Review of Secretariat (2010) by Khalleron — 11 Oct 2010

Very nice horse movie - incredible how the director was able to build excitement even though we already knew the outcome of the races. Diane Lane's performance is close to brilliant as the smart, tough Ms. Chenery.

A few quibbles, of course. The Belmont portion should have focused more on the race - it's probably the single most exciting event in sports history and I thought all the cutaways to the stands dispelled some of the excitement. Also, the absence of Riva Ridge was notable, and some geographical blunders (Ms. Chenery apparently has the ability to teleport from her farm in Virginia to the **** farm in Kentucky).

But the quibbles are fairly minor. In its favor, I was surprised that the film actually did show the price Penny Chenery paid in the distance from her family. In real life, choices have costs, and although the movie did not completely explore that, the fact that it spent so much time on it was quite courageous.

For anyone who enjoys a good horse movie, I highly recommend it. It's better than 'Seabiscuit', IMHO, although perhaps not as good cinematically as 'The Black Stallion', but it's better in characterization than that film.