Hidalgo

[MacGuffin]

Trailer here.

Cast: Viggo Mortensen (Frank T. Hopkins), Malcolm McDowell, Omar Sharif (The Shiek), Zuleikha Robinson (Jazira), Said Taghmaoui (Prince Bin al Reeh), Adam Alexi-Malle (Aziz), Elizabeth Berridge (Annie Oakley), Adoni Maropis (Sakr), Louise Lombard (Lady Anne Davenport), Peter Mensah (Jaffa), David Midthunder (Black Coyote), Sven-Ole Thorsen.

Director: Joe Johnston (Jurassic Park III, October Sky, Jumanji, The Rocketeer, Honey, I Shrunk the Kids)

Screenwriter: John Fusco (Thunderheart, Young Guns, Young Guns II, Loch Ness, The Babe, Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron).

Premise: Set in 1890, this is the story of a Pony Express courier (Mortensen) who travels to Saudi Arabia to compete with his horse, Hidalgo, in a dangerous race for a massive contest prize, in an adventure that sends the pair around the world. Reportedly based on a true story. (Omar Sharif plays an Arabian sheik; Robinson plays the sheik's daughter who helps Hopkins during the race; Mensah plays her bodyguard, an Abyssinian slave)

[Pubrick]

well this is stupid.

[phil marlowe]

viggo must have been offered a billion good projects after lotr and yet he chose this. ONLY this.

[modage]

poor movie.  no one wants to talk about it.  it looks like Lawrence of Arabia meets Seabiscuit!  i'll rent it, (although it looks like more of a big screen movie, deserts, sweeping vistas and all.)

[Kal]

I just saw they spent a hell of a lot of money making this film and I dont think they'll get it back with the theatrical...

fucking mel gibson

[Redlum]

I think it has a cool Cannonball Run thing, going for it.

Maybe I'm just getting desperate. This is my nearest cinema's lineup.

SPECIAL ADVANCED PREVIEW -
MONA LISA SMILE *
ALONG CAME POLLY *    
THE HAUNTED MANSION  
LOONEY TOONS: BACK IN ACTION *  
TORQUE *  
Saturday Kids Club -
FREAKY FRIDAY  

[Gloria]

I just saw this movie and was extremely disappointed.  This movie was stuffed with too many subjects and plot-points, so it just became cluttered and the subjects brought up were underdeveloped.  This movie is going to do nothing for Viggo's career, because he gives an extremely cliche performance that didn't show the charm he had in LotR.  This story had too much Raiders of the Lost Ark going on, so the race seemed secondary to the abundance of fighting and Viggo saying cliche cowboy lingo (that seemed to come so unnaturally to him.) So much of this movie reminded me of The Last Samurai, but without Ken Watanabe....this whole movie just fell flat and I found myself extremely bored with its inconsistancies and choppy story-telling. The best thing about this movie were the beautiful horses and seeing Omar Sharif's casual charisma. But sadly, it was really wasted on this bloated movie.

[cine]

I think I would see this if there was a scene where Malcolm McDowell puts Viggo Mortensen in eye clamps and subjects him to the Triumph of the Will.

[Chest Rockwell]

Saw this yesterday. It was OK. I have a feeling a lot of it was made much more heroic than it was in real life. I didn't really expect a whole lot out of it so I can't say it disappointed me. I'd probably give it **.

Triumph of the Will

I want to see that soooo much.