DON'T BE A HORSE'S PATOOT -- SEE THIS MOVIE!

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THE BLACK STALLION
directed by Carroll Ballard; starring Mickey Rooney & Kelly Reno
1979
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You don't want to miss out on this wonderful family film about a boy and his dog. The fact that Caleb Deschanel was not even nominated-- Huh? ...A horse? Oh, yes! A horse, of course. A wonderful family film about a boy and his horse.
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The fact that Caleb Deschanel was not even nominated for an Oscar for his extraordinary cinematography in THE BLACK STALLION goes to prove what a dog and pony show the Academy Award presentations really are. (Dang! How'd that little dog sneak back in here again?) Deschanel's poetic work in this film belongs in an elite class which also includes KOYAANISQATSI and ONE FROM THE HEART.
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Kelly Reno's work also belongs in an elite class of highly developed performances by child actors, which also includes Bobs Watson in ON BORROWED TIME, and Haley Joel Osment in THE SIXTH SENSE.
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But what I really want to focus on with this review is something that only my fellow reviewer Candace Scott seemed to fully appreciate and noted in her July 3, 2003 assessment:
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I was fortunate enough to have been given the opportunity to do a little (VERY little) professional acting in the late l970s and early '80s. It was a craft that I took very seriously and studied for many years. Having learned a bit about it, I wish to say that MICKEY ROONEY's naturalistic performance in this movie is one of the finest ever filmed! I watch THE BLACK STALLION every couple of years and end up slack-jawed every time!
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In acting there is something known as "False Notes", and these occur when a performer falls out of character and/or plays to the camera or audience. Even the greatest of thespians are guilty of committing False Notes in every performance. MICKEY's performance as horse trainer Henry Dailey may be the only PERFECT performance I have ever seen.
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Does it seem like he just isn't doing much? Does it seem like he's hardly even acting? EXACTLY!!! The viewer simply can't catch him "acting", and that's the whole point! His actions, his reactions, and his speech patterns are so organic to the character he's playing that he really ISN'T acting -- he's BEING! He's Henry Dailey IN THE MOMENT! He may have played a False Note for a brief moment in the scene where he reassures Alec who sits on the car bumper in the rain-soaked night. Maybe. Just maybe. It's arguable. I've seen many an extraordinary performance in my 57 years, but this one is really something special. There are many excellent reasons to see this film, but Mickey is the best of them. At least for me.
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I suppose I should mention the movie's one notable flaw even though it is of such little consequence: The editing in the horse race always disturbs me a little. As they cut from the long establishing shot to the thundering hooves, and then back to the long shots, it leaves the false impression that "The Black" changes his position in the field of horses a couple of times. (As if he's closed on the leader, and then fallen back again.) But c'mon, are we gonna let a little detail like that spoil such an overall artistic success for us? No way! The bottom line is: THE BLACK STALLION is a real winner -- you can bet on it!
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~ Stephen T. McCarthy
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