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Actors: Jeff Bridges, Tobey Maguire, Chris Cooper, William H. Macy
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| Review Summary and Plot Commentary about Seabiscuit |
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Charles Howard starts to dabble in horse racing and meets the beautiful Marcela Zabala, who shares his love for horses. It is not long before he acquires his own farm and thus begins the journey of Seabiscuit.
Red Pollard did odd jobs and was an unsuccessful jockey till he was picked up by Charles Howard to tame the "disgruntled" Seabiscuit. At the same time Howard also accidentally came across the mysterious horse-trainer Tom Smith and formed the team which would conquer almost all race courses in California and finally fight a head-on duel with the much vaunted - and much bigger - War Admiral.
Seabiscuit is a movie about the underdog and how he fights back against all odds - in a way, reflecting the times. This "little" racehorse raised the spirit of an entire generation - laid low by depression - and made them beleive that somewhere round the corner, there was a "second chance".
--Biswa, Resident Scholar
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Red Pollard has always dreamed of being a jockey. The only problem is that he's too big to be able to ride a horse. Meanwhile, the horse whisperer, Tim Smith, has just saved a horse named Seabiscuit. Red is then in his first real horse race, thanks to a millionaire called Charles Howard. After a lot of races, Seabiscuit finally wins one with everyone's shock. He is soon winning race after race and being named an American hero. Now, he must face the all-time champion, War Admiral. This is another glorious film from Gary Ross, which features an all-star cast.
--Estefan Ellison, Resident Scholar
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Charles Howard (Jeff Bridges) had a plan for success - open a bicycle shop in a nice town and watch the money come rolling in. Unfortunately, Charles didn't do so well at selling bikes, but he found that he had a gift for selling the new automobiles. Before long, he was a very wealthy man, even after the stock market crashed, plunging most people into poverty during the Great Depression. Charles kept selling cars and doting on his only child, a son that was his whole world. When his son died in a freak car accident, Charles locked up all of his cars, endured a messy divorce, and headed down to Mexico, where he met a young woman who made him start living again. She convinced him that horses were still needed and loved in society and before Charles knew it, he was in the horse racing business with a small horse that had never won a race before...Seabiscuit.
Red Pollard (Tobey Maguire) grew up with a natural affinity for horses and a love for the literature that his father taught. His was a tight-knit, loving family that was torn apart during the Great Depression. When Red's father discovered that his son could make money with horses, he gave him up to a wealthy man so that he could have a chance at a decent life. Red never saw his family again. As he grew older, Red struggled to keep his weight down so that he could jockey, but after a series of failures, he got involved in boxing and drinking, leaving him down on his luck and penniless in Mexico, where a friend introduced him to Charles...
Tom Smith (Chris Cooper) was a master horseman who excelled at training any and every horse that ever crossed his path, but his ways of horse training were viewed as obsolete and too time consuming. He was homeless, living off the land in Mexico, when someone recommended him to Charles and Charles hired him. Now all of the major players were in place and they were trying to do the impossible - get a horse that was too small, who had been bred for defeat, who was ridden by a jockey that was too big who couldn't see to beat one of the most famous racehorses of all time...
I thoroughly enjoyed this film and felt that it was very inspirational. It is true that the director stayed a little too focused on portraying the story in the way that Hilldebrand's book told it, but it was very well done nonetheless. The pacing is a little bit off as the director takes the time to fill in background information about the Great Depression and each of the major characters, but that also made every victory all the more poignant and meaningful (it is also a very tricky way of getting people who claim that they hate history to learn something while watching a movie!). The cinematography was gorgeous, the score was lush and beautiful, the characters were very ably cast and the story is extremely inspiring. If you are looking for a lovely drama that has a good moral and is well made, look no further than Seabiscuit.
--Debbie, Resident Scholar
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A jockey, a businessman, and a horse trainer adopt a horse. The horse is named Seabiscuit and he has been abandoned, because he is lazy. They train him to race and soon he is racing and on a winning streak. However, the jockey and the horse get injured, but that is not enough to stop the team, as they learn to never give up.
--Jack Bauer, Resident Scholar
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Charles Howard (Bridges), a San Francisco car magnate in the early twentieth century, puts the death of his son and collapse of his first marriage behind him with a new woman and a new love: horse racing. With the help of taciturn horse trainer Tom Smith (Cooper), Howard locates an unappreciated and underutilized horse named Seabiscuit, and finds a young jockey named Red Pollard (Maguire) to ride him. Horse and rider become huge public favorites in a country recovering from the Depression, and everyone demands a matchup with the Triple Crown champion from the East, War Admiral. But Pollard's injuries force another rider, his friendly rival George Woolf (Stevens), to take the reins of the plucky horse who loves to sleep and eat, but has the heart to beat almost any other animal on the track. This largely true 2003 film is based on Laura Hillenbrand's runaway 2001 bestseller, features incidental documentary-like narrative breaks with historian David McCullough, has especially fine acting by Bridges and Cooper, and is a stately, rich tale that perhaps a little too obviously seeks to win some Oscars.
--David Loftus, Resident Scholar
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“Seabiscuit,” is a Depression-era story about successful automobile pioneer Charles Howard (Bridges), a small horse nobody wanted, and a savvy trainer Tom Smith (Cooper) who demonstrate the American formula that anything is possible. Especially since, “you don't throw a life away just because it's banged up a little.” Following the death of Howard's only son, the millionaire takes in abandoned Red Pollard (Maguire), a spunky but unsuccessful lad who races horses. When Howard acquires the ungainly Seabiscuit, with Smith training and Red riding, the horse gradually begins to win races and the nation's admiration. Eventually, Richard challenges Triple Crown winner War Admiral to an East-West match race. But after an accident, both Seabiscuit and Red have legs that need healing. But that setback further bonds the gritty jockey who was “too tall to race," with a small “lazy” horse that “ate too much.” As Seabiscuit recovers, Red meticulously coaches a replacement jockey from a hospital bed.
--Angry Jim Magin, Resident Scholar
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| Analysis of Seabiscuit |
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Ratings are on a 1-10 scale (Low to High)
Plot
Time/era of movie:
- 1930's-1950's
- 1900-1920's
Animal Story
Yes
Kind of animal:
- horse
Kind of sports story:
- horse racing
Sports story?
Yes
Main Character
Identity:
- Male
Profession/status:
- business executive
Age:
- 40's-50's
Is this an ordinary person caught up in events?
Yes
Hair color?
- blonde
Hair type
- (man) short/standard straight
Body type
- (man) average
Events of movie makes character more...
- happy
Ethnicity/Nationality
- White (American)
How sensitive is this character?
- sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor?
- Strong but gentle sense of humor
Intelligence
- Average intelligence
Physique
- average physique
Secondary Main Character
Identity:
- Male
Hair color
- white/grey
Hair style
- (man) short/standard straight
Body type
- (man) average build
How much in movie?
- 80%
Ethnicity/Nationality
- White (American)
Main Adversary
Identity:
- Male
Profession/status:
- business executive
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in:
- 20%
Body type
- (man) fat
Setting
United States
Yes
The US:
- California
Misc setting
- moving train
- sports arena
Style
Accounts of torture and death?
- generic/vague references to death/punishment
Movie makes you feel...
- very happy
Sex/nudity in movie?
Yes
What kind of sex:
- vague references only
Any profanity?
- Occasional swearing
If soundtrack VERY NOTICEABLE...
- Orchestra/classical
Is this movie based on a
- book
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Note: the views expressed here are only those of the reviewer(s). | |
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