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Adapted from the beloved novel by Walter Farley, this 1979 family classic was hailed by no less than hard-to-please critic Pauline Kael, who wrote that "it may be the greatest children's movie ever made." A visual feast from start to finish, the timeless tale of The Black Stallion plays out on almost mythic terms. A young boy survives a shipwreck and is stranded on a deserted island with a graceful black stallion, with whom the boy develops an almost empathic friendship. After being rescued and returning home, the two make a winning team as jockey and lightning-fast racehorse under the tutelage of a passionate trainer, played by Mickey Rooney in an Oscar-nominated role. From its serenely hypnotic island sequence to the breathtaking race scenes, this delightful film is guaranteed to enthrall any viewer, regardless of age. The Black Stallion is a genuine masterpiece of family entertainment. --Jeff Shannon ... Read more

Reviews (53)

The most magical childrens' (& adults') movie ever made!
I have been completely enchanted with The Black Stallion since first seeing this movie in the theater at the age of 7 and then having the opportunity to meet Cass Ole in Washington, D.C. shortly thereafter. I remember being the first in line to have my picture taken with that horse!

I have never seen a movie more beautifully filmed. From start to finish you will be riveted during the trauma of the sinking freighter, the desert island scene (about 45 minutes with no speaking - you will be amazed at well they pull this off!), The Black's homecoming to New York and the final race.

I still watch this movie on occassion and my heart beats harder each time as Alec and The Black are rescued from the island and during the race. Still, my favorite scene is during the final credits where we return to the island and see Alec and The Black playing together and rolling in the sand on the beach as the most beautifully reminiscent music plays.

This is the stuff dreams are made of - I have always wanted to be Kelly Reno on that island!

Cinematography and visual storytelling at its best
If you can get past the labelling of "children's story" or "melodramatic fable", The Black Stallion has the kind of stunning filmwork reserved only for the grandest epics. The first half of the movie -- about a boy and horse shipwrecked on a small island -- is basically a silent movie. It is a story of friendship and trust that is told without the benefit of dialog. Deschanel's wonderful cinematography conveys both the island's beauty and Farley's storytelling without becoming maudlin or trite. The still photography alone brings to mind Adams, and the haunting score is near perfect for the occasion. The second half of the film reverts back to a formulaic Nerd-wins-Girl, or in this case, Boy-and-Horse-Win-Big-Race, but the performances are superb and the movie never patronizes to its adult viewers. Predictable ending aside, The Black Stallion is an awesome, visual masterpiece masquerading as a children's movie.

Great flick, poor DVD
The story and the cinematography were excellent. The transfer to DVD was very disappointing. It looked out of focus from time to time, the dark scenes were muddy, and there were film "remnants" in the transfer (scratches, film marks). And the sound, while Dolby, was 2.0 which was rather disappointing, too.
This isn't too recommend against it, just beware, it isn't the great audio/visual feast that it could be.

DON'T BE A HORSE'S PATOOT - SEE THIS MOVIE!
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 - huh? - a horse? Oh, yes, of course! A horse. A wonderful family film about a boy and his horse. -------- 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 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. -------- 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. -------- 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 note in her July 3, 2003 assessment: 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 I seriously studied for many years, and having learned a bit about it, I'm here 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! -------- 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. 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, his speech patterns are so organic to the character he's playing that it simply floors me!!! 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. MAYBE! It's arguable. I've seen many an extraordinary performance in my (nearly) 45 years, but this one is really something special. (You actors out there know exactly what I'm talking about, don't you?) There are many excellent reasons to see this film, but Mickey is the best of them. At least for me. -------- 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 closeup on the thundering hooves to the long establishing shot and then back again, it leaves the false impression that The Black's position changes in the field of horses. 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!

the girl
i will like a boook on the girl. i will buy it for $5.00 ... Read more

Reviews (24)

