Into the West

This film's title is forgettable, though the film is not. It also is a film that defies categories. (i. e., adventure, family, etc.)

The cast is marvelous, including the children, and not least of all the beautiful horse. It is this ensemble of actors that endows the film with a legendary quality that is hard to forget.

The modern, harsh, and unadorned setting makes the story all the more poignant because it is not a fairytale. We can relate to these characters because their problems are problems that confront all of us. It is a story about underdogs we can root for, and about how animals and children enrich our lives by reminding us to set aside our cynicism, have faith, and be true to ourselves.

This is a great, highly underrated film that I'd recommend to anyone, anytime. I loved it!

Don't let the cheesy video cover put your off. This is a gem of a family movie that uses a wee bit of magic to pull a dysfunctional Irish family back together. This is not a Disney film. The actors lack Hollywood's plastic sheen and cutesy appeal--they're real and honest, and good. You know from the start that this story will end happily, but there are some interesting surprises along the way, and at the end, you feel like you've just seen a piece of literature, not popcorn entertainment.

I give this film 9/10. My 12-year-old gave it 10/10, and my sometimes-cynical husband acknowledged "Yeah, it's a pretty good movie." That's high praise indeed.

This excellent movie deals with issues of identity, death and family. It is also a very funny and gentle fantasy (set in contemporary times) about two Irish boys and their magical horse.

This may sound silly to many. I wouldn't even fault anyone for having passed on it during its initial theatrical release or for passing it by in the video store. The marketing of this movie made it seem like a wacky, silly movie about kids getting into and out of several situations with their horse. The only reason I even saw it was faith in the cast and crew. I feel I was well rewarded.

The performances are exceptional. The two boys behave in a completely natural way without resorting to traditional "cutesy" mannerisms and expressions (which isn't to say the movie does not have its cute moments. ..it's just that they don't seem forced when they happen). Gabriel Byrne's performance is absolutely beautiful. Even though the movie is about the kids and the horse (at first glance) it really is about him and his character's denial of what he really is and how he is set right again.

The cinematography, direction and music are all superb. You won't be disappointed if you just give it a chance.

I always remember this movie for the shock of seeing a horse trying to live an apartment. Now, there's an unusual sight! I revisited this film last week and for a second and an overdo "ride" with these mystical Irish gypsies and their strange. By the way, I hadn't realized how nicely filmed this was until I saw it on 1.85:1 widescreen DVD.

Also to my surprise was that it wasn't the happy, family film I had remembered. There are many moments of frustration, sadness, violence, injustice, ete. It's hardly a bunch of fun times. The language is such, too, that I wouldn't recommend this for little kids, unless perhaps in Ireland where everyone seems to use Jesus' name in vain frequently, even kids.

It's still a story, basically, about two kids trying to capture and then keep a white horse, which is taken away from them. The cops (some crooked, as filmmakers love to show), the crooks and family are all out over the countryside looking for the boys and the horse.

In between, their father slowly comes to grips with the death of his wife some seven years earlier, a tragedy he has never been able to deal with correctly.

The best character and the most fun to watch is little "Ossie," played by Ciaran Fitzgerald. He's the one most-attached to the horse and the wee one has some of the best lines in the film.

Ignore that stupid video cover up above, it does not in any way do this film justice, and why they decided to sell it as a kids adventure, when it is much more, I will never know. The film is a simple tale, yet its the supernatural undertones, and reference to Irish myth which adds a whole different dimension to the film, raising it above most films of this sort. Its funny and poignant, and by the time the climax is reached, you have been sucked in and are willing the lads along, to its fantastically touching, thought provoking ending. The acting is superb, music perfectly apt, visuals hauntingly bleak. Its a contemporary fairy tale, strangely reminiscent of Edward Scissorhands, due to the pure simplicity of its plot. Watch this film, and get carried along on the journey, of course, ignoring that stupid poster.