Spirit: Stallion Of The Cimarron Movie
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Storyline
TAGLINES
Leader. Hero. Legend.
A Motion Picture Experience For Everyone
Some legends can never be tamed.
As a wild stallion travels across the frontiers of the Old West, he befriends a young human and finds true love with a mare.
| Matt Damon | Spirit |
| James Cromwell | The Colonel |
| Daniel Studi | Little Creek |
| Chopper Bernet | Sgt. Adams |
| Jeff LeBeau | Murphy/Railroad Foreman |
| John Rubano | Soldier |
| Richard McGonagle | Bill |
| Matt Levin | Joe |
| Adam Paul | Pete |
| Robert Cait | Jake |
| Charles Napier | Roy |
| Meredith Wells | Little Indian Girl |
| Michael Horse | Little Creek's Friend |
| Donald Fullilove | Train Pull Foreman |
| Kelly Asbury |
6.50 out of 10 (4365 votes)
Visitor Reviews
Simply beautiful
posted on 12 Aug 2009Actually I'd much rather have wanted to see Lilo and Stitch, but then my best friend dragged me to this movie with her litle sister because we couldn't convince the 6 year old to resist the "movie with horses". After I all, I found it to be much more than just a movie with or about horses and I was glad that I had gotten to see it. Not only is it beautifully animated and made me miss the states very much, it also tells a story very touching and exciting at times. I haven't that much completely fallen into a movie since I was very young. I forgot everything around me, I cried, I laughed, and just didn't care about what anyone might think of me. I also found Bryan Adams' songs very fitting and supporting to the movie's athmosphere. But as I already mentioned, if there were just those landscapes and nothing else I would have enjoyed it already. Very recommendable, especially for teenagers with younger siblings - guys, take them to the movie's sometime. They really anjoy being with the "old" kids.
Nice try on an epic film... it turned out mediocre though.
posted on 06 Aug 2009Time for a rant, eh: I thought Spirit was a great movie to watch. However, there were a few things that stop me from rating it higher than a 6 or 7 (I'm being a little bit generous with the 7).Point #1: Matt Damon aggravates me. I was thinking, 'what a dicky voice they got for the main character,' when I first heard him narrate - and then I realized it is Matt Damon. The man bugs me so very bad - his performance in "The Departed" was terrible and ruined the movie for me (before the movie got a chance to ruin itself, but that's another story for some other time), as it almost did "Spirit". I was able to get past this fact because of how little narration there actually was... thankfully.Point #2: Brian Adams sucks... The whole score was terrible... The songs were unoriginal, generic, and poorly executed; not once did I find the music to fit; and the lyrics were terrible. Every time one of the lame songs came on, I was turned off. I almost thought I'd start hearing some patriotic propaganda slipped into the super-American freedom style lyrics (I couldn't help but be reminded of those terrible patriotic songs that played on the radio constantly after 9/11). In light of the native American aspects of the film, they should have gone with fitting music using right instruments, not petty radio-hit, teen-bop, 14-year-old-girl crap. I thought I was back in junior high school. I can't believe no better could have been done--I refuse to. Had it not have been for this, I'd rank the film up more with Disney, which knows a thing or two about originality (ok, don't bother saying what I know some of you are probably thinking ;). Too bad, it's a shame they couldn't have hired better musicians.I liked the art and animation, except for some things here and there... like sometimes the angles appear too sharp on the face and the lines too thick or dark on the body (thick/dark lines mainly near the end). There were often times when I thought they _tried too hard_ on the emotion and facial expressions and failed at drawing any real emotion. But there were also times when the emotion ran thick. Anyhow, many scenes were lazy and the layers were apparent.OK, I'm falling asleep here so I'll sum it up before I start making less sense...Nice try on an epic film... it turned out mediocre though. Matt Damon, you suck!
