Heartwarming

Rating: 9/10 (24 July 2004)

I would never have thought about watching this film in a million years... I'm not interested in horses, horse racing or even American history (although the fashion of the period is one of my favourites). However, I've been quite impressed with Tobey Maguire in the Spiderman movies and thought perhaps that it would be worth a look.
Overall I was pleasantly surprised at how well it works and how beautiful it looks. It does take a while to get going but when it does, it is a wonderful story of friendship, loyalty and personal triumph. Okay, it does play hard and fast with the facts but nobody expects any "less" from Hollywood. At the end of the day, I think it works for me is because it isn't a film about a horse but about people. The horse is the catalyst, the centrepoint from which the events transpire. There is something almost Capraesque about it.
Seabiscuit is an example of classy Hollywood film-making. I love the way Gary Ross explains by implication and believes in the intelligence of his audience to follow the intimate, emotional moments without expending words or time. There are these wonderful scenes where the main characters are sitting down to dinner and so much is said that is not spoken. There are probably so many wonderful moments but one of my favourite is when Red goes to Howard and asks to borrow money because in reality he doesn't know where he stands after messing up his first big break. This and other scenes like this are what makes this movie one of my favourites.