Unlike TV shows that are popped out week after week, it takes a long time for movies to make it from initial concept to finished product. Accordingly, it's always a gamble - and usually an expensive one at that - to undertake such an endeavor. That's particularly true when external forces - other similar films or public opinion and/or desires - could influence viewer and critical reaction to one's effort.
Such could be the case with "Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron" and the state of traditional, hand-drawn animated films in general. Put into production before public sentiment apparently switched over to computer-generated kids films and made pictures like "Shrek," "Monsters, Inc." and "Ice Age" hits and left others such as "Atlantis" and "Titan A.E." as disappointments and outright failures respectively, this film's fate was impossible to predict upon its release.
The film ended up grossing a respectable if not exactly spectacular $73 million at the domestic box office. Part of that could have stemmed from the fact that none of the featured animals speak outright, although we hear the retrospective thoughts of the titular steed as voiced by Matt Damon ("The Bourne Identity," "All the Pretty Horses"). In addition, there's only one brief kid sighting and no sidekicks, while very little humor is present, particularly of the zany kind that's often presumed to be what kids want to see.
Of course, not all kids films have to posses all or any of that, and much like other recent animated fare, this one isn't completely hand drawn as the backgrounds have received the computerized treatment. In fact, this is probably the most visually appealing "traditional" animated film to be released in some time. While the characters lack the depth found in computer-animated flicks (as far as appearing three-dimensional), the film is a sumptuous piece of eye candy for kids and adults alike.
Pretty pictures alone obviously don't make for great or even good films, however, and so this one sets out to tell the tale of a horse and his varying and occasionally perilous encounters with the white man and his expansionistic behavior stemming from Manifest Destiny.
As helmed by Kelly Asbury and Lorna Cook - who make their collective directorial debut and work from a script by John Fusco ("Thunderheart," "Young Guns") - the adventure story is rather simple and straightforward - all the better to play to the young target audience - and bears a striking resemblance to "Running Free." In that live-action animal flick from 2000, a young horse - given thought-based narration by Lukas Haas - suddenly finds himself alone in an abandoned African railroad town and then has various adventurous encounters as he tries to make his way through the countryside.
Few people, let alone kids, saw that film as such live-action efforts played sans comedy or talking animals don't greatly appeal to younger or older viewers in this day and age. This effort, however, benefits from being animated - being more visually appealing to the youngster and allowing the horses to possess some human characteristics and facial expressions - as well as possessing a far better sense of straightforward action and adventure.
In fact, in the truest sense of what a movie is - namely, a story told with pictures - this is a near perfect example of such storytelling. Since so little dialogue exists anyway, one could easily turn off the sound and still follow and be entertained by the story and its various adventurous moments. In that sense, the film, or at least parts of it, comes off as something of an Indiana Jones flick with an animated horse taking over Mr. Ford's part.
Turning off the sound would also deliver the benefit of not having to listen to the many songs so forcefully sung by Brian Adams. While the score by composer Hans Zimmer ("Black Hawk Down," "Pearl Harbor") is certainly pleasing to the ear, Adams' various ditties are far too obvious and on the nose in reinforcing any given scene's emotional sense.
Many kids obviously won't pay attention to or understand the lyrics, while most adults will find them superfluous and redundant. While Adams's fans will probably enjoy hearing the singer making something of a comeback with his effort here, the songs easily could have been jettisoned with no ill effect (although it would have been harder to promote and sell the accompanying soundtrack without a recognizable name attached to it).
As far as the rest of the audio is concerned, Damon lends a recognizable voice to the horse's thoughts, while the likes of James Cromwell ("The Sum of All Fears," "Babe") and Daniel Studi (the TV movie "Crazy Horse") deliver solid vocal work in their supporting roles.
Other than the fact that it might be too politically correct for some viewers - all of the white men are villains of one sort or another - and a late in the game forest fire spreads far too rapidly to be realistic - the film succeeds in what it's trying to achieve. Namely, that's being an effective action adventure flick where the hero is an animated steed.
Entertaining for kids (as long as it doesn't scare them) and thankfully short for adults, the film is by no means an animated classic, but it certainly delivers the goods.
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