All the Pretty Horses

I think the most accurate rating for "All The Pretty Horses" is "7.5" of 10, but I give it "8" since we can't do fractions on Imdb. I read some of the negative user reviews of this movie, and I must say those reviewers obviously don't know how to follow and appreciate a good story. That became more obvious when I read some of their other reviews. This is a story of two young men who knew nothing but 1940s Texas ranch life, and head out to Mexico for an adventure, to work as "cowboys" for a while. What they encounter is totally unpredictable, as well as how they handle their situations. Well-acted and beautifully filmed, this really is a fine movie. When appropriate, the actors pause, reflect, figure out what to do, as we would in real life. No "rapid fire" dialog here! I saw the DVD version at home. The film opens with great horses sounds all around you, making full use of the 5.1 channels of DD surround. As you would expect, the picture is flawless. However, I was disappointed in the very spartan "extras" on the DVD. CAUTION -- A SPOILER OR TWO FOLLOW -- John (Matt Damon) is the main character. His grandfather had just died, his mother, aspiring stage actress, is the only heir to the ranch near San Angelo, Texas, and decides to sell it to an oil company who will pay 3 times what it is worth. So, without a family and a ranch, John decides to take off for Mexico, about 150 miles south. His best friend, Lacey (Henry Thomas of "E.T." fame) goes with him. They cross the Rio Grande, and down the road meet up with a youngster, Blevins (Lucas Black) on a fine horse, and with a fine gun that he can use very nicely (Wallet now has a hole in it!). They suspect he is a runaway who might even have stolen the horse, but let him tag along. After a rainstorm, Blevins who is afraid of lightning, loses his clothes, his gun, and his horse. Approaching the next town, he sees his horse and gun and steals them back at night. Blevins goes his separate way. John and Lacey encounter a herd of cattle and join the cowboys, get accepted as hands, "break" 16 horses in 4 days, inpress the owner, who asks them if they rode all the way from Texas by themselves. John notices owner's daughter, Alejandra (Penelope Cruz), she notices him, they develop a secret love affair. Owner finds out, doesn't approve, knows about Blevins, calls police on John and Lacey, who end up in jail with Blevins who had been there since they split up some weeks earlier. On the way to the penitentiary, Blevins is taken out and shot. In prison, both John and Lacey, in separate incidents, get stabbed, John killing his attacker in the mess hall. Suddenly both of them are out, "bought" by Alejandra's father, in return she promises not to see John anymore. He gets her phone number, calls, meets at train station, they have a night together, John asks her to go to Texas where they will live happily ever after. Next morning she refuses, saying "I gave my promise, and if I don't honor that then I will have no honor." John, in a daring move, retreives the 3 horses, gets shot in the leg, finds Lacey, and they head back to Texas. Over the border they are arrested without i.d., taken to the judge (Bruce Dern) who realizes John's story is real and orders them freed. At the end John's voice is heard, "There must be a God watching over us, otherwise how could we survive even a single day?"

Golden American Texas boy comes to Mexico to show ignorant backward Mexicans how to be cowboys. How I loved the scene where the ignorant Mexican bunk hand does a shuffle dance for Matt Damon!!!! Racism hasn't gone out of style, it has just moved south!!!!! I had to walk out of the movie due to its cliche soap opera bad acted script. The only thing good about the movie was the scenery! Avoid at all costs!

One of the best movies I've seen in the past year. The sweeping panoramic settings, the great writing and a subtle, great performance by Matt Damon make this a movie not to miss. I enjoyed everything about this movie, from the graphic, depressing prison scenes to the joyous romance between a young cowboy and his Mexican princess girlfriend.

Unfortunately for Billy Bob, this movie is really only understood by those who have an idea of what being a real cowboy is like. No offense to England, Iowa, or anywhere else you all hail from, but you just don't get it. Why did they go to Mexico? Because the life Cole would have had was in San Antonio, a big city, and nothing to do with horses. Why did his friend go? Because it is his friend. The love story is great....it isn't often that we see how love works for real people.....sometimes it isn't possible, and never is it storybook. This was even more true (from what I understand, mind you, I wasn't there obviously) in 1949 Mexico, when being a woman was slightly better than being a slave. The important aspects of this movie lie in the simple things. A friend who is willing to get into whatever necessary with you because he is your friend....Love doesn't always work out, no matter how strong....help your fellow man, have a good heart, and trust in God. SIMPLICITY. If you get stuck on the accents (which actually are not that bad, we Texans do not all sound the same, I know people who sound just like each character), the quality of the horseflesh, etc. you miss the point. Well done Mr. Thornton, thanks for showing us a bit of reality in a western, rather than the canned hero/love story that flows out of LALA land oh so often.

