Young Black Stallion

Rating:
Summary: A Classic
Review: I am a big time horse lover and a fan of Walter Farely's Black Stallion series of books. I also loved the movie The Black Stallion as a child. I used to beg and bed my mom for horse just like The Black. Of course she said that we already had enough horses... but I would reply "But we don't have The Black". And what child who read the books and watched the movie didn't want their own Black Stallion? Who didn't want to be in young Alex's place, riding that great horse?

Anyhow on to The Young Black Stallion

It came out on DVD today and I had to rent it. And it is a great movie, ever bit as good at the first The Black Stallion. I can not find anything that I didn't like about the movie. I especially loved the bonus feature at the begining with Gina and The Black's Sire.

I have to say, that unless you are a avid horse lover and a fan of artistic type of movies, this is not the movie for you. But if you loved The Black Stallion you will love this one.


Rating:
Summary: I loved this movie!
Review: I saw it on the IMAX and was completely thrilled. [Spoiler Warning] While parts of it aren't completely realistic. (A foal outruns adult Arabians.) This was a great movie. I cannot wait to buy it on DVD! I would definitely buy this movie. I'm not the biggest Arabian fan, (go Morgans!) but I still loved it.

Rating:
Summary: A Must for Your Walter Farley Herd
Review: I was completely entranced with "The Black Stallion", and when the story was continued, I became an avid fan of Walter Farley. Back then I simply borrowed the books from the library, as we could not find them at a reasonable cost. Then along came scholatic's in-school programs, and I actually owned what was being put out in print.
As a young country girl with a Welsh pony I roamed the vineyards and nearby Lake Erie shoreline, pretending to be saved by Molly, as Alex was by The Black. Mr Farley gave new realms to my imagination; when I was not working or at school, I was either ahorse or with my nose in a book about horses!
I trained Molly as Alex trained The Black, only on a far tamer scale. If I had known then that a *girl* could do these things, my imagination would have soared even more than it already was!
I am older now, but still love the books, and this movie brings even more life to The Black, enriches his history, and brings this grandmother back to her horse days.
This was quite well done, and a tribute to Mr Walter Farley, as well as his son.
None of our children had the passion for horses I did, perhaps our grandchildren may, but until then, it is great movies like this that show the rest of my family my young imagination, and the young girl I am inside.
Well done. Very well done!


Rating:
Summary: #1 FAN OF THE YOUNG BLACK STALLION
Review: I went to go see this movie with my friend and we loved it. The story was great and so was the background music. I love all horse movies, but this has to be one of the best I've ever seen. It starts ou when the Black Stallion (Sheton) is a wild foal living with his mother. Then he gets captured by a girl and she raises him and enters him in a race of Arabians (Arabian is the name of the breed Sheton is). You'll have to watch it to figure out everything that happens in between and inthe end. But if you love horses and action, this is the perfect movie for you.
And if you want to see other movies, there's Seabiscuit, The Black Stallion,Back Beauty, and plenty more.
This is a calmin yet excitble movie full of thrills and some danger, and the bond between people and horses.

Rating:
Summary: Great! Really 3 1\2 stars.
Review: Maybe it's somewhere in the contract: "Before you can film a Black Stallion movie, you must first hire a child actor who cannot act." Kelly Reno, who starred in 1979's The Black Stallion (and its sequel a couple of years later), could just barely outperform a cigar store Indian. Biana Tamimi, who plays the Black Stallion's first owner in this 2003 prequel, is a notch or two above Reno and the carved Indian... but not much. Still, she is a likeable enough little girl and she is an expert rider so I'll lay off on the criticism.

It would be easy to sit back and criticize the whole movie - it is somewhat boring - but that would be a pot-shot. Young Black Stallion was originally made to be seen on the IMAX screen and is really meant to be a visual treat, with a little story to go along. On the immense IMAX screen, close ups of actors don't work like they normally do and traditional editing and M-TV style cuts would only result in massive migraines. That is why the format has heretofore only been used for documentary-style films - at just about an hour long, Young Black Stallion is the first dramatic feature made specifically for the giant screen. Playing in DVD format on our small TV screens it feels more like a stage play, where everything is seen all at once.

With animal-movie guru Simon Wincer directing - Wincer has brought us Phar Lap, Free Willy, and Murder She Purred to name just a few - the equine stars are filmed to gleaming perfection. Horse lovers, especially fans of the purebred desert Arabian, will swoon. Aficionados of natural landscapes, especially those interested in seeing the Namibian desert in all its vast glory, will be breathless. People who like a rousing horse race and "nice story" will probably be satisfied enough with Young Black Stallion.

The original producer of the first two Black Stallion movies has returned for this version. It does have some of the look and feel of the first two films, making it a welcome addition for diehard fans of The Black... but for fans of the complex and emotional tales that author Walter Farley wove, this prequel lacks a lot. It's not a bad movie by any means; it's just not a great one.

The DVD allows the viewer several choices. To augment the short running time of the film an all-new 15 minute prequel, "The Sire" is an option. You can also choose between widescreen and fullscreen - but why would anyone in their right mind would choose to watch a grandly visual film like this in fullscreen?

There are several featurettes - one about how Biana Tamimi was cast chiefly for her riding skills; one about how the star horses were found and how they were trained; and a couple more about the location and the filming. I found the explorations of how filming for IMAX differs so dramatically from traditional filming to be the most interesting. It's quite an undertaking and is certainly a challenging process. For the kiddies, there's a Big Black Horse Read-Along.

Staci Layne Wilson
Author of Staci's Guide to Animal Movies


Rating:
Summary: Phooey!
Review: My kids were bored to death during this movie. The scenery was pretty and the horses were beautiful to watch but...First off, the girl playing the star sounded like she was from New Jersey, not Arabia. Then, we couldn't follow the storyline very well--it just didn't make sense. So, I would not rate this movie very highly at all. It might be palatable to a 5-year-old.

Rating:
Summary: Haven't seen it but want to
Review: OMG I wouldn't put it against them if they made every single Black Stallion Book (Including the Island Stallion) into a movie. I wil post another when I see it. Which'll be soon.

Rating:
Summary: Nice pictures, no plot nor story
Review: The movie is much too short to be a real movie, the DVD shows 48 Minutes, that is including the end credits.

The pictures and some shots are very beautiful. Beautiful horses, beautiful landscapes. Horse lovers should love this.
But besides that the movie has no real content, so don't look for a real storyline, plot or any depth or logic.

Rating:
Summary: Beautifully filmed, well acted and casted...
Review: We open with Neera, a young S. African girl, getting lost from her party in a raid. She's thrown from her camel and sifted down into the dunes. When she awakens, afraid and alone, a young black Arab stallion helps her to find water. Eventually, the two pair up.

When 'Black' the name the girl's given her horse at first, gets Neera back home, he runs away. Neera is left to explain the stallion to her grandfather, who believes the horse was a dream the desert gave her. Their once-rich family is now poor. The stables of Arabians they had have all been sold off for food, save for one favored mare, "Gina" who the grandfather returned to the desert from whence she came.

A year later, the stallion returns to Neera. They partner up again for a winner-take-all-high stakes race that will regain their family's fortune.

I wish the story was longer. It's not as complete as the Farley novel and I can't help but feel that more footage was needed to properly tell the story. Other than that, a beautiful film and one to keep for all who love horses and nature.