Flicka (2006)

I am trying to be objective when rating movies on here. As an example, I gave my favourite movie a 9, and Flicka (an 8 on my scale) has always been my second favourite. However, I'm not sure I can stay completely objective on this one, because I see a lot of people don't think it's that great, and yet I can't give it any less than 8.Flicka is a horse movie, I have to face that fact. This is probably why it's not as loved by the casual viewer as it is by me. When I first watched it I was a horse person. I'm not really anymore, but I still adore them, and that might affect my view on Flicka.To me it's more than a horse movie. It has a bare minimum of romance, which I like, not because I don't like romance, but because so many stories are about more than that. But it is a story about love; a girl's love to a wild horse, and her battle to tame it in spite of her father. It's about a father's journey to getting to know and respect his daughter, and a family learning to break the silence and speak up about what bothers them. Her brother's sub plot is very touching to me, and the parents' relationship is a nice touch. This movie is warming and heart-breaking, and if you like horses or family love, or best of all, both, this movie will definitely make you feel, maybe even cry.

Just watched this on Netflix disc with my mom. Now I had heard of the Roddy McDowall version from 1943 and I know it was based on Mary O'Hara's novel but it wasn't until I watched this that I even saw a story of the horse Flicka on screen. So I didn't feel much affected when I found out that the leading character was a teenage girl instead of a pre-teen boy. I mean, Katy McLaughlin (Alison Lohman) is quite stubborn in getting what she wants and she definitely wants this wild mustang horse she calls Flicka after that horse saves her from a cougar. But because her father (Tim McGraw) doesn't think Flicka should mix with his more genteel horses, that puts a conflict between him and his daughter with the mother (Maria Bello) and older brother (Ryan Kwanten) stuck in the middle. I'll stop there and just say that I highly enjoyed the whole thing especially the way it ended and so on that note, I recommend Flicka.

This is about a teenaged and traumatized young girl named Katy McLaughlin(Alison Lohman). After his boarding school she returns to home along with her lovely mother(Maria Bello) and family . The adolescent tries rehabilitate a wild horse and simultaneously her father(Tim McGraw). She captures it, being gently handled , she tames the wild stallion and names it Flicka. The magnificent horse escapes and Katy is determined effort to find her missing black colt. The father along with his cowboys(Danny Pino) tracks it down and is captured again and sold to a rodeo competition owner. But domineering father over her and brother(Ryan Kwanten) drives them both a renowned Mustang championship, a spectacular rodeo with savage horses.The story concerns on a rebel teenager and a wild and intelligent horse who comes to be his best friend. The tale gets to capture the qualities about love, sacrifice, friendship and dramatic parents-sons relationship. Although is slow moving at times and some pedestrian, the movie is still effective enough to hold interest and bring a tear or two. Evocative and pleasant musical score by Aaron Zigman and glamorous,stunning cinematography by Michael Muro, reflecting spectacular outdoors. Director Michael Mayer after his impressive directorial debut('At home at the end of the world' with Colin Farrell and Dallas Roberts who plays here a secondary role) directs his second movie, exquisitely filmed and with many precious moments . The picture is a worthwhile treat the whole family can enjoy.Another films about teens-horses relationship are the following : Tonka(directed by Lewis R. Foster with Sal Mineo), The Black Stallion(1979, Carrol Ballard) and different versions about 'Black Beauty' novel by Anne Sewell, directed by Max Nosseck(1946), filmed by James Hill(1971) with Mark Lester, and adaptation by Caroline Thomson(1994) with Sean Bean, among others.

"Flicka" (2006) bridges several sub-genres, unfortunately it is one of the weakest examples of each. It's a horse movie (the original is better, as are "National Velvet", The Horse Whisperer" and for that matter most episodes of "The Saddle Club" and "Spin & Marty"). It's a "wild mustangs as a metaphor for the changing West" movie ("The Misfits" and "Billy Jack" do it better). It's an overwrought coming of age melodrama (countless other films do this better as well as most of the stuff you find playing on Lifetime). It's also an Alison Lohman film and in all fairness contains one of her best performances. Lohman is always excellent and in "Flicka" she is given a lot to work with and handles it all quite well. However, the scripting and editing assembly work are so weak that her strong performance (and nice supporting work by Maria Bello and Ryan Kwanten) cannot turn this thing into a high quality film. You might notice that neither the two screenwriters nor the director have been involved in any feature productions since the release of the film. "Flicka" was a major release (over 2900 theaters in the U.S.) and turned a profit at the box office. I credit shrewd packaging by the film's producers as they focused from inception on insuring that the project would be bankable. They incorporated elements that pre-sold the film beyond its target audience of pre-teen girls. Tim McGraw was cast to bring in his large fan base, Kwanten was counted on to draw a fair number of teenage girls into the multi- plex, and there were so few live action family films in 2006 that it was able to tap into an under-supplied market. As for Mary O'Hara's beloved children's book (My Friend Flicka-previously adapted into two feature films and a television show, is credited), it would be more accurate to say "inspired by" rather than "adapted from". The original's ten-year-old hero has been changed to a 16-year-old heroine named Katy McLaughlin (Lohman). I normally rant a bit when an older actress is cast as a teenager but Lohman is the Mary Pickford of her day and with her cute face and freckles still looks physically believable playing a teen. Her new look for the film, long curly hair-dyed dark, makes her look a lot like Kari Russell (insert "very Irish" here). In this remake it's totally Katy's story (in the original the parents had a more central role) and is told from her point-of-view. She even does a short voice-over commentary to begin and close the film. Normally this POV stuff leads to viewer identification and connection, but the scripting and directing works against Lohman and you stay distanced from her character. Katy is mega-headstrong, uncomfortable and bored at her boarding school but at one with the wilds of her family's horse ranch in Wyoming. Her father is grooming Katy's older brother Howard to eventually take over the ranch, clueless about Howard's desire to escape and about Katy's affinity for the place. She is the chip-off-the-old-block, not her brother. The title character is a two-year old black mustang mare that is a source of conflict between Katy and her father for most of the film. While the movie looks pretty the thin plot, the poor sequencing, and absence of "genuine" emotion" doesn't add up to a particularly satisfying viewing experience. Then again, what do I know? I'm only a child.