have seen it 26 times and still enjoy every minute of it.i must confess,i do not really have a favourite movie,actor,actress or type of movie.I'm inclined to rate all that i do see on a scale of one to ten.i would give this one a rating of 9.i do admire the fact there was no nudity or full sex scenes.i don't think the latter is really necessary.
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GMJames28 August 2004I believe the story is way too bloated for its own good. It could have been cut down by at least 20-40 minutes for a tighter, more intimate movie. The romance between Robert Redford and Kristin Scott Thomas' characters was unconvincing and a major waste of time and almost ruined the main story of the tragic accident and recovery of Scarlett Johansson's character and her horse which I thought was very well done part of the film.
Sam Neill almost got lost in the shuffle until his final scenes when he admitted that the relationship between him and his wife was not as good now as it was in their earlier years. It was from the character's heart and mind and it was not a wasted moment.
It was nice to see Chris Cooper as Redford's brother. He always puts me on notice every time he appears in a movie. Also, Scarlett Johansson in her first major role.
Visually it was a beautiful-looking movie thanks to Oliver Stone's regular cinematographer Robert Richardson. I only saw the movie after buying Thomas Newman's musical score. His music cuts appear on many movie trailers in the past few years.
Bottom line, I have very mixed feelings. It did not deserve the epic-size scope for an intimate, simple storyline. In this movie, Redford the director is better than Redford the actor. Compared to his other movies, this ranks much lower than "Ordinary People", "Quiz Show" and even "The Milagro Beanfield War". As of now, I have not seen "A River Runs Through It" or "The Legend of Bagger Vance". At the same time, because of some very good performances, I did not feel it was a total waste of time. -
justimarie5 June 2005May contain spoilers! The Horse Whisperer is a favourite book which I have read many times, so I was excited about seeing the film. I read the reviews on IMDb first and was surprised to see many people saying that the love affair between Tom and Annie was irrelevant, but having now seen the film I can see what they mean. In the book their affair is beautiful and passionate, a true meeting of souls that they just couldn't help, and it was intrinsic to the plot and the healing of the whole family - if this seems unlikely read the book for yourself! The ending of the book (I won't spoil it for you here) has been called melodramatic by some but brings the whole thing to an end and a new beginning. However in the film their affair did appear irrelevant, a kind of add-on which did nothing for the story. I'm not usually a fan of Kristen Scott Thomas who is about as passionate as an iceberg (see The English Patient), but although I thought she was very good here the way the Annie's character grows and develops in the book was not shown in the film. The ending (of the film) was frankly bizarre - to just drive away without a glance seemed to show that Annie too thought the affair was not that important and betrayed the passion they felt for each other. Shame. Otherwise the film had a lot of good points - beautifully shot and acted (though Robert Redford would have been better for the part if he had been 20 years younger), with Grace especially being played very well indeed.
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InvisibleSwordsman19 August 2005As with every film directed by Robert Redford, "The Horse Whisperer" is beautifully acted, masterfully directed piece of cinematic poetry. Redford even manages to do what no other actor/director ever has or probably ever will - direct himself in a love story without becoming self-indulgent.
Along with the uniformly excellent cast, Redford's direction and Richard LaGravenese's script, special mention must be made of Robert Richardson's cinematography - some of the most breathtaking Hollywood has ever seen.
Redford is truly one of the giants of American cinema. -
princess_siobhain15 July 2005I was very much looking forward to seeing this movie - I have been interested in seeing it for a number of years before actually getting round to renting it.
Now I personally think that the book was superb and was aware that the movie would not compare to the book. After all not many do.
The movie is one that needs patience. It is very long and at times I was slightly antsy for it to move along. If you are looking for an action packed, plot twist a minute this is not for you. It is a very honest, touching story that makes you feel compassion for all of the characters during the movie.
I thought that Kristin Scott Thomas was excellent at the working mother who finds it hard to open up and deal with tragedy. She is very believable. Also Robert Redford is a very likable character, who you feel great pity for at the end of the movie. However there was not much development leading up to their relationship. The characters are so different and it is hard to believe that they would fall in love like that without some explanation of how such different characters fell for each other.
Scarlett was brilliant as the lost little girl and she played the part with the right amount of attitude and confusion that I imagine a young teenage girl would if they were involved in such a dreadful accident.
The ending was well done but not your typical climax - I was a little bit disappointed with it, but it did fit in with the pace of the film ( I was expecting a death at the end - this is what happens in the book!)
All in all worth seeing for the amazing settings, the great acting and actors and the unusual, gentle pace of the film. 7 1/2 out of ten -
jleighmurph20 June 2005Redford and the entire cast is excellent. The music and scenery is excellent. Saw this movie for the first time three years ago. I rented it due to the "horse" plot and it ended up being a very important movie in my life. I was involved in some very personal problems with my family at the time. What was important to me was that even with the terrible situation Grace was in, there was a way to heal. The most important line in the movie was when Tom Booker makes the comment: "Knowing it is the easy part, saying it out loud is what's difficult" Oh how true this is. A lot of good thoughts in this one. It has my highest recommendation.
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Beware the movie that touts itself to be a sweeping epic love story. It sets up expectations of something moving, grand, and thrilling. While The Horse Whisperer was at times moving, the only thing grand about it was the Montana scenery. The love story itself was quite banal at times, and on the whole the film was a disappointment.
