Susan Granger’s review of “Dreamer: Inspired by a True Story” (DreamWorks)
Shaking off shades of “Seabiscuit,” this inspirational, feel-good film tells the upbeat story of a girl, her dream and the family that enables her to try to achieve it.
As Cale Crane (Dakota Fanning) observes from her window, her family has the only empty horse barn in Lexington, Kentucky. Her father Ben (Kurt Russell) and grandfather (Kris Kristofferson) are respected horse trainers but Ben’s luck’s gone bad, forcing him to work for a sneering stable owner (David Morse). When a promising filly named Sonador (Spanish for “dreamer”) breaks a leg during a race, Ben refuses to put her down and loses his job. Taking the injured thoroughbred as part of his severance pay, he’s determined to breed her with the help of his loyal stablehands (Luis Guzman, Freddy Rodriguez). But when that concept fizzles, Sonador winds up in Cale’s capable care. She’s been sneaking her Popsicles and is convinced Sonador can be healed in time to run in the prestigious Breeder’s Cup Classic that’s held at the end of October.
Writer John Gatins (“Coach Carter”) treads familiar turf in this directing debut, basing his formulaic tale on Mariah’s Storm, an injured filly who defied racing odds in the early 1990s. Credit solid acting for making the compelling father/daughter/grandfather relationship genuinely heartfelt and touching without sappy sentimentality – and presenting an Arab prince (Oded Fehr) in a sympathetic light. Fred Murphy’s cinematography captures the bucolic bluegrass beauty with John Debney’s evocative music. On the Granger Movie Gauge of 1 to 10, “Dreamer: Inspired by a True Story” is a high-spirited, sweetly satisfying 7. And if warm-hearted horse pictures intrigue you, consider “Black Beauty,” “The Black Stallion,” “National Velvet” or “The Red Pony.”
