It's Worth a Shot!

Rating: 8/10 (30 December 2003)

Seabiscuit is one of those movies where I know it's a good, high-quality film, but I just can't really get into it. It is a long movie, but I've enjoyed long movies before as long as they remain interesting throughout the whole film.
I think my complaint, and somewhat of a compliment, is that the film spends a lot of time on character building. The first hour seemed to devote itself to slowly introducing the characters and the setting of the Depression. It's a rich introduction and makes you appreciate the characters, but man, it kind of drags. I kept wondering, "Is this Tobey Maguire's character," and "Where is Seabiscuit?" The last stage of the movie also seemed to drag. I know they needed to finish the complete story of Seabiscuit, but I was ready to end the movie an hour ago!
Nevertheless, those are my only complaints. The huge strength of the movie lies with the flawless acting. Everybody committed something to the film and they all did it perfectly. My particular favorite character was played by Chris Cooper. His character is very unique, kind of odd, but most importantly, very interesting. He plays sort of a horse whisperer who sees something in Seabiscuit no one has ever seen. He did a most excellent job and should probably get another Oscar, even though it seems unlikely that the Academy would want to give consecutive Oscars to anyone nowadays. Darn those Oscar politics!
So all in all, this is a very good film. Others may appreciate the story more than I did, particularly those interested in horses or American history. I can see why the actors are so passionate about this movie. Give this horse a chance and you may feel the same way, or you may end up bored. But hey, this movie is worth that shot!
My IMDb Rating: 8/10. My Yahoo! Grade: B+ (Memorable)