Visually Wonderful, But Terrible American Voices and Music
posted on 04 Aug 2009I missed the opening scene of "Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarrron," which in a Disney, whoops Katzenberg, animated flick is usually terrific, but then, it's usually an ocean storm and I doubt there was one on the prairie. I came in time for Spirit's birth and to get completely caught up in the action. Yeah, I was one of those pre-teen girls who loved "My Friend Flicka" (the whole book series and the TV show) and "National Velvet" and "Black Beauty," had horse models all over my shelves, and no, I don't really understand the psycho-sexual implications of that.It's nice that the horses don't talk or sing "Hatuna Makata", but they do neigh meaningfully to each other and grin and otherwise emote, so this isn't exactly the Junior Discovery Channel. The visuals are thrilling and realistic and the story line cheer-worthy. But other decisions are wincible. Matt Damon's flat and condescending voice-over narration as Spirit is simply awful (though I liked Daniel Studi, Wes's son, as the voice of Little Creek, and James Cromwell did a Custer-like villain pretty well). It's crying out for a Western drawl, say Sam Shepherd.I'm a closet Bryan Adams fan but his songs are just wrong (OK, except for the heartfelt "Get Off of My Back" where, gee, Spirit literally wants men off his back). Even if the songs could be tolerated, the bloated, bombastic orchestrations are inappropriate. The score by Hans Zimmer too-- why the heck not have Western musical flavor out on the prairie, or some sense of Native American musical themes in the Indian Village, let alone some military martial touches in the frontier fort. Did Katzenberg intentionally want this to seem not a uniquely American story so it would make more money overseas?An even better movie all around that touches on virtually the same themes is "The Silver Brumby: King of the Wild Stallions," which is based on an Australian children's book. And you get a real Russell Crowe instead of disembodied hunk voices. Ah, horses AND Russell Crowe -- that's something I can understand. (originally written 6/6/2002)
As good as it is this movie annoys me
posted on 25 Jul 2009(These are my thoughts after seeing Spirit in the movies right after it was released) This movie annoys me.Okay let me back up---TWO AND HALF STARS-moments of it are much better.I liked it.Understand that? I like the film. Where was I? Oh yea, annoyed me.Why does this movie exist? Its too long by a half an hour, mostly because its so leisurely. This is a YA book done by Cliff Notes. It got the feel of a Scholastic book brought to life.Not that its bad, it just is so bland.There are great sequences, some of the fort sequence, a lot of the Indian village stuff is all quite good. What has me snackered is that this should have been better. It should have been tighter. Say what you will about Disney films , they would not have made such a rambling film. I am a vocal critic of Disney and its product but I know, in my heart that this wouldn't have been as loose as it is if Disney had done it. Of course we would have had to suffer through talking horses but thats not the point there would have been more meat to this. Why I find it truly bothersome is that because its so loose I found the film much more bitter sweet than its meant to be simply because I could fill in the history of what happens and how things were pointless, the railroad was built, the horses were rounded up and the Indians died, despite the happy ending of the film. I shouldn't have had time to think about that.What also irks me is the mix of computer and regular animation. They spent how much on this and its painfully obvious what is what.It wouldn't have been bad if say they computer stuff had been allowed to be seen as computer animation when it came to humans, or the railway camp (which except for the train wreck, works) but its not and I was was watching the melding of the two styles while shaking my head. A lot of it remind me of the truly awful hell sequence from the live action Spawn.Couldn't They have paid someone from Japan to come and sort it out. I mean you were stealing shots from things like 'Night on the Galactic Railway' or 'Spring and Chaos' for the train sequences anyway. (and don't tell me its not stolen and that you can only do it so many way, baloney, they borrowed.) Whats worse, is that other than making money I see no point to this movie having been made. None. Zippo. Nada. I don't say that about many movies even when I despise them but to me this is a completely pointless movie from top to bottom. Its at best a 45 minute story stretched to almost 90 minutes. And while it doesn't lag,I wished that something unpredictable and truly exciting had occurred for more than thirty seconds at a pop.I do have to say that this is a wonderful proof that you don't need talking animals to have a good movie. (I said I liked it ,I just want BETTER) The melding of music and image to tell the story is wonderful and I think its the music that makes several of the soaring moments, even if at times even that is a bit clunky. You also have to give points to a movie that begins with the birth of a horse, tastefully done on screen. Disney would have had kittens with that.Forgive me for ripping the movie apart, but it should have been better than good. There are flashes of great here and they deserve a better frame than this. Truthfully if Disney and Dreamworks had done this together it would have been better---assuming that they could have both used their strengths.See it at some point, you'll like it, and you'll probably be annoyed it isn't better.You know what it is, I wanted a movie I would remember and not one that slips from memory as one is writing a review.
Not the tired Disney formula.
posted on 07 Jul 2009There's no song and dance numbers, and the ponies don't break out into song whenever they're blue or lonely. That's enough to rate this film very highly. The storyline has a lot of symbolism in it, from the captivity of Spirit as well as that of the other horses, and the 'lessons' the movie tries to teach us in the bad guy vs the good guy, the bad guy being Army, and the good guy being Lakota. You'll like the movie. It'll make you think, and your kids will adore it.
