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Dark Horse

  • 20112011
  • GG
  • 1h 26m
IMDb RATING
5.9/10
6K
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
13,301
2,087
Dark Horse (2011)
Romance blooms between two thirty-somethings in arrested development: an avid toy collector who lives with his parents and a woman who is the dark horse of her family.
Play trailer2:22
2 Videos
89 Photos
ComedyDrama
Romance blooms between two tricenarians in arrested development: an avid toy collector who is the dark horse of his family and a depressed woman on the rebound.Romance blooms between two tricenarians in arrested development: an avid toy collector who is the dark horse of his family and a depressed woman on the rebound.Romance blooms between two tricenarians in arrested development: an avid toy collector who is the dark horse of his family and a depressed woman on the rebound.
IMDb RATING
5.9/10
6K
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
13,301
2,087
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Director
      • Todd Solondz
    • Writer
      • Todd Solondz
    • Stars
      • Jordan Gelber
      • Selma Blair
      • Christopher Walken
    Top credits
    • Director
      • Todd Solondz
    • Writer
      • Todd Solondz
    • Stars
      • Jordan Gelber
      • Selma Blair
      • Christopher Walken
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 37User reviews
    • 115Critic reviews
    • 66Metascore
    • Awards
      • 4 nominations

    Videos2

    Theatrical Version
    Trailer 2:22
    Theatrical Version
    Clip
    Clip 0:28
    Clip

    Photos89

    Selma Blair in Dark Horse (2011)
    Selma Blair and Jordan Gelber in Dark Horse (2011)
    Jordan Gelber in Dark Horse (2011)
    Dark Horse (2011)
    Jordan Gelber and Donna Murphy in Dark Horse (2011)
    Mia Farrow and Jordan Gelber in Dark Horse (2011)
    Christopher Walken in Dark Horse (2011)
    Dark Horse (2011)
    Dark Horse (2011)
    Dark Horse (2011)
    Dark Horse (2011)
    Dark Horse (2011)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Jordan Gelber
    Jordan Gelber
    • Abe
    Selma Blair
    Selma Blair
    • Miranda (formerly 'Vi')
    Christopher Walken
    Christopher Walken
    • Jackie
    Mia Farrow
    Mia Farrow
    • Phyllis
    Melisa Young
    • Wedding Singer
    Zachary Booth
    Zachary Booth
    • Justin
    Donna Murphy
    Donna Murphy
    • Marie
    Tyler Maynard
    Tyler Maynard
    • Jiminy
    Mary Joy
    Mary Joy
    • Lori
    Peter McRobbie
    Peter McRobbie
    • Arnie
    Justin Bartha
    Justin Bartha
    • Richard
    Aasif Mandvi
    Aasif Mandvi
    • Mahmoud
    Di Quon
    Di Quon
    • Waitress
    Lee Wilkof
    Lee Wilkof
    • Phil
    Tera Lee Pollin
    • Dancing Bride
    • (as Tara-Lee Pollin)
    Keith Kuhl
    Keith Kuhl
    • Dancing Groom
    Kathryn Avery
    • Dancer
    • (as Kathryn Meredith Avery)
    Laurena Baros
    • Dancer
    • Director
      • Todd Solondz
    • Writer
      • Todd Solondz
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Estelle Harris, Jason Alexander and Jerry Stiller were hired to do voice overs for the scenes where Mia Farrow and Christopher Walken sit stone-faced watching an unseen TV sitcom. Todd Solondz felt the "Costanzas" on the TV series "Seinfeld" were a sitcom version of the family he was depicting, but he couldn't afford to use audio clips from "Seinfeld."
    • Goofs
      When Abe is sitting alone in the Multiplex Cinema, before the movie begins there is a Movie Star Scramble ("Unscramble The Letters And Name This Movie Star!") on the screen. The scrambled name reads, "ORGEOE LONEYCO" which Abe whispers is "George Clooney" but "ORGEOE" cannot be rearranged into "George".
    • Quotes

      Abe: We're all horrible people. Humanity's a fucking cesspool. People look in the mirror every fucking day and lie to themselves, saying they're good or caring or loving, but deep down - not so deep down - they only care about themselves. People... People treat you like shit, every fucking day, and then they act like other people are shit... so they get a pet that's all cute and cuddly, but even an animal knows the hard, primal truth: It is all about what you want; and, if there's any kindness or generosity, it only comes after being well-fed, or having good sex, or knowing that you weren't wiped out like all the other suckers on Wall Street.

