In Memory of Robert Redford - “The Horse Whisperer”

Last week for the paper, I checked out for the first time the classic “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid,” which stars the late acting legends Paul Newman and Robert Redford. For my second and last film for my small In Memory - Robert Redford review slate, I checked out the 1998 favorite “The Horse Whisperer.”

When teenage Grace is traumatized by a riding accident that badly injures her horse, her mother Annie, a high-powered New York magazine editor, realizes that Grace will only recover once the horse is healed.

She takes them both to a secluded Montana ranch, where legendary “horse whisperer” Tom Booker begins to heal the horse, and also stirs long-dormant feelings in Annie that lead her to question her marriage and choice of career.

For quite some time now, I have always wanted to check out this film. Once I saw that it was streaming on Tubi, I had to take this opportunity to check out this Robert Redford audience favorite.

Not only is “The Horse Whisperer” an emotionally powerful and moving film, this 1998 film also features some incredibly beautiful cinematography. The depiction of the Montana landscape is incredibly breath-taking and the beautiful landscape also enhances the themes of healing and the profound bond of humans and horses.

This film also delivers a tender and honest portrayal of healing from trauma, particularly the bond between the injured girl (Grace) and her horse (Pilgrim), and the journey of these characters to find recovery. In the beginning, we see how the tragic accident has severely traumatized both Grace and Pilgrim.

Throughout the film, Tom Booker works with both of them as Grace slowly begins to heal and regain her trust with Pilgrim again. “The Horse Whisperer” can also be really

empowering, especially when we see Booker  giving Grave jobs on the ranch, which helps give her strength. And slight spoiler here, when we see Grace able to connect with Pilgrim and ride again is simply emotional.

“The Horse Whisperer” does an incredible job exploring themes of healing, trauma and the profound connection between humans and animals. This film also does an astounding job with its incredibly sensitive portrayal of grief, redemption and the search for a more meaningful life.

The 1998 Robert Redford film is a well-crafted feature about healing and courage that also delivers great performances (especially from a young Scarlett Johansson and Redford). “The Horse Whisperer”, which can be a little slow-paced at times, ended up becoming a commercial success, grossing over $186 million worldwide ($74 million domestically).

Trivia: Robert Redford acquired the screen rights to Nick Evan’s book before the novel was even published. The main character, according to writer Nicholas Evans, is modeled after horse whisperers Tom Dorrance, Ray Hunt, and in particular, their younger disciple Buck Brannaman. Brannaman also doubled for Redford in the film and served as a consultant.

MPA: Rated PG-13 for a disturbing accident scene   (runtime 169 minutes)

While the film isn’t available on Tubi as I’m writing this (the film was taken off Tubi shortly after I watched it), “The Horse Whisperer” is also available to rent on various PVOD platforms!

• Robert Redford acquired the screen rights to Nick Evans' book before the novel was published.

• This movie was filmed in the same area as another Robert Redford movie, A River Runs Through It (1992), up the Boulder Valley, south of a small Montana town called Big Timber.

• This was the first movie directed by Robert Redford in which he appeared on-screen. However, he previously served as the narrator of A River Runs Through It (1992).

• Listed in the closing credits as "Equine Technical Advisor" is a man named Buck Brannaman. He's the subject of a documentary titled Buck (2011), which relates his own troubled past and how he became a "horse whisperer". In this movie movie, there's a picture of Buck and his brother Smokie Brannaman in the montage of old family photos during a scene at the Booker home. It's the one with two young boys with Santa Claus; Buck is the boy on the left.

• Although Scarlett Johansson got an "introducing" credit on this movie, it was actually her seventh role in a feature film.

• Natalie Portman withdrew from the starring role in this movie to appear in "The Diary of Anne Frank" on Broadway instead.

• "Horse whispering" is somewhat of a misnomer. Native Americans would sometimes tame a horse by jumping on its back and biting its ear to make it stop bucking (the pain would be worse if the rider's teeth were jerked by the horse's head). Some observers misunderstood what was happening and assumed the rider was whispering in the horse's ear to calm it.