The
lowdown: 'Black Beauty' is
based on the classic novel by Anna Sewell, which was first published in
1887 and
remains
popular today. The film is very faithful to the original novel, and is
also narrated in the first person by Black
Beauty
himself (with the horse's voice provided by Alan Cumming). The film begins
with the horse's birth and follows
his
life through happinesss and hardship as he is owned by a number of people
- some are kind and some are very
cruel.
Beauty's owners include the wealthy Squire Gordon; a kind and gentle handsome
cab owner named Jerry Barker,
who
uses Beauty to pull his cab but is never unkind to the horse; and a cruel
businessman who uses Beauty to carry
extremely
heavy loads, which proves too much for the ageing horse.
The
film stars Sean Bean as Farmer Grey, the first owner of Black Beauty, while
Ian Kelsey plays Joe Green, who
befriends
Beauty as a young stable boy and whose life becomes intertwined with that
of the horse. Peter Davison
has
a brief role as one of Beauty's first owners, Squire Gordon, who owns an
estate called Birtwick Park, where the
horse
first meets Joe. It is Squire Gordon's wife who comes up with the name
Black Beauty. However, she falls ill and
the
Gordons are forced to leave England for a warmer climate, and Black Beauty
finds himself with a new owner - the
first
of many. Other notable actors in the film include Alun Armstrong and Peter
Cook, in his last role before his death.
Who
connections: Apart from Peter Davison, the cast of 'Black
Beauty' includes Eleanor Bron, who appeared in two
Doctor Who stories
from the classic era. She played Kara in 'Revelation of the Daleks' and
had a brief cameo in 'City
of Death', as an art critic
(with John Cleese). Meanwhile, Alan Cumming appeared with Peter Davison
in 'The Airzone
Solution', a BBV film made
in 1993 that featured four of the actors who had played the role of the
Doctor at that time.
The
verdict: 'Black Beauty' is a fine adaptation
which remains faithful to the original novel, and is a film that families
can
watch together. It is true that some of the scenes where the horses are
treated cruelly may be inappropriate for
younger
children, although the producers stress in the closing credits that no
horses were harmed in the making of
the
film. A good script, excellent acting and a wonderful feel-good story makes
this film excellent viewing for people
of
all ages - admittedly adults may be initially put off by the idea of a
film being narrated from a horse's point of view,
although
this works quite well, and is true to the novel. Needless to say, the horses
are the real stars of the film.
Video Clips:
Squire Gordon 5.3mb
The Gordons leave England
4.5mb |
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