Overall Rating:
Score: 8/10
Grade: A-
Family-Friendliness Scale: Level 4 (Great)
Kids ages 6+
The life of a horse, definitely one of ups and downs.
That's what its' like for Beauty. A beautiful black horse who constantly is being moved from home to home, and making friends and enemies for himself. But the one thing he wishes for more than anything is to find a permanent home with a loving family...
Based on the classic novel by Anna Sewel, this adaptation tells Beauty's story through his perspective.
Positive Notes
I read Black Beauty back in first grade, and I must say that this adaptation is very faithful to the story. It captures the themes of love and betrayal with emotional sincerity, and the way it is illustrated from the horse's perspective allows us to get to know the character and relate to him in some ways.
There are some positive messages on friendship, kindness, loyalty and bravery. While the humans aren't as attentive as Beauty is, the horse does anything to make sure his masters are safe from danger. Ginger, his best friend, learns from Beauty that there is much more to life than being angry.
For a 1994 movie, the cinematography is absolutely brilliant. It captures the British/Scottish countryside with extreme precision. The trainers did an excellent job making the horses do human-like expressions. Alan Cumming, who narrates and voices Beauty, makes the character more realistic, sincere, and honest.
Despite the horses taking up a lot of screentime, we also get enough time to get to know the humans as well, who are portrayed with very realistic emotions and attitudes.
Negative Notes
Black Beauty also has another important point.....the sadness of animal abuse. And despite it carrying a G rating, we see horses starving, falling over, whipped, and we see one dead horse being carried away by a cart. This theme will need to be discussed with younger kids, as it might be a bit too intense for them. We also hear a couple of other emotional themes, such as a mistress being very ill, and a poor family's Dad having lung problems.
Very mild language is limited to one use of the British profanity "bloody" and a few misues of God's name. We also hear a couple of mild insults with "idiot" and "fool". There are also a few danger scenes, such as a barn burning to the ground with humans saving animals, and a human falling into a raging river when a bridge breaks. A few people are seen inebriated, including one who drives Beauty to his breaking point, and a couple of other people are seen smoking pipes. One brief toilet humor gag.
Conclusion
Horse movies are always somewhat more emotional than what we think they are. And Beauty is no different. Its' got engaging characters and fantastic camera-work, that allow us to be immersed in the realistic world of the book. The novel's hardships and triumphs are cleverly and excellently illustrated, something author Anna Sewel wouldn't have even imagined to see (she passed away towards the end of the 1800's).
If she were alive today though, she'd be incredibly happy to see her work come alive.
For a movie that's aimed at families, the movie is very light on any problematic content. The only real minor issue for the younger colts in the audience is the films' saddening (though not nearly as graphic as it could've been) look at the mistreatment of horses.
Altogether, Beauty is a great movie that relies on more emotional depth than similar films, and its' all told through a horse's own eyes...
