52 of 54 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Breathtaking cinematography and beautiful horses., February 4, 1999
By A Customer
I read the book many years ago in 6th grade and it is still one of my all-time favorites. Unfortunately, it is out of print and very hard to find, even in Australia. This movie follows the main story line of the book, but from a more human viewpoint. It chronicles the writing of the book with scenes of the author, Elyne Mitchell, and her daughter interspersed with the scenes of the story and the horses it chronicles. I would have preferred to have more of the horse story and less of the human one (hence the 4 star rating.) If you liked "The Man from Snowy River", also based on the book by Elyne Mitchell, or just like to watch gorgeous horses running through beautiful scenery, you'll love this one.
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41 of 43 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
More likely to appeal to children than adults., September 8, 2006
This review is from: The Silver Stallion (DVD)
Based on the book "The Silver Brumby" by Elyne Mitchell, "The Silver Stallion" opens during a storm, with a mother composing a story to comfort her daughter, Indi. She tells of the birth of Thowra, a palomino brumby in the high country of Australia's outback, named after the wind. As Thowra grows into a magnificent young stallion, he catches the attention of local ranchers, intent on capturing the beautifully-colored horse. One man in particular (played by a young Russell Crowe), becomes obsessed with the hunt. But the more intent he is on catching the stallion, the more maddeningly cunning and elusive Thowra becomes.
The film switches back and forth between the story of Indi and her mother, and the tale of Thowra himself, with Indi's mother narrating. Eventually we find that the two stories are more interconnected than they seem at first. Unfortunately, neither story has a very strong plotline. Crowe's character's pursuit of Thowra can be boiled down to a series of chase scenes, punctuated by rivalry between stallions of neighboring brumby herds, while the action between Indi and her mother consists of the girl continuously pestering her mother to divulge the next chapter, with a seemingly unrelated side-story about an injured wallaby thrown in for good measure.
As other reviewers have pointed out, this is not "The Man From Snowy River." The horses are anthropomorphized a bit too much for my tastes, and the acting tends toward cheesiness at times, though not so much as to be unbelievable. The soundtrack - often taking on a chanting quality that grows more intense as each chase scene progresses - is rather melodramatic, occasionally even disturbing by its overbearing nature. Nevertheless, while this film fails to really impress me as an adult, I'm pretty sure I would have loved it as a child. The horses are beautiful, and the theme of a cunning animal hero consistently outwitting the "bad guys" is just what most children will love.
The DVD itself, unfortunately, leaves much to be desired. The movie is presented only in fullscreen format, and though the cinematography and picture quality themselves are not top quality, the shots of the Australian high country would have been much more breathtaking in a widescreen presentation. There are also no special features whatsoever. In summation, I'd recommend this film primarily to families with younger children, especially those that love horses. Children will likely find the story exciting and the horses endearing. But even at a mere 93 minutes in length, it doesn't offer much to hold the attention of adult viewers.
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26 of 26 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Thorwa Lives On!, July 2, 2000
By A Customer
Two words: See it! It's the best movie yet! I've watched it a total of 11 times, and it NEVER get's boring. With the breath taking scence, and horses this is a MUST movie. You look through the eyes of a horse. ( Which I must say is very wonderful touch to this movie ) It's ending leaves you in question and a smile or a tear or two. But it also leaves you wanting to see it again and AGAIN!
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