"Secretariat": A Movie Review (Video)

When I heard that Diane Lane was starring in the new Disney movie, Secretariat, about the 1973 Triple Crown winner, I perked up.

First, because I love horses, second, because I like Diane Lane and third, because I remember the fever pitch excitement that surrounded the beautiful beast affectionately known as "Big Red" in the 1970s. It just had to be good.

Secretariat has been called the greatest horse in the history of thoroughbred track racing and for good reason. He set records in the Kentucky Derby, the Preakness and the Belmont Stakes during his years on the racing circuit, none of which have been challenged to date. After he was retired, he sired over 600 foals, with over 50 of them becoming champions themselves.

At 16.2 hands, Secretariat was a "big boy" as they say and a fearless competitor. In both the Kentucky Derby and the Belmont Stakes, Secretariat ran so fast, that with each passing quarter of a mile, his speed increased. It was as if the measly 1.5 mile track was just a warm-up for him.

(See the Kentucky Derby race here , the Preakness Here and the Belmont Stakes race here)

After his death, in 1980, an autopsy revealed that Secretariat's heart was twice the size of a normal horse, weighing an astonishing 22 pounds. No wonder the boy could fly. No other horse stood a chance against him. It also likely explains the indomitable spirit he had to win.

The movie is based loosely on the book Secretariat: The Making of a Champion by William Nack and as most Disney movies go is clean, well made and a bit sappy at times. Diane Lane plays Secretariat's owner, Penny Chenery Tweedy, who after the death of her mother and the failing health of her father, steps into the family business of thoroughbred horse breeding and racing to literally, "save the family farm."

Some conservatives have attacked the film, saying that, the role of Penny Chenery Tweedy was really more about peddling a feminist agenda, than horse racing. But, if you lived during that time, then you would know that the story of Secretariat couldn't be told, nor would it be as inspiring, without including the reality that before Penny Chenery Tweedy, there were no women involved in the business of owning and racing thoroughbreds. And most certainly, not horses like Secretariat. Outside of that, I would suggest that maybe some people are simply blinded by their agenda.

The larger, over-arch of the story is the classic underdog tale. It is the story of a woman who had a dream and a vision. A woman who believed in a little red colt that came into this world on the losing side of a coin toss. A woman who stepped boldly into a man's world and above all else, it's the story of Secretariat, the greatest thoroughbred racing horse in the history of the sport.

While Diane Lane carries the film as the lead character, the supporting cast rounds out the film with performances by Scott Glenn, as Penny Chenery's father, Fred Thompson as Bull Hancock, long time family friend and attorney; James Cromwell as Ogden Phipps, millionaire race horse breeder who owned the stud who sired Secretariat, Bold Ruler; Margot Martindale who played Miss Ham, the long time family friend and secretary to Scott Glenn and Penny Chenery and who was credited with naming the colt, Secretariat; and John Malkovich, who brings comedy relief in ways that only John Malkovich can do, playing the washed up and washed out, eccentric, French-Canadian trainer of Secretariat, Lucien Laurin.

Much like the film, Titanic, if you know anything about Secretariat, you know what is going to happen. But, it's remarkably difficult to not be inspired and uplifted by the story of a little red colt, which was essentially nothing more than an afterthought in the big money, high stakes world of thoroughbred horse racing.

The underdog story line is not new or original and certainly Disney didn't tell this story in a particularly unique way. But, when you're talking about Secretariat, nothing special needs to be said, except to tell the story exactly the way it happened. That, in and of itself, is inspiration enough.

Sources:

Secretariat.com
Yahoo! Movies.com
Ultimate Horse Site.com