HotToastyRag While I've always maintained that Robert Redford was born to play Jay Gatsby, his role in The Horse Whisperer is probably the best representation of his persona we all know and love. He's a rancher who loves nature and helps heal wounded horses. Is there a more suitable film for the voice of the National Resources Defense Council and the creator of Sundance? A fourteen-year-old Scarlett Johansson stars as a teen girl who, following a tragic horseback riding accident, loses all hope and light in her life. Her parents, Sam Neill and Kristin Scott Thomas, handle the aftermath differently, and her go-getter mom contacts the famous "horse whisperer" doctor to help heal Scarlett's horse. Robert Redford is the title character, and when he refuses to come to New York, Kristin packs up her daughter and the horse and drives to his ranch in Montana.Filmed in the natural beauty of Montana, the audience can't help but fall in love with the exquisite animals and scenery—and Robert Redford. He directs this movie as well as stars in it, and his slow, sensitive directorial touch is so perfect for this story. I can't imagine another director treating the script with such love. It's not a fast-paced horseback riding film; it's a filmed healing process. Anyone who's ever experienced a physical or emotional hurt knows the healing process takes time and effort, and even the smallest gesture, like turning off the stove to show you're really listening, can help.The acting in The Horse Whisperer is pretty fantastic. Anyone who sees Scarlett's incredible talent in this film will not understand why she's stuck making comic book movies now. While Kristin Scott Thomas is very convincing as a Type-A, controlling, cold career woman, she is by far my worst part of the movie. She's unlikable, from beginning to end. One could argue that her character is supposed to be unlikable, but I disagree. Had Emma Thompson been cast in the role, she would have been controlling and driven, but she also would have had an underlying warmth. You would have sensed that even though she's doing or saying something wrong, she has good intentions. Kristin's entire aura is repellant, and because of this casting error, part of the plot is entirely unbelievable.There are many great reasons to watch The Horse Whisperer, and one last compliment I'll bestow is to Thomas Newman's beautiful, memorable score. The most important element to a score is that the audience really feels what's going on in the movie when they listen to the music. When you hear Thomas Newman's music, you feel the injured horse slowly healing and learning to trust again.

851222 Greetings from Lithuania."The Horse Whisperer" (1998) is a lovely, amazingly looking, superbly acted, paced directed and written romance / and a bit ("fantasy romance") drama. The story itself, yes, predictable, but never dull or boring. I loved the romance aspect of the movie, i loved the whole "Horse Whisperer" thing. I love country music, west, so this movie is for me. It has an amazing soundtrack - "A Soft Place To Fall" - and it plays in a movie itself amazingly - stunningly good sequence. Overall, "The Horse Whisperer" is a bit predictable romance drama, but it is an amazing "guilty pleasure" movie. Now i do not thing the real country life is as romantic as it was shown in this movie, but hey - this IS a movie, and an amazing one.

teak-789-131695 This is the worse movie ever made. A contrived and convoluted story line with romance chocolate pudding with peanuts and corn written all over it. The girl almost gets the horse killed. They go to the horse whisperer who starts having an affair with the mother, who is a real malcontent bitch. The Husband conveniently seems like a real dork for plot convenience. The affair is quite a shameless one filled with excuses. The Horse whisperer lets the girl off the hook absolving her of responsibility for getting the horse hurt. Nothing mystical about this movie. A romance trash novel put to screen. It is enough make a rational person go into projectile vomiting.

leothemack Maybe it's just me being sentimental about another film accompanied by a Thomas Newman soundtrack, but I thought this motion picture was outstanding. The aforementioned score by the great Tom Newman was the perfect accompaniment for this chilling, yet heartwarming tale; just one of the 11 injustices by the academy. I'm not familiar with most of Redford's work, and I was yet to be convinced by his acting; however, he played the role of Tom so fantastically, that's it's just one of those roles you know the actor was born to play. A couple of drawbacks were that I felt Scarlett Johansson's acting at times a little dry, albeit she was only 13 at the time.Cinematoraphy was excellent, most notably the scenes of rural Montana, as well as the opening and final scenes of Pilgrim (the horse) prancing around - unrelated to the plot.All in all, I would definitely recommend a watch. Solid 8/10.