The Horse Whisperer

Novelist Nicholas Evans smashed a homer out of the park with this baby and sadly he tried to capture the proverbial loaded bat in a bottle with a couple of similar follow ups with less than desirable results. We'll forgive him for this because THE HORSE WHISPERER is just that damn good and it's a mighty odd thing when a film maker comes along and manages to make a better movie than the book itself. Robert Redford does just that. I had the pleasure (?!?!?!?!) of seeing this at one of the MOVIES FOR MOMS afternoons and let me tell you if I were to visit the WAILING WALL itself I don't think I'd hear as much crying.....so yes..let's get this out of the way...it is a chick flick with a capital C.....and yet it is so much more than this. It is a film about healing and to this day I'm not sure if Evans was telling the story for it's own sake or if he was using the relationship between horse and whisperer as a metaphor of the interactions between divorcing couples. It doesn't really matter....the film is about healing plain and simple. The fact Redford was able to direct and star here is a testament to his skill and the performance a young Scarlett Johansson turns in is truly breath-taking. Kristin Scott Thomas does some fine work and has one brilliant scene in particular with Dianne Wiest. Chris Cooper and Sam Neill are along for the ride as is Kate Bosworth all be it too briefly....and yes that is country music star Allison Moorer singing in the barn dance sequence. SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER......Also of note is the early scene where the horse gets hit by the transport truck. I've seen a hell of a lot of horror films in my years and I've never seen anything as disturbing as this one. That aside, this is one hell of a serious film and it only goes on to cement Robert Redford as one of the greatest talents of our time.