Harmful for kids...
posted on 29 Jun 2009Oh, that parents would check out "children's movies" for content before allowing their kids to see them!I believe that a person's whole outlook on life can be colored by the books and movies absorbed in childhood. I point to myself as a case in point. Ever since I can remember, I've been ardently conservationist. My parents certainly weren't. None of our neighbors evinced any interest in the subject. And up until recently, I hadn't questioned why I might have deviated from my cultural upbringing to adopt this stance.But when my sister recalled to me a movie we had seen in our childhood, I looked for and found a VHS copy on the Web: "The Enchanted Forest." Watching it again as an adult, I understood that it was little more than a piece of anti-logging propaganda. The loggers were portrayed as thoughtless, even sadistic, and the gentle old forest hermit was a saintly hero. A light-bulb clicked--aha! There was my formation begun.Now, this might not be entirely bad; humans need to pay attention to the preservation of their environment, if only to ensure their own survival. And books and movies which help build such realizations can, in spite of the lies, serve an ultimately good purpose.However, "Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron" propagandizes children in a way that is likely to hurt them eventually. It portrays cruel soldiers of the Union army terrorizing, capturing, and subjugating herds of beautiful wild horses, which are then rescued through the altruistic intervention of the noble Indians. I question the wisdom of forming today's children to despise the military and the white frontiersman. While there have been some sadistic military leaders in American history, and many noble Indians, it's a fact that the good and the bad were far more randomly distributed than this movie would have our children believe. In fact the widespread use of such extreme cases in children's stories can only foment hostility between peoples and lack of respect for the European culture that brought the ideas of personal freedom and--eventually--equal rights to fruition.In short, this movie is harmful because its thrust is to perpetuate stereotypes about the past to impressionable children, and to build hostility. I believe such hostility will eventually cripple its bearers and targets alike.If I were rating this film's propaganda effort, I would give it a 9, but since I'm rating its value, it gets the lowest possible mark.1/10
beautiful movie....(spoiler)
posted on 29 Jun 2009this movie was very enjoyable for myself, 2 ten year olds, and a 21 year old...beautiful graphics--especially the river scenes!; a wonderful change re: no talking/singing animals...; as horse people, we two adults spent a little time making gentle fun of some of the details---those eyebrows! hmm, all the male horses 'looked like geldings' etc--but, the details didn't detract from the story, and the audience of lots of little kids ooohhed and aaahhhed many times........ one note: while the movie is 'all about america', it is surely not a blind 'go-rah'....the dark tones of the military base, with the horses practically practicing the goose-step...and when the army does bad things (as it historically did), there's no attempt to excuse it....; ...re:.the graphic breaking of horses......we wondered how many little kids will be going home, thinking that ANY horse training is cruel, or that mustangs should never be taken from the wild....
I don't know what some of you are complaining about...
posted on 18 May 2009Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron is an enjoyable film from beginning to end. Good story line, great effects, and wonderful characters.About th graphics being poorly done, some of you should really watch those made-for-TV movies. Their graphics ARE poorly done, but not to say they're not good. Of course in movies, you can't really go for computer graphics itself. There are so many elements to a good plot and "Spirit" has that.If you are a Bryan Adams fan or not, the songs are incredible because it's like the songs are telling a story. Unfolding it if you will. Narration also does the same thing, but music can go so much further than that and being a music fan, I know.I think some of you are a little upset because throughout the movie, horses do not speak. Not to say you guys shouldn't keep in title with your opinions and what not, but to me, the movie would be terrible having the horses speaking. It'll just ruin the point of the film at all.I'm very shocked that I didn't see this movie in the theater in the first place because some of the scenes just blow your mind away like the (spoiler) Canyon Leap. In some aspects, I think everyone should at least give the movie a chance. If you don't like, fine and if you do that's great. Just reconsider as for all movies you are about to watch or going to.In end summary, I give this movie 9/10 stars at the most.-Sincerely, a movie buff
Capturing the spirit of garbage
posted on 10 May 2009My God. I understand that this is a kiddie film, but i'm sorry, it fails miserably in what it tries to accomplish. One must understand that if your going to make the horse mute, you can't likewise have him share every other human quality. By the fifth scene of Spirit running from some tragedy or calamity that had befallen him or his family, with his head screwed on backwards (he obviously does not need to see where he is going), eyes rolling, and neighing incomprehensibly in a vague attempt to express worry, i couldn't help but burst out laughing. It was so ludicrously bad i was both horrified and amused. The scene that really gets me though (i will never forget this)is when (SPOILER) Spirit jumps over the canyon with his Indian buddy and the characteristic 'bad guy' holds his men from firing on them, and instead nods his head at the horse who, get this, nods back! (END SPOILER) C'mon, just make the horse speak already! It's awkward and boring to attempt anything else. And preferably give him a new voice, matt damon's whiny (or whinny) kid-like yet sincere voice employed as the narrator will wear even the most resolute family film watcher down. 1 out of 10, i just wasted 2 hours of my life.
