The Black Stallion

Riding on the heels (hooves?) of White Mane, I really wanted the kids to see a favorite horse movie from my own childhood, The Black Stallion. Released in 1979, the film is based on Walter Farley’s classic book series of the same name. Legendary film critic Pauline Kael once said, The Black Stallion “may be the greatest children's movie ever made.” And while such claims are always arguable, one can’t deny this movie is stunningly beautiful, well acted, and truly captivating.

Set in 1946, the story begins on a cruise ship sailing off the coast of North Africa. Wandering the ship at night while his father plays cards, a young passenger named Alec discovers a black horse onboard in a makeshift stable. The horse bucks and fights against his rope restraints, held by a group of shouting men. Alec later brings the horse some sugar cubes, pushing them through a small window. The men are gone, and the wild horse gently takes Alec’s offering.

Later that evening, Alec and his father are awakened when the ship begins to pitch and fill with water. A fire breaks out onboard, and in the chaos Alec cuts the horse free from its restraints, the horse jumps overboard, and Alec himself is thrown from the ship. Struggling in the dark waters, illuminated by the raging fire, Alec grabs on to the horse’s ropes, while in the background the burning ship goes down.

This was definitely a frightening scene for the kids, especially when Alec becomes separated from his father, who is trying to help him to safety, but also feels compelled to help put out the fire. Some may find the opening scenes too scary for their kids, in which case you can always fast forward.

We watched the whole scene, and to me the most disturbing part was when one of the men who had been restraining the horse violently snatches Alec’s life vest from him—a true “bad guy” move. Also problematic about this scene: The guy is Arab, wears a turban, and I am sensitive to the kids’ exposure to portrayals of people of different races or cultures as evil. Note to self: Find positive portrayals of Arab people in other films.

In the end, Alec and the horse are the only survivors from the ship, and both end up on a deserted island. So begins the best part of this film, and what I most remember from watching it as a child over 30 years ago. Alec must contend with the loss of his father, his aloneness, and his need to survive in a completely foreign environment. Wandering the island, he discovers the stallion caught up in its own ropes among rocks. Alec again frees the stallion and it runs off. The scenes that follow show Alec’s patient, clever, and gentle efforts to tame the stallion, set against the stunning natural backdrop of the island.

As Alec is alone, there is no dialogue for a long section of the film, and compared to many children’s films, the pacing is slow—beautifully slow. The cinematography during the island scenes is gorgeous, with very memorable scenes of Alec and the stallion running together along the beach, and one especially exciting scene where the stallion rescues Alec from a deadly cobra.

Finally, Alec is rescued by some fishermen and insists that the horse come with him. He returns home to his mother in the U.S., and another chapter begins as he befriends a retired jockey (Mickey Rooney), who trains Alec and his horse (whom he names “The Black”) to race. The second half of the film, while also shot and acted with skill, unfolds with a fairly predictable story, a highly implausible race in which the young boy, in a mask, rides “the mystery horse” and (you guessed it) wins!

I found my attention waning, but the kids were enthralled. I don’t think either of them had ever seen a horse race, even on TV, so this was very exciting to them, as was the idea of young Alec working hard and training to compete with far more experienced adults.

But most importantly, as in White Mane, the friendship between boy and horse in The Black Stallion is well developed and offers a touching and compelling story that I imagine all kids would enjoy and relate to.

In fact, I’d better watch out with the horse movies, or requests for riding lessons may be in our future!