Astride the White Horse and so Into The West...
September 11th 2006 15:24
If you go west across Ireland… across the land of the horse… you will reach
the unruly Atlantic Ocean, and if you have seen the film that is Into the West you may look for an imposing white horse in the surf. If you see it, unlikely as it is that you will, you will be looking at an ancient Irish myth. This is the horse of Tir na nOg, who represents the land of eternal youth, and in 1993 a charming Irish film took this horse out of the surf and into the hands of two young traveller boys.
Most who see the film will know little about Irish myth or legend, but will know more about the magic of the white horse by the end of it. The magical animal is found astray by a roaming gypsy and led to the depths of Dublin where he takes the destiny of two young boys upon his back and leads them to where they came from – the land.
The film is an enchanting and childish adventure across Ireland from the high towers of the capital to the wild and purple hills of the west where the horse and his legends begin. And that white horse?
Across many cultures the white horse is wrapped in folklore, carrying a princess or king or the guardian of a hidden kingdom like Tir na nOg. He is not usually the fiery beast with an unimaginable wildness like The Black Stallion, but a wise equine of poise and quietude shrouded in majesty that is reflected in his colour. Which is strange, because if you know horses you know there is no such thing as a white horse. A horse of this colour is always grey, but grey is not so regal in myth!
Winston Churchill was fantastic when he mused
Guinness knew it when they won advert of the year with their white horses in the surf, and the producers of Into The West knew it too. Their vision of the white horse on the beach will make the imagination of all forever young.
Image from Into The West 1993
The two boys
The film is an enchanting and childish adventure across Ireland from the high towers of the capital to the wild and purple hills of the west where the horse and his legends begin. And that white horse?
Across many cultures the white horse is wrapped in folklore, carrying a princess or king or the guardian of a hidden kingdom like Tir na nOg. He is not usually the fiery beast with an unimaginable wildness like The Black Stallion, but a wise equine of poise and quietude shrouded in majesty that is reflected in his colour. Which is strange, because if you know horses you know there is no such thing as a white horse. A horse of this colour is always grey, but grey is not so regal in myth!
Winston Churchill was fantastic when he mused
“there is something about the outside of a horse that is good for the inside of a man”.
Guinness knew it when they won advert of the year with their white horses in the surf, and the producers of Into The West knew it too. Their vision of the white horse on the beach will make the imagination of all forever young.
Thank you to the following sources for information and images on Into The West.
The Irish Film Board
IMDB film site
The Irish Film Board
IMDB film site
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