All style, little substance...
posted on 08 May 2009Stunning animation & soundtrack let down by a weak storyline that veers more toward 'action' than 'humour' (you might get more laughs out of 'My Little Pony') and a characterless 'narration' from Matt Damon (at least to my non-American ears).Okay, reality hits in for once as the animals don't 'talk', but surely Dreamworks (who produced the far superior - IMO - 'Road To Eldorado', 'Prince Of Egypt' and 'Shrek') could have done better, especially if they want to beat Disney (rock on 'Lilo & Stitch' as a far better animated film of the year).
Absolutely stunning
posted on 18 Apr 2009I have been waiting since November to see this movie and I finally saw it in a Sneak Preview yesterday. The music, animation, everything was beautiful. The facial expressions of the horses were so easy to read, you could actually understand what they were thinking or saying (in horsey language of course :D). It is a great movie for any age (unless you have a dad who loves trains [you'll understand when you see the movie]) I especially recommend this movie to horse people. I laughed, I cried, I loved it.
Many very nice parts, but having grown up in the area a little too PC.
posted on 15 Dec 2008Even though an animated film it really bored everyone under at least 6.As a grown up who grew up in an area with wild horses and native americans, it felt this was a combination of PC mixed in with too many fantasy films created by people who never lived in the area they filmed about. Talk to those who have lived on horse back, most treat their animals like family members, regardless of background. Regardless of background we have dealt with good and bad breakers of wild horses. I had to explain that was a real life issues to us vs the movie makers views to children who were surprised to see how PC showed a world different than what they knew in reality.This dreamworks break from the normal disney or dreamworks fare of cute talking animals burning up the screen was nice from the older viewer point of view. But if you live in an area similar to what is shown, you may end up answering questions.
excellent show piece
posted on 21 Nov 2008In this movie there isn't much emphasis on a story, but rather on the animation, which is incredible. it seems like everything else is added to either accent the visuals or keep the viewers somewhat amused. i say somewhat due to the score, which is by all accounts sickening, but that isn't my point. this film seems like more of a display of what Dreamworks has on it's side that other companies don't, and that's gifted animators. this film proves that Dreamworks does indeed kick disney square in the balls.
Completely positive in all aspects
posted on 15 Nov 2008I was fortunate to be in a test audience in Dallas to preview this upcoming movie. I thoroughly enjoyed it from start to finish. It is a treat for the eyes and ears. Young and old alike will leave this movie feeling invigorated. It is a wild ride through the old West with stops along the way for both tender and hilarious moments. Go see it!!!!
Not just a film for the family... A western for everyone!
posted on 15 Nov 2008I first saw this film at my local cinema back when it was first released in 2002. I borough it on DVD and have seen it many times since. I recently mentioned it in an essay i wrote, regarding the history and development of the Western genre, and as soon as i did i found myself looking at it in a whole new way. The reason i mentioned this film in my essay was because i was discussing the influence of westerns on contemporary films and argued that the westerns are slowly becoming popular again. Whether or not they will has yet to be seen for certain but it is films like this which prove my point.The film centres around a wild stallion which grows up to become the leader of its herd. One day curiosity leads him to examine the camp of a group of cowboys who capture him and take him to be tamed as a military horse. Refusing to be broken he crosses paths with an imprisoned Indian boy who helps him to escape. Spirit is then taken on a journey across the western frontier, along the way discovering the Indian world and meeting a female mustang. Forced to run for his life, the life of his new Indian friend and to keep his homeland safe, Spirit takes on impossible odds to once again run free.First time directors Lorna Cook and Kelly Asbury had all of the right ingredients and made them into a beautiful film. However, they failed to notice that they had the potential to make something amazing.Firstly, the film is great as it is. On the surface it works well for its intended audience and for those expecting a bit more it has something original. The main reason for this is that the animals in the film don't talk. Matt Damon voices the narration from Spirits point of view at strategic moments in the film, but Spirit the horse never speaks. All of his emotions are shown through music and his themed expressions. Mostly, however, it is the soundtrack which creates the great atmosphere. Bryan Adams provides the key songs to reflect on the story of the film, but Hans Zimmer provides an amazing score which works equally well, if not better. Either way, both do an excellent job, all of the music is amazing and can be listened to over and over many times.The story is good, its not great, but it works and covers the ground that it needs to. John Fusco, whose back catalogue reads very plainly as a western orientated