Demons 3, The Church, whatever the title, it disappoints
I am a huge Dario Argento fan. His style is just amazing. One day my eyes fell upon The Church because it had the Dario Argento name on it, and finally decided to fork over the money for it because the back stated "originally know as Demons 3", and I loved the first two Demons films and with Argento producing, how could this film goe wrong? It does. The film starts off very promisesing with a great beginning score by Goblin and then switching to knights galloping to a town full of witches. When the film changes to modern day, and then the film falls apart. It's not director Michele Soavi'd fault, he just has very little to work with in Argeno's script. The script just has huge plot holes. So big, that they insult my intellegence. Sometimes people are possessed by demons just because and some because they are scratched (like in the first two demons movies). The church was originally full of children when it was closed up, and suddenly the kids disappear. What was with Asia Argento's character also appearing in a past flashback. People who have seen this know what I mean and those of you about to see it will see what I mean. Sure Demons 2 had plot wholes, but at least it was fun to watch. The Church, sadly doesn't have near the entertainment value. The only thing that keeps the film moving is Michele Soavi's catchy camera work. Otherwise if fails miserably. I've seen the film two times and I can't get forgive some of these mistakes. Michele Soavi has directed some great horror films (Cemetery Man comes to mind), but The Church isn't one of them. Argento fans should buy this with caution. Only buy if you find it cheap or if your a Argento collector. The film just left a bad taste in my mouth.

Was I the only one who gave this a chance?
I don't know why so many people chose to ignore this movie. While I love Fulci and Argento, many critics of Church consider mediocre efforts such as New York Ripper, Phenomena, and Demons to be "Italian Horror Classics". This movie makes those films look like boring puddles of puke.
Sure, there are things wrong with this movie, but I've made a list of reasons why this deserves to be a classic:
1. The church itself is amazing! While many "Catholic Metaphysics" horror films come off as un-researched and exaggerated, this movie seems truly authentic.
2. The style of this film, worked by director Michele Soavi, has the same level of atmospheric moodiness that made movies like "The Beyond" and "Suspiria" classics. Any time you can make the day seem creepy you've done something right.
3. ... horror movies ... because if they aren't plain cheesy, they lack anything distinct and memorable that you could recall ten minutes after watching. (example: New York Ripper)
This film is LOADED with all sorts of creative and twisted gags, I can't even remember all the things that stood out to me while I watched it.
4. It has a crazy score by Goblin (for those uninitiated, sorry)
5. The subject matter and subtle historical references are intriguing and mostly accurate. (I never knew anything about alchemy or Fulcanelli, but now i'm scouring the internet for it)
6. Most "we're trapped in the haunted house" movies reduce themselves to frantic pandemonium reminiscent of the end of "Project X". Soavi shows incredible restraint in using body counts, gore, or cheap predictable pops to maintain the action.
(Although there is gore, and creative gore at that, it doesn't become a crutch)
7. This movie has total party value. Classics work in the context of being home alone at night, and having a bunch of people hanging around drinking beers. Church had my friends saying "Oh ..., rewind that!"
8. The special effects are clever and impressive. I didn't see the climax coming simply because I didn't even think that any film made on a horror budget could afford something that dope.
9. You get to see Asia Argento act as a young kid (even back then, writer Dario Argento had his little girl being menaced by demons and abusive fathers)
10. The failure in the plot doesn't wholly distract you from what's going on. For the most part, the little cracks in the plot help the uneasy feel of the movie, especially when you're watching it at 1 o'clock in the morning.
With respect to the horror experts, I think that many of them have a bias against any Italian horror film that wasn't made during the classic era of Italian horror (Church was made in the 80's, and to be fair, horror movies ... big time in the 80's)
Horror critics have a inclination to like something more if it belongs to a genre, or has a cult name director.
Church is only [money], give it a whirl.

hard ending
First of all i got to say this movie had the best devil ive ever seen in a movie before and it did have some scary scenes espiclly the awsome biggining but i didint get the endning i dont know maybe i just have to see it more i liked it but ive seen better but never a better devil oh and very very hot girls

THE UNSUNG BAVA
For all the hype he has gotten in recent years (some of it, admittedly, well deserved and long overdue), I must say that I find Mario Bava to be an uneven filmmaker at best. The movies of his that I love ("Lisa and the Devil", "Hatchet for the Honeymoon", "Black Sabbath") I REALLY love. The majority of his work, however, leaves me wanting. I understand the historical significance and stylistic influences to be found in flicks like "Twitch of the Death Nerve" and "Black Sunday", I just don't find them particularly engaging. I think Mario's biggest weakness as a filmmaker lay in his almost total lack of storytelling ability. I'm not saying every film has to have a linear narrative. Indeed, "Lisa and the Devil" has anything but traditional narrative structure. I do think, however, that eskewing traditional narrative in favor of a more experimental approach is, by definition, a gamble. And you know how it is with gambling: Sometimes you win. Most times you lose.