What sets this lovely film apart is that it hasn't been dumbed down to a simple formula. I looked up a number of reviews for this picture and found many of them gave it mediocre ratings, complaining it wasn't a good western, adventure flick or romantic film. They are correct, it isn't; thankfully because it isn't suppose to be. These reviewers have become benumbed by Hollywood's usual coarse handling, and misunderstand the subtly of this picture, ironically their criticism is praise. The film isn't a Western, it uses the West as a setting to develop its two main themes, the first a celebration of being young and open to the vast possibilities of life, of diving in over your head. The second theme is commitment, what does it mean to be committed to the land, to a way of life, to family, to a buddy, to your word? How does commitment in one area effect your commitments in other areas? minor spoiler The film begins with two young men in west Texas laying on their backs, starring up at the stars and talking about the possibilities of life. John Grady Cole is about to head out for Mexico to look for work on a giant cattle spread, the kind that have largely faded from the American landscape, but still exist across the Rio Grande and he wants his buddy, Lacey Rawlins, to come along. Personal difficulties add impetis to their fantasy and the two young men head south on horseback, where they meet up with a younger boy on the trail, Jimmy Blevins, full of spit and vinegar, but not much sense. Lacey immediately suspects Blevins is trouble, the John Grady is more friendly and sympathetic than wise, and they invite this accident waiting to happen to join them, who eventually gets himself and them in far more trouble than any of them are able to handle. For those viewers who are looking for another quick action or romance fix, they will be seriously disappointed, but for someone, perhaps more literarily oriented, reflective about the meaning of life, this film is a delight.

I saw this film today and was very pleasantly surprised. I thought it was in the tradition of lyrical and elegiac films by terrence malick and "mcCabe and mrs. miller" (various 70s films in general). these types of films have recently really picked up thanks to some much needed bulood pumped in by filmmakers like David gordon green and lynne ramsay. hence I was very shocked to see that it only received 32% at rottentomatoes. i am clueless as to why. most people who seem to be bitching have read the book and think that the film doesn't meet the standard. i hate that argument. people seem to not understand that cinema is a completely different medium from the written word and comparisons are futile. if films started to become completely faithful to books we would have 8 hour movies. i haven't read the book but i seriously recommend the film. billy bob is a serious film-making talent to look out for. i always loved sling blade but this film is on completely another level. i'll certainly look out for his next project and this film's director's cut.

All the Pretty Horses is directed by Billy Bob Thornton and adapted from Cormac McCarthy's novel of the name name by Ted Tally. It stars Matt Damon, Penélope Cruz, Henry Thomas & Lucas Black. Marty Stuart scores the music and Barry Markowitz photographs it. Plot finds Damon as John Grady Cole, a young cowboy who travels with his best friend, Lacey Rawlings, from Texas across the border into Mexico. It's a journey that sees acquaintances come and go, love blossom and the harshness of the world become all too real to such young eyes. A big financial disaster for Columbia Pictures and Miramax Films who lost nearly $40 million on the film. Serves them right I say, for Thornton's original cut was a long epic piece thought to be around three and a half hours in length. But good old Harvey Weinstein demanded drastic cuts to be made and Thornton had to trim it to just nearly two hours in running time. That's a lot of story gone astray, and boy does it show, no wonder Damon himself bitterly commented that to lose 35% of your movie ultimately leaves you with a completely different film. It's such a shame because although it's now a film chocked with flaws and flow problems, one can see that in its original cut there had to be at worst an involving rites-of-passage story. So what are we left with? Well it's certainly not a donkey. It drips with period atmosphere and comes resplendent with a poetic beauty thanks to Markowitz's photography. Stuart's score too has the tone absolutely right, blending the old feel of the West with evocative arrangements for the more tender moments involving the protagonists: and there are tender moments, notably between Cole (Damon youthful but not really exuding a naivety for the age of the character) & Rawlings (Thomas effective and dominating his scenes). That the crucial relationship between Cole and Alejandra Villarreal (Cruz weak and lacking believability for the romantic strand) is barely formed can be laid at Weinstein's door. So too can the fact that a number of characters file in and out with blink and you miss them parts, sad when it's the likes of Robert Patrick and Sam Sheperd; and tragic in the case of Bruce Dern's judge; the latter of which is a crucial character in the final quarter but gets about three minutes screen time. Madness. Star of the movie is Black, who as young ruffian Blevins, manages to convey a deep sense of vulnerability. It's a critical role, one that affects the main character's lives, and thanks to Black's spirited performance we anxiously await what fate has in store for the lovable rogue. So much good to sample, then, even if it feels like going out for a three course dinner and finding the main course is no longer available. It's hoped that one day we may get a directors cut from Thornton, only then you feel will All the Pretty Horses be revealed as a potential thoroughbred. 6/10

John Grady Cole (Matt Damon) is an American drifter, who moves to Mexico expecting to have a better life, but nothing works the way he has expected. "All the Pretty Horses" is a kind of predictable soap opera from Billy Bob Thorton. It is indeed a politically correct melodramatic story, with average performances and direction, although having an excellent cast with names such as Matt Dammon, Sam Shepard, Robert Patrick, Lucas Black, Rubén Blades, Bruce Dern and Penélope Cruz. For fans of Billy Bob Thorton, it is a very disappointing movie, but for lovers of linear romances, it is a beautiful movie, with wonderful landscapes and a message of loyalty and principles. "All the Pretty Horses" is a correct movie with no surprises. My vote is seven. Title (Brazil): "Espírito Selvagem" ("Wild Spirit")