Definitely a (WAR) "ADMIRAL"-ble film!

Rating: Null/10 (29 August 2003)

I read the book last year. I didn't think I would like a book about "horse racing." But I did! In fact, I LOVED it! It's more about the triumph of the spirit than just horse racing.
I was worried that they would screw it up when I heard they were making it into a movie. But when I heard Tobey McGuire was to star, I relaxed. And when I also heard that Jeff Bridges was in it, my cup indeed runneth over!
I thought they could have tightened up the first hour. I was anxious for the main characters to meet, so I was impatient. For having read the book, I knew what was coming.
And then at the end, they have two major events coming right on top of one another. They could have tightened up the beginning, and focused on the TWO major accidents that Tom Pollard suffered. The movie compressed them into one, for time's sake. And the real life love story between Pollard and his nurse is never even mentioned.
BUT these are only observations, not criticisms. I thought the movie worked better in individual scenes, than as an overall whole.
In an outstanding cast, Chris Cooper stands out, with his mostly wordless performance. The scene where he encounters barbed wire, knowing that his way of life will soon be gone forever, is magnificent. If he doesn't win an Academy Award as Best Supporting Actor, then there truly is no justice in this world.
And what can you say about a contemporary film where the audience APPLAUDED at the end? That usually happens only at repertory theatres!
*********SPOILER**********
I'm surprised that they didn't use Pollard's line, when Seabiscuit eventually beat War Admiral: "Woolf made a 'rear Admiral' out of War Admiral."