Every Second Counts (2008)

The plot is pretty standard family-movie fare: Dad had to abandon a promising sports career due to an injury and now competes vicariously through his talented daughter who would prefer to live a "normal" life and continues to compete just to please dad. Daughter finds out that Dad has put the family in financial dire straits and takes it upon herself to save the family. In the end everything works out fine. It's not a bad plot, just not particularly original.In this case the backdrop is team sorting. Having been a horseman and rodeo fan for many years, I know a little about this sport. It's not really a "big money" proposition; mostly it's an event that Joe Average Wannabe Cowboy can compete in if he doesn't have the time, money, or dedication to compete in roping or cutting. There are a couple of sanctioning bodies out there with circuit championships that pay a little, but if someone was able to win as much as $30,000 in a year doing it they would probably have to spend $35,000 in direct expenses and lost wages to make it happen. It's certainly not something that a rational person would mortgage the house against future winnings on. So that part of the movie doesn't really fly with me. Also, when Brooke rides the replacement horse for the first time, she tells it that she wants to see what it can do and proceeds to run it across the countryside at a full gallop. Which would tell her absolutely nothing about how the horse would perform in a sorting event, but was probably more fun for young girls to watch. And last but not least (in fact, possibly worst), when Brooke's parents get home and realize that she has left for the competition, her mom says that she took "her saddle and all the tackle." If she took tackle you would assume that she's going fishing. the equipment used in riding a horse is called TACK (no -le). The fact that this line made it through tells me that nobody involved with the film had any idea what they were talking about. Oh, the horse being constantly tied up while standing in the stall was annoying, as well.The acting was decent, and the beautiful scenery made watching the film tolerable. I sort of enjoyed it in spite of myself. If you enjoy this sort of film it's worth watching if you stumble across it on Hallmark and have nothing to do for a couple of hours. Otherwise, don't bother.

Not sure about other reviews that detail it's obvious film location as Canada based upon the pronunciation of "about" (a-boot)? The only people that say a-boot instead of about is the entire state of Minnesota. Plot is embarrassingly cliché. An adult man who maintains a position as a mechanic, but can't repair a car begs the question of how he was responsible enough to make it to father, homeowner and husband. As a horseman, blacksmith and farrier I find the very idea of making a movie using "calf penning" as a glory sport full of reward and big riches, very misleading. Additionally our leading lady could not pen if her life depended on it as all she can do is run a horse full out in a couple of scenes. No neck reining for cutting? Almost reminded me of weekend cowboys on renta horses, all elbows and heels flailing. The comeback dad, the accident that took him out of the running as a star, to the ex-partner who sold his horse, leaving dad to determine he can no longer compete, is totally unbelievable. I found it almost funny that he was fired for not putting oil in a customers car during a repair, and then, later in the movie, telling his ex-partner to get off his property by the time he's finished putting oil in his own truck. As far as it being a Canadian film, with a Canadian perspective on "our" way of life? Not sure who "our" or "us" is as the west and western way of life is not an American perspective alone.

Yet ANOTHER Hallmark movie that adds nothing to entertainment. Yet ANOTHER horsey movie in which no one knows the last thing about horses, especially the riders.Yet ANOTHER waste of time for the viewers.The story is again the same - overbearing parent who needs to learn a "life" lesson. A child who is devoted to her family, even to the point of being used by them for their own gain.Hallmark has a fine history of truly abysmal movies, all with the cheapest production values and usually with one known actor amid a crowd of unknowns. This is no different. I haven't a clue who the actress is that plays Brooke, the daughter. Stephen Collins I know well - he's the sole "name" in the bunch.The story? Daughter wants to be a veterinarian. Dad wants her to be big-time rodeo star. Mom flitters around the background, uttering bleats of concern, all the while plucking a guitar for her lost dream of being a singer.What this movie needs for all its lost characters is a big EXIT sign.I hope everyone who reads this realizes the great sacrifice I made in sticking with this movie till the end, just so I could honorably write this review.And my last point? I know it's cheaper to film in Canada, BUT STOP IT ALREADY!!!! You are not fooling a soul. We KNOW it's set in the United States (supposedly Washington State), but we can tell it's Canada. Enough already. I get homesick for the States watching these movies.OK, that wasn't my last point. I was truly concerned for the horses in this movie. I've ridden all my life, and there's nothing so slick and treacherous as mud (except, perhaps, loose slate in the Grand Tetons, Wyoming). These poor animals were in mud up to their hocks, and I was concerned one of them might get seriously hurt.Move production to Arizona or Texas - make it easier on the animals. Soggy, sodden British Columbia doesn't do it for me.Now where do I go to get my 120-minute refund? 1* out of 10

This Hallmark movie was on tonight. Set in Washington state, the surroundings looked more like Canada. Plus the young actors who played the boy and girl said "a-boot" for 'about', which is the Canadian way. However those were just points of interest, and did not detract from my enjoyment of the movie. I suppose it is still considerably more cost-effective (cheaper) to make movies there.Stephen Collins is Joe, former champion horseman who was badly injured 18 years earlier, and had to give up competitive cutting horse riding. However now he has a 17-year-old daughter who has become a champion rider under his coaching. Within the story we find out that she never really considered whether she actually wanted to do that, it was just something she always had done. It was her father's way of living the life he could not any longer. The mother is played by Barbara Williams as Helen, who also plays the guitar and sings.Canadian Magda Apanowicz is the girl, Brooke Preston, and she really does look 17 even though she is now in her 20s. The boy she becomes friends with is Canadian Brett Dier, a real teenager, as Caden.As the story progresses we find out that Joe was so focused on his daughter's riding that he didn't always take care of business at home and at work, as a mechanic. The family begins to worry that they may even lose their home. Brooke wants to go to college to be a Vet but worries that her parents may not be able to afford to send her. Joe had been counting on winnings from the horse competitions but when Brooke's horse broke down everything looked gray.A good, clean family drama that doesn't break any new ground, but has a worthwhile message.