The Movie Horses
October 2nd 2006 14:35
Daredevil in Sleepy Hollow (1999)
Horses don’t make a fortune for themselves on the silver screen, but that isn’t to say that some of them are not stars. Great horse movies of our time and times gone have pushed good horses to great stardom, like The Black Stallion’s Cass Ole, and if you watch closely you might notice these same horses time and time again.
It was the Westerns that started the trend of re-using the same horses for different films, horses that bore a striking appearance on screen and were easy to handle. Some were good, and some were so special they were billed with as much intensity as their human counterparts. These days, horse movies are usually just movies with horses.
The charging black horse seen under Russell Crowe in early scenes of Gladiator is a commanding Andalusian from Seville in Spain who is one of
An impressive duo in Gladiator (2000)
And so the black horse rides again, this time in the remake of the children’s classic Black Beauty. The film’s 1994 version featured an American Quarter Horse called Doc’s Keepin Time, or Justin for short. Justin began his career as the lead in the TV series The Black Stallion before his role as Black Beauty in 1994. Tuned to film work by master Rex Peterson the two have commanded big performances on many films, including the role of Gulliver in The Horse Whisperer. And it was this film that bore one of the biggest equine stars in Hollywood, a chestnut Quarter Horse by the name of Hightower who starred as the deeply troubled but beautifully educated Pilgrim. Hightower possesses perhaps the most impressive résumé with leads in not only The Horse Whisperer but as ginger in Black Beauty, and as Julia Roberts’ mount in Runaway Bride. In fact Roberts was so taken by the horse during filming that when it came to the final shoot she demanded the horse be flown by FedEx across America rather than ride a substitute.
Mortensen (left) went through extensive riding lessons with trainer Rex Peterson (right) on the set of Hidalgo (2004)
Great horses are many, but a great film horse is few. The training and the stunt work required of an equine star demands a particular constitution and as with any screen star, good looks go a long way! The success of a film horse is largely the success of its handler, and there are some great names in film work - Rex Peterson, Corky Randall, and Australia’s own Heath Harris. Without a doubt the films named above would be nothing without their horses.
Image from Hidalgo Photo Credit: Richard Cartwright. Permission is hereby granted to reproduce this picture on the condition it is used in connection with direct publicity for the movie in which it appears and that it is accompanied by "© 2004 Buena Vista Pictures Distribution. All rights reserved."
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Comment by Sonya O
I'm guessing these horses are being ridden by stunt men most of the time? How to you 'fed ex' a horse!
Comment by JessO
The Tack Room
No Andalusians in this film. They were all Freisians, Morgans and Thoroughbred crosses!
Comment by Sonya O
Who owns these horses, private individuals who contract animals to films etc?
Comment by JessO
The Tack Room
Nowadays, the westerns are few and far between, and as I've written the same superstar horses are used again and again in varying roles. I suppose that is the consequence of air travel, fed-ex (!) and modern horse transport. Horses can be sent anywhere and quickly. And many of them would be owned by the masters of horse on that particular film, so in a way not much has changed - the super stars are still in the hands of a small few!
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Comment by JessO
The Tack Room
Comment by Movie Queen
Best,
Genie
Comment by Anonymous
xxx
Comment by Myta