Hidalgo
is the based-on-true-events tale of Frank T. Hopkins (Mortensen),
who is known as the greatest long distance horse racer ever. Frank
is basically a drunken circus clown when he receives a challenge
to race across the Ocean of Fire. It seems that the Arabs believe
their horses to be of the purest breeding as well as the fastest
in the world. With nothing to lose, Hopkins
crosses the ocean to face his deadliest challenge yet.
CRITIQUE
A lot of things
work in Hidalgo;
unfortunately that’s because its plot is composed of recycled
material from other films. Its cinematography resembles that of
The Mummy, the plot revolves around an underdog horse which
you’ll remember from last summer’s Seabiscuit, and it has a
healthy dose of the east meets west conventions found in a number
of movies with nearly all of the recent Jackie Chan movies coming
to mind.
What is fresh about
this movie? Honestly, not much. Everything feels contrived, as if
Director Joe Johnston was following a recipe for success: big budget,
epic plot, bankable star (Viggo Mortensen fresh off the LOTR
trilogy), lovable animals, shoot, market and watch the money come in.
Too bad (or luckily) making a successful movie isn’t always that easy.
Hidalgo
as a film lacks the heart that makes Hidalgo the horse the most interesting character of the movie.
Viggo doesn’t
convince me in the role of Frank Hopkins. I’ve seen enough of him in
this sort of role in the Lord of the Rings trilogy. He simply
went from a shaggy beard and armor to a cowboy hat and in the process
lost his great supporting cast. Instead of speaking Elvish, he speaks
Native American. The rest of the cast of Hidalgo need not be mentioned. The supporting performances,
from the English speaking Arabs to the “Christian Woman” do not bear
merit, and not one of the characters are memorable or worthy of
carrying a viewer’s emotions.
What it lacks in
plot, it doesn’t make up for with crafty filmmaking. Much of the
cinematography is striking; however this is due to the fact that
Hidalgo was shot on location in the desert which is an
impressive feat in and of itself.
By the end of the
film, viewers have been so inundated with clues as to what Johnston is
getting at, that it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to realize that
Hidalgo known as the “painted horse” also referred to as “mixed blood”
represents the melting pot of America, and that heart and will goes
further than breeding. A mute point, but it does give the film a
second layer, making it not entirely one dimensional. This point
almost makes one feel good about being an American; however another
aspect of the film deals with Hopkins coming to terms with the fact
that he is part Native American. This leads to scenes of the United
States’ horrific treatment of this culture.
I found myself
routing for Hidalgo to be the first to cross the finish line at the
end of the film, but this was more from the instinctive urge to see
the underdog win rather than out of any connection to the characters,
and may also have stemmed from my wish for a speedy end to the movie.
THE VIDEO
Hidalgo
is presented in Widescreen (2.35:1) enhanced for 16x9 televisions.
The image was clear as day. Very nice transfer, no blemishes. The
cinematography is beautiful as stated above, I’m sure this DVD
will be played in Best Buy locations across the nation to sell
their televisions based on the images.
THE AUDIO
Hidalgo
is presented in DTS 5.1 Surround Sound, Dolby Digital 5.1
Surround Sound; it is THX-certified and includes THX optimizer.
The audio is awesome for this film; it encompassed the room and
really made use of the home theater surround sound system.
THE EXTRAS
Sand &
Celluloid Making of featurette:
This is the usual behind the scenes documentary that is included
with nearly every DVD today. The most interesting information
here is that the film was shot on location, 800 horses were
used, and extra horses had to be painted to look like the main
horse used as Hidalgo.
Look for Director Joe Johnston to say that making this film was
similar to what Hopkins must have gone through in his race which
nearly cost him his life, and took the lives of at least eleven
others as they raced through the desert with little food and
water while people shot at them and the occasional quick-sand
engulfed them. Hmmm, filmmaking is much more difficult than I
realized. Also a comment that sets were built with environment
friendly mud, lime and water –and- cut to a view of at least a
dozen semis in the middle of the desert; that’s what I call
environmentally friendly!
America’s First Horse: This extra requires a computer with a DVD-ROM drive, unfortunately my
computer is equipped with a lowly CD-RW drive and I am unable to
access this feature.
However I did find
a hidden feature, or Easter egg. On the Special Features menu
screen scroll down past all the options, you’ll notice on the bottom
of the page, on the left and the right-hand corners, the cross in the
circle that was on Hopkins flag during the last scene of the race. If
you scroll down, the one on the left will turn yellow, click enter and
enjoy some interviews with Native Americans who tell what they know of
the legend of Frank T. Hopkins and Hidalgo. The extra feature ends
with Viggo himself walking a horse and describing his feelings towards
horses after working with them in so many films.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Hidalgo
is a light film that is painless to watch, however it doesn’t have the
great action sequences required to make a film enjoyable when it lacks
in the thought provoking department. The scarce DVD extras don’t make
the film any more watchable, and it definitely is not necessary to add
this one to your home movie collection.
