good, almost great.

Rating: 7/10 (16 August 2003)

Seabiscuit is the kind of movie producers love. It will make the more emotional in the audience cry, and even well before it comes out, it is said to be the first Oscar contender of the year. This IS a true story, but it is packaged in such a way that audience members are supposed to clutch their tissues to their chests and shake their heads because they have been so touched. That being said, this movie succeeds spectacularly at manipulating an audience. I came in with a very cynical attitude, but i must say even I got the chills when Seabiscuit beat War Admiral. Where this movie fails is after they have got the audiences hearts beating with exciting race scenes. They let it drag to much and soon after the races your heartbeat has settled and then you are struck with another exciting race. By the final race, I was just too tired to care anymore. Tobey Maguire was his usual self in this part, which is not that bad. I was pleasantly surprised with Elizabeth Banks in the lead female role. She had a quiet awe about her through the whole film which was very effective. Chris Cooper and William H. Macy were their usual flawless selves in parts written for them. I could have done without the voice-overs about the Depression, i thought they were not tied together with the rest of the film well enough to stay relevant. This was a good movie with a few minor flaws that, if corrected, could have made it great. 7/10