writer, develops the script well and knows where he wants the film to go. However, this is where the films problem begins and is the reason that the film is not better. Its themes aren't varied enough. The themes of freedom, love and the true hero of the west are the strongest ones but the one which is only kept at one level is that of the unbridled west. Basically, Spirit is so called because he is supposed to be an embodiment of the spirit of the western film, the Wild West in general as well but the western in film is clearer. The idea being that the countless number of times people have killed the western as a genre and successfully argued that the western is dead are a dime a dozen, but the 'Spirit' of the western a genre can never be killed, it will always live on and Spirit's relentless attitude is reflective of that. It is especially reflective during the scene with the train, as Spirit has ultimately decided to give in and admit defeat but as soon as he sees that classic western shot of the landscape he realises that he must fight on. In reality this happened recently, in the 80s the western was almost completely out of production but in the early 90s, with films such as Clint Eastwoods 'Unforgiven,' which showed the real west in a whole new way. Since then westerns have been produced more prominently. The western still lives on and films like Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron are the reason why! The reason Spirit deserves a lot more credit than it got is that it brought the west to a new audience and in a new way. The horses are an essential part of the western (in fact i doubt that there is a western that doesn't feature them). The reason, if any, that the westerns died out is because it exhausted itself and audiences got bored of the same old thing. What makes Spirit different from usual westerns is that it has a new story, from a new perspective and for a new audience, which if the western is to come back, is what it needs to do.All of the right archetypes are featured in this film, we have the mythical lone hero vs the encroachment of civilisation, the cowboys, the Indians, the romance, the action and adventure set against the backdrop of the unchanging background. The main difference is obviously that of the cowboy being the villainous entity of the film, destroying the beauty of the real west with modern civilisation. Which isn't wrong! The horses and the Indians were there first, but the Cowboys came and took them over, this is the difference between that of the mythical heroic cowboy and that of the real one. Which is what Spirit successfully captures. There is so much more i could talk about, but i won't. I will simply end by saying that this essential animated western is worth watching. It gives the classic west a modern make over that is often tried but rarely works. Every time i watch this film i am captured and am blown away by the real beauty of the wild west.
Great.
posted on 11 Nov 2008Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron is an overall wonderful movie. The blending of animation types is unique, the storyline is amazing, and the music is wonderful.The drawn animation is a special thing about many animations. How they expressed the characters, especially the horses, through their animation are spectacular especially. While the way horses communicate through body language is easy to understand, many young children and people who haven't studied horses might not understand. Without words, I would imagine it would have to be challenging to express them through the features. Because of this, I understand the 'eyebrow' they added to the horses (while real horses don't have those thick lines). One of the few things I noticed about horse habits that might have been portrayed strangely is that Spirit lead his mother's herd. In wild horse herds, the lead stallion usually chases the young colts out.Also, while some people might think portraying the white army officers as the 'bad guys' is stereotyping, think of all the movies in which the Native Americans have been portrayed as that. Sometimes back then; they did treat mustangs very poorly. For example, in real history, the Appaloosa breed was almost wiped out due to the Army officers. Imagine what would have happened to one of the worlds best loved riding breeds if the Native Americans had not saved them.I think it's amazing how the realism wasn't subtracted by making the horses talk to each other. Spirit's feelings were expressed by a little bit of narration, but mostly through the music (by Bryan Adams). The songs express the story really well, and Hans Zimmer and Bryan Adams did a great job telling the story through melodies and lyrics.The emotion I got when watching the movie, whether the first time or the twentieth (yes, I've watched it that much), you wouldn't believe. Some of the scenes take your breath away, while others seem to force tears into your eyes. The opening sequence, showing Spirit's homeland, puts you right into the spectacular action right away.I don't understand at all why some people are so hateful of this brilliant movie. Overall, I rate it a 10/10 - a must watch.
Total Rubbish
posted on 16 Aug 2009If this is what children enjoy then I hope I die before those children are old enough to be making movies.This movie is total rubbish. It failed to touch my inner child because my inner child left after 10 mins to go and see 'The Rookie' again. I wish I could have joined it.This is absolutely dreadful.