The hopes of a nation rode on a long shot.
True story of the undersized Depression-era racehorse whose victories lifted not only the spirits of the team behind it but also those of their nation.
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Character
Earnest, classical in form, grave and resolved.
- earnestironic
- classical in formformally daring
- gravecomic
- resolvedopen-ended
- effortlessdemanding
Who loves it, who doesn't
18 profiled raters. Loved most by The Ironists; disliked most by The Formalists.
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“Is the book better?”
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“Does it take too many liberties with the true story?”
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“Is Tobey Maguire the best thing in Seabiscuit?”
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Reviews
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Reviews on TMDB
Written by TMDB members; each links to the original. Not part of Tastebuds's numbers.
- John Chardon TMDB · May 20199/10
It wears its sentimental heart firmly on its fetlock. As the depression era kicks in, Americans were grasping for any sort of inspiration they could get, enter equine supreme, Seabiscuit. Considered broken down, too small and untrainable, Seabiscuit went on to become a bastion of great racehorses and in the process bringing solace to those closest to it. Back in 2003 upon its initial release, critics were very divided as to the merits of Seabiscuit as a picture. Some were concerned that this adaptation from Laura Hillenbrand's highly thought of novel missed too many crucial elements, others were merely touting the tired old charge of the film purely baiting Oscar (something that is levelled at every film in history about hope and second chances), the more astute critics of the time however lauded it as the delightful and inspiring piece that it is. It would be churlish of me to not agree that Seabiscuit is laced with sentiment, rookie director Gary Ross barely wastes a chance to tug the heart strings and paint an evocative sequence, but if you have got it in you to accept this true story for its base emotional point, then it is one hell of a wonderful experience. Seabiscuit is not
Read the whole review on TMDB - Wuchakon TMDB · Jan 20197/10
***Hope for the broken via a quirky, forsaken race horse*** During the Depression, an undersized, “lazy” horse named Seabiscuit becomes a champion, lifting the spirits of both its team and that of the nation. Jeff Bridges plays the owner, Tobey Maguire the jockey and Chris Cooper the trainer. Valerie Mahaffey is on hand as the owner’s wife. Based on the real story, “Seabiscuit” (2003) is reminiscent in tone of another timeless historical drama starring Bridges, “Tucker: The Man and His Dream” (1988) by Francis Ford Coppola. I prefer the underrated “Tucker” because it’s snappier and less vague, but “Seabiscuit” ain’t no slouch. Like the historically-based “Jeremiah Johnson” (1972) the manner of storytelling respects the intelligence of the viewer to sometimes read between the lines. One of the best parts is the build-up to the race with War Admiral and the thrilling race itself. Not knowing the real-life events, a couple of the twists were surprising. The first act, however, seems bogged down by extraneous details about the owner. The film runs 2 hour, 19 minutes and was shot in California, New York and Kentucky. GRADE: B
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Cast
- Tobey MaguireRed Pollard
- David McCulloughNarrator
- Jeff BridgesCharles Howard
- Chris CooperTom Smith
- Elizabeth BanksMarcela Howard
- Gary L. StevensGeorge Woolf
- Eddie JonesSamuel D. Riddle
- William H. MacyTick Tock McGlaughlin
- Royce D. ApplegateDutch Doogan
- Chris McCarronCharley Kurtsinger
Crew
- Gary RossDirector
- Gary RossScreenplay
- Laura HillenbrandNovel
- John SchwartzmanDirector of Photography
- Randy NewmanOriginal Music Composer
- William GoldenbergEditor
- Gary RossProducer
- Jane SindellProducer
- Frank MarshallProducer
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Pairings
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