Seabiscuit is a beautiful, slow film that takes it’s time
addressing all of the issues that it chooses to present. It, clearly,
is the best mainstream movie out right now, and is well deserving of
such a title. I hate to state the obvious, but in a summer of
comic-book movies and ego-inflated sequels, it’s nice to see a flick
like Seabiscuit get released. Featuring three tremendous
actors, all executing a screenplay that was brilliantly adapted from
an acclaimed novel, it will be the first Hollywood-movie that will be
remembered, come Oscar time.
Many, many years ago, sea biscuits were food
rations for sailors in the Navy. They were as hard as rock and soiled
in salt; most would call them painful to eat. In this movie,
Seabiscuit is a horse, who, originally, came across as anything but
desirable to everyone he came in contact with. A short, stumpy, rigid,
little fellow, Seabiscuit was a worthless reject of a racehorse. In
fact, for most of the first three years of his life, he was used to
purposely lose practice races, with racehorses in training, to build
up their confidence and self-esteem. Seabiscuit’s life as a horse was
headed nowhere, until he found an ambitious trio, who were willing to
take a chance on him.
His trainer would be Tom Smith (Chris
Cooper), a believer in the wills of all horses. Smith loved the
animals, and never ever believed that a single one of them was
worthless.
The finder and sponsor of Seabiscuit was
Charles Howard (Jeff Bridges), a millionaire, who struck it rich
selling cars, before the Great Depression, the era in which this movie
takes place. Just after losing his son, and divorcing his wife, Howard
was in a tough stage of his life. He was desperate to find some form
of joy, anywhere he could.
Seabiscuit’s jockey was to be Red Pollard (Tobey
Maguire). Pollard was much like Seabiscuit, and was ignored for most
of his life. He was much too big to be a jockey, and was even blind in
one eye, but like the horse he rode, he was very determined. In his
employer Charles’s mind, this was enough.
Seabiscuit chronicles the
determination of these three characters, and the horse that they
dedicated themselves to. Whether this determination be found in love,
work, or well-being, it is always profoundly effective on the
audience. Seabiscuit is that rare picture that will impress
filmmakers as much as it will audiences. When viewing it, I was most
reminded of last summer’s Road to Perdition, another big movie,
with all of the moving qualities of a tiny, little piece from the
art-house circuit.
The performances are, undoubtedly, what hold
the film together. While at first, the acting might not strike us as
particularly great, once the main characters become more
developed, we are able to admire the work of all of the performers,
immensely. Bridges is solid, capturing much emotion in his part, as
well as bringing forth hints of humor. Cooper is subtle, and always
shows the audience the essence and vitality of all of the moments, in
which he appears onscreen. As good as those two are, though,
Seabiscuit is truly Maguire’s movie. Taking off his Spider-Man
costume, and losing a few superhero-like abilities, he finally returns
to familiar territory. After delivering a remarkable performance in
The Cider House Rules a few years ago, Maguire proves that he
still has the ability to act in more serious movies. Watching
Seabiscuit, I came the closest I ever have to actually getting
emotional over a movie. Even though it’s fairly predictable, Maguire
and his co-stars are always there to make every single would-be,
average scene, brilliant. Those that already were ingenious, often
turn masterful because of the leading three.
William H. Macy’s performance as a radio
broadcaster, known as Tick Tock McGlaughlin, is also worth mentioning.
The actions and expressions his character makes are always very funny,
and along with a few of Bridge’s lines, provide the prefect comedic
relief for Seabiscuit. The onscreen dynamics of this film are
simply amazing; when watching, every single audience member will be,
undeniably, touched.
The look of Seabiscuit is astounding,
too. When as much information and emotion is being thrown out at
moviegoers, as there is in this movie, a pleasing appearance is always
crucial. Not to mention, it runs a whopping two hours and twenty
minutes, and in order to keep viewers captive for that long, having
good looks is a must for a film. The sets, costumes, and
cinematography in Seabiscuit all combine together, to create a
beautiful cover, for a very (and surprisingly) deep movie. The colors
and tones blend, and paint an effectively wondrous portrait of a
motion picture.
Sure to be remembered in the Oscar-race, and
the first perfect mainstream movie of the year, Seabiscuit
stands out amongst the pack. With a wonderful look and feel,
spectacular performances, and vivid writing—it is so stupendous, many
will find that its goodness is hard to put into words (but I think I
have managed somewhat efficiently). If you’re foolishly trying to
decide whether to see Legally Blonde 2 or LXG, do
yourself a favor, and stop. If you go and see Seabiscuit, you
will, without a doubt, want to see it over and over, again and again.
-Danny, Bucket
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