    • Connections
      Featured in At the Movies: Venice Film Festival 2011 (2011)
    • Soundtracks
      Right Hand Hi
      Performed by Kid Sister

      Written by Melisa Young, Steve Angello, Sebastian Ingrosso, David Macklovitch

      Melisa Young published by Downtown Music Services (ASCAP), Steve Angello and Sebastian Ingrosso published by Universal-Polygram Int. Pub. Inc. (STIM), David Macklovitch published by Nettwerk One B Music US (BMI)

      Courtesy of Downtown Music Services

    User reviews37

    Review
    Top review
    7/10
    And Down the Stretch He Goes...
    Director Todd Solondz returns to the land of melancholy with "Dark Horse," his latest serio-comic look at some of life's semi-lovable losers. I say "semi-lovable" because Solondz's characters often contain a dark streak of 'nasty' inside them, and this nastiness often manifests itself in disturbing ways.

    Such is the case with Abe (Jordan Gelber,) a thirty-something man-child still living in the action-figure-adorned bedroom of his parents' home. Abe, who passes most days at his father's office avoiding work while trolling eBay for collectibles, finds himself at a wedding seated next to Miranda, an equally socially-awkward and very possibly damaged woman (Selma Blair.) After one date, Abe proposes to Miranda. Her rationale for accepting his proposal is the funniest and most depressing scene in the film. You find yourself laughing, and then quickly wondering how many people end up getting married for EXACTLY the same reasons as Miranda, without readily admitting it.

    Abe's troubles mount as he finds himself having to deal with the ramifications of his rash decision. His parents (the marvelously restrained Christopher Walken and the equally marvelously restrained Mia Farrow) may be the original source of his troubles. His father constantly compares him to his more successful brother. His mother just wants him to accept his perennial-loser status, but she does it in the most kind and loving way.

    None of this excuses Abe's selfishness and irrational sense of entitlement. Abe's doubts about his actions take the form of imaginary meetings and conversations with the people frustrating him in his life. (The narrative does get a bit muddled here.) His self-centeredness has devastating consequences, for others, but ultimately for himself. This 'dark horse' is not going to surprise us with a win.

    Solondz leads this "Horse" well, but he can't make it drink. He doesn't disappoint, but he doesn't really surprise us either. The performances are uniformly fine. Gelber in particular does a good job of walking the tightrope of character between genuinely unpleasant and sadly unaware. Blair gets credit for playing Miranda as something other than a carbon copy or even a reverse negative image of Abe. Miranda is sadly aware of the pathetic nature of her life, and her bluntness in dealing with it is refreshing.

    "Dark Horse" won't have you rolling in the aisles. You'll smile some, chuckle once or twice, and wince a lot. Standard Solondz, but that's better than most.

    www.worstshowontheweb.com
    helpful•33
    7
    • soncoman
    • Jul 18, 2012

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • June 29, 2012 (United Kingdom)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Official sites
      • Official Facebook
      • Official site (Japan)
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • L'étalon noir: Le défi de la dernière chance
    • Filming locations
      • Clinton Diner, Maspeth, Queens, New York City, New York, USA
    • Production company
      • Double Hope Films
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Budget
      • $2,000,000 (estimated)
    • Gross US & Canada
      • $166,228
    • Opening weekend US & Canada
      • $13,551
      • Jun 10, 2012
    • Gross worldwide
      • $337,150
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 26 minutes
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • DTS
      • Dolby Digital
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.85 : 1

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