The story starts one snowy, winter morning, when Grace MacLean (Scarlett Johansson) and her best friend, Judith (Kate Bosworth) decide to go horseback riding. The horses slip in the snow, and slide down a hillside, landing with their riders in the path of an oncoming truck. Judith and her horse are killed, Grace loses her leg below the knee, and her horse, Pilgrim, regresses to a savage state. Grace's parents, Annie (Kristin Scott Thomas) and Robert (Sam Neill) refuse to have Pilgrim put down. Once Grace comes home from the hospital, it is clear that she is retreating, and Annie decides that the only thing to do is to retrain Pilgrim in the hopes that Grace will ride him again. She learns of a "Horse Whisperer," by the name of Tom Booker, who is known for being able to tame the most difficult of horses. Despite his unwillingness to take on Pilgrim, Annie loads Pilgrim into a trailer, and heads cross country with Grace to see Tom Booker, who is understandably less than thrilled to see them. Annie is persistent to the point of peskiness, and eventually Booker relents. As the healing process begins for both Grace and Pilgrim, Annie finds herself drawn to Booker and to the simpler life in Montana, becoming less and less interested in returning to her job as an editor in New York. And then Robert arrives to escort his wife and daughter home...
It's a promising setup, but the execution is disappointing. The story telling is very heavy handed. The pacing is slow to the point of being dull, and there is little suspense due to those two factors. The viewer has more than enough time to figure out what is going to happen, and is given a shove rather than a nudge in that direction. The ending is surprising, but only because it makes absolutely no sense.
The acting is a mixed bag. Thomas generates all the warmth of a glacier, and leaves me wondering, yet again, why any director would cast her in any role that is supposed to be likable. Redford is surprisingly stiff, and understated enough that the viewer is left wondering exactly what attracts Annie to Tom Booker, especially given Sam Neill's excellent performance as her husband. Together, Redford and Thomas generate no chemistry at all. Dianne Wiest is wonderful as always as Booker's sister-in-law Diane. And Scarlett Johansson gives a beautiful performance of a girl too young to cope with the tragedy that has befallen her. Her eventual healing is one of the few truly satisfying moments of this film.
While this is a beautifully filmed, and ultimately enjoyable movie, it certainly didn't deserve the fuss made over it. Watch it. Enjoy it. Just don't expect too much from it. -
Max-11312 March 1999This was the worst movie I've seen in a long while. It was long, and unnecessarily so. The romance was unbelievable and gave me the creeps because there was no reason for it to develop in the plot except because two good looking people were near each other. The horse whisperer's moves seemed contrived, especially after seeing a documentary about a real horse whisperer. The scenery was pretty, but also contrived. In one shot two kids are positioned just right so that you can see a rainbow in between them. By the way, it hasn't been raining. In another scene a character just gawks at the scenery... no other content to this scene. And the plot holes. 1) HW claims in phone conversation that he is too busy with clinics and that he doesn't work one on one. Then he gives months of his seemingly uninterrupted "ranching life" now up to work with her horse. 2) The kids are out of school the whole time. One claims he is let out early to work the ranch and then we have a scene where it is supposed to be Spring.
That's mighty early. 3) There is no motivation for marital tensions, yet the husband seldom calls while his beloved daughter is away. Who is the one that is too busy with work? 4) Usually when there is a scene involving the recollection and retelling of a tragic event its purpose is to fill in the mysterious blanks that the viewer is wondering about. But when the little girl finally breaks down and tells her story, there are no surprises. We have seen already in detail what happens. The only purpose of the scene then is to aggrandize the HW and his wise ways. Well, if he is so wise, why does he make the mistake that juvenile mistake he makes in the movie?
All in all, I hated this film. The main characters came off as morally sleezy instead of romantic. The scenery was pretty, but not movie-making. The characters were questionably inauthentic, except for the HWs family. My recommendation is that you save your time. -
THE-BEACON-OF-MOVIES-RAFA17 March 2020They don't make films like this anymore and that's the true shame here. This is a long sweeping movie with character and heart. Redford shadows the leading role, quite like he did with Out of Africa with Streep. I was surprised how carefully this film was constructed and it disappoints me that films of this genre are falling away from cinema. Beautiful DOP work and Redford behind the camera are amazing to watch. Great cast and storyline that doesn't drag, considering the running time
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cherold18 August 2004Bitter, angry girl, iconicly laid back cowboy and city woman too wrapped up in her job interact with a few minor characters in this unoriginal but pleasant bit of puffery. Redford makes a good cowboy; I liked him as well in this as in Electric Cowboy, although even with the soft-focus lens the fact that he's a million years old makes him a dodgy romantic figure. The uptight business woman has never done much for me, especially after reading Susan Faludi's book Backlash in which she convincingly portrays these characters as veiled attacks on intelligent, independent women (the character arc of Annie follows pretty exactly the pattern of these characters, becoming warmer as she is moved away from her job).
The best thing in the movie is the part involving the horse. It is fascinating to see this poor injured beast go through a transformation, and to see the girl go through a similar one. Toss out the romance and focus this movie entirely on that (which wouldn't be hard, just cut an hour out and you could have that very movie) and you would have had something really special. As is, the movie is well done and I quite enjoyed it, but compared to Redford's best films, Ordinary People and the Milagro Beanfield War (Whisperer kind of aims for a middle ground between these two very different movies) it's really pretty dumb. -
Western5 November 2006From the first scenes I was ready to leave. Had I not been with a group I would have. I have had horses my entire life and have yet to find one that would "protect" me or anyone from a large truck. What a farce! The girl is stupid and should never have been allowed on a horse. Then her stupidity doubles as she attempts to reconnect with the horse SHE ruined! The mother is just as dumb. I have never been so disappointed in a film with Robert Redford. The characters in this film are just plain stupid. That's the only word I can find to describe them. From beginning to end the movie was awful! I almost asked for my money back. I found I had no sympathy for any of the characters and didn't care what happens to them. What ever bad happens to them they deserve. My only concern would be for the horses and I would have had the girl and her entire stupid family arrested for abuse and endangerment. I guess you can see I didn't find anything good about this film. I have never felt so strongly about just a movie!