The Most Overrated "Film" of the Year

Rating: 6/10 (2 August 2003)

When watching "Seabiscuit" one has to ask, "Is this a movie or a documentary?" Writer/Director Gary Ross painfully blends photos from the past and modern day imagery to create the jumbled mess which is Seabiscuit. This problem becomes obvious right from the beginning with the films opening narration. At first, the narrator is somewhat interesting as he offers a background to the story. However, as the narration becomes more and more used, its presence becomes more and more annoying. Especially, as it draws emotion from other scenes because it interrupts the flow of the movie. Eventually it became laughable. Yes, I know the film takes place during the Depression, but this fact does not need to be reiterated throughout the film by a narrator. I got the point after the first five minutes. The photos used throughout the film also become annoying. The film builds up to the big race, but when it starts it breaks away to photos of people listening to the radio. This was completely unnecessary. The filmmakers didn't need to convince us that the public cared about Seabiscuit because we already know they did. The film tries to show us how America was brought together over this horse, but it does a poor job at it. The film is paced very bad. Seabiscuit doesn't come into the picture for 45 minutes or so causing the movie to become very boring. The film tried to take too many paths, making it unfocused and messy. The movie is overly long and has trouble finding an ending. The only plus to the film is the horse races. Most of these were filmed very well and allowed for some emotion. The acting was above average, but got lost in the problems of the film. Overall, "Seabiscuit" is not an American classic by any means. Just because your heart pounds a little during the big races cannot save the fact that the film fails in other categories. "Seabiscuit" is not an 8/10, but more like a 5 or 6/10.