Date: Fri 31-Jul-1998

Publication: Bee

Author: DONNAM

Quick Words:

Redford-Horse-Whisperer-Scott

Full Text:

(rev "The Horse Whisperer" for Now Playing)

Now Playing--

Redford's Direction Emits Strong Performances From Entire Cast

By Trey Paul Alexander III

Sometimes less is more. Sometimes less is just less. You'll have to decide

which applies to The Horse Whisperer , now playing at Newtown's Edmond Town

Hall theatre. Personally, I think the film, directed by Robert Redford and

photographed lovingly on location in Montana, is a victory for the

less-is-more theory of filmmaking, though one could make a good argument that

any film running over two and a half hours ( The Horse Whisperer clocks in at

164 minutes) can stake no claim in the territory of minimalism.

Redford most definitely takes his time to tell this tale of a 14-year-old girl

and her pony. The movie opens on a tranquil scene that turns turbulent, as

Grace MacLean (Scarlett Johanssen), who has scurried out in the early morning

hours to take a ride on Pilgrim, her prize-winning horse, gets into a horrific

riding accident involving her best friend. The incident marks both Grace and

her horse with lasting physical and emotional scars, and leaves Grace's

parents feeling powerless.

Sensing their familial bonds unraveling, Annie (Kristin Scott Thomas), a New

York City magazine editor and Grace's take-charge mother, decides to pack up

her daughter, with Pilgrim in tow, and travel across the country to Montana.

Her objective is to persuade Tom Booker (Redford), a documented "horse

whisperer" -- or as he calls himself, a trainer "who helps horses with people

problems" -- to quiet the troubled soul of Pilgrim, who has been so severely

spooked by the earlier tragedy that he now sports a wild streak that led many

equine experts to advise Annie to put him to sleep.

As Tom goes to work on Pilgrim, the film settles into a groove of comparing

Annie's rushed, big-city life with the more paced existence of the Booker

clan, which surrounds Tom with extended family galore and an abiding sense of

contentment. There is a peace within these people Annie can hardly fathom, and

she finds that as Tom strives to bring Pilgrim and Grace back together, he is

also effectively reconnecting the frayed ends of the family's severed

connections.

The Horse Whisperer , which is based on a best-selling novel by Nicholas

Evans, boasts a script by talented screenwriters Eric ( Forrest Gump ) Roth

and Richard ( T he Fisher King ) LaGravenese. Though the book, which this

moviegoer has not read, reportedly features plenty of pulpy moments, including

a steamy romance and a soapy ending, the movie is fairly restrained as it

proceeds to depict the burgeoning relationship between Tom and the visiting

MacLeans.

Having Scott Thomas in the featured role may instantly bring to mind not only

her Oscar-nominated performance in The English Patient , but her role there as

a wife seeking gratification outside her marriage. Could Annie, over two

thousand miles away from her husband (Sam Neill), be falling for the

charismatic cowboy? Is there a Bridges of Madison County thing waiting to

happen?

Redford himself answered that question while doing publicity for the film as

he was prodded about the issue. "There are love scenes... [but] they are just

subtle, reconfigured. It became more about making the right choice against all

impulses, against all desire; to make that higher choice and face the

sacrifice that would come with it. Subtlety is not a virtue of our culture,

but it appeals to me and always has." And thus, Redford's intriguing

sensibilities, not those of the novel, are strewn throughout this motion

picture.

The Horse Whisperer is rated PG-13 for occasional profanity and the intense

accident scene. Redford, as actor, shows he's still a performer of much charm,

and as director is the "actor whisperer," coaxing fine performances from Scott

Thomas, newcomer Johanssen, and the rest of the fine cast.