Which brings us to the works of Mario's son Lamberto and the movie "The Ogre" in particular. While often lambasted by fans and critics alike for his stylistic debts to dear old dad and mentor Dario Argento, I find Lamberto's opus (while not always as risk-taking) far more consistently entertaining than either of these. This is not to say that the younger Bava does not stretch himself. One look at his resume reveals films running the gamet from psychological horror that would do Roman Polanski proud ("Macabre") to gross-out over-the-top horror/action/comedy hybrids that, twenty years later, should still please fans of the post-Raimi horror scene ("Demons" and "Demons 2") to works of dark fantasy that play like fairy tales come to life. It is in this latter category that I would place "The Ogre". Those looking for the kind of wacky-splatter on display in the two Demons films are strongly advised to look elsewhere. Indeed, I think the linking of this film with those earlier works does all involved a disservice. If you absolutely must see this film as a sequel to something, I advise you to see it under one of it's many other monikers: "Ghosthouse 2". Fans of Umberto Lenzi's original "Ghosthouse" would probably find much more to like here than those who go into this surprisingly gentle yarn expecting severed heads and wall-to-wall viscera. In a way, both films operate on a very similar level. They are both exercises in some well-worn genre trappings. Any fan of horror will almost immediately guess where both films are headed. Nonetheless, both manage to bring a sense of wonder and joy to the proceedings as well as a few new artistic flourishes that you may not see elsewhere. I would say "The Ogre" fares much better than "Ghosthouse" in terms of cinematography and production design. It is a beautiful looking film and, if given the chance, a very good old-style monster movie. Give it a shot.

Below my expectations.....
When I heard about this movie, I wanted to watch it for it's name alone, I felt nervous watching it because I thought it was going to be as frightening as other horror films involving religion. Now, the acting is very good, the scenery is amazing and eerie, it's what I expected to look like when I saw the cover of it. There is plenty of gore and in very gruesome ways, the subway scene is historic! There is one scene from this movie that is a really famous painting, let's see if you will know what scene I'm talking about. I liked the ending of the movie, it's a real twist, but I was expecting alot more. I kept saying to myself, this has to be the scene where the dead rise! But there are no zombies in this movie so don't expect any, there's alot of de javu in this, but I really expected more, like a battle between good and evil. The atmosphere couldn't have been any better, if you're a horror fan wanting to watch something different, with a really creepy atmosphere watch this movie. If you're looking for a horror movie with tons of action, look elsewhere, though this was fun to watch it leave me wanting to know more about what happened, that's probably the reason I wasn't too satisfied with it, because it leaves you wanting something. Oh and here's some advice, never go into a church with metal doors. ... Read more

Reviews (76)

Suspenseful, dark and delightful.
Alex (Heath Ledger) a rebellious priest from a disappearing fringe of Catholicism goes to Rome to determine the cause of the mysterious death of Dominic, his excommunicated mentor. He is accompanied in his quest by Mara (Shannyn Sossamon), a troubled love who just escaped an institution for the mentally ill and by Thomas (Mark Addy), the other living priest of his church. Together and with the help of a Cardinal (Peter Weller) and a murky and devious character named Chirac, he discovers that a Sin Eater, a person capable of absorbing someone else's sins thus granting them entry to the kingdom of Heaven over God's back, was behind the death of Dominic. When the church refuses Dominic a burial in holy ground, Alex, who is supposed to kill the Sin Eater under the Cardinal's suggestion, is instead lured by him to find the truth and understand the meaning of what he does. Then the conflict between Alex's beliefs and desires begins.

This movie has a well-assembled cast (some returning actors from Brian Helgeland's previous movie A Knight's Tale) and great acting throughout, specially from Ledger and Weller. It has a tight-written, coherent script with wonderful character interactions, great moody music and very-well placed and never overdone special effects. The best thing this movie offers though, is a subconscious lingering question about the darkness that surrounds us, be it as sin, demons, or other supernatural beings. In this regard this movie is more suspenseful and scarier than the best of horror movies.

Watch it, pay attention and enjoy.

OUT OF ORDER
Brian Helgeland the director has given us this film, A KNIGHT'S TALE and Mel Gibson's PAYBACK. Helgeland the writer has given us MYSTIC RIVER and LA CONFIDENTIAL. Maybe he should stick to writing, as his screenplay for this movie is so shoddily written, it makes the film incoherent, dull, laughable and ultimately unsatisfying.
Helgeland has reunited three of his stars from A KNIGHTS TALE: Heath Ledger, Mark Addy and Shannon Sossamyn. Ledger and Sossamyn have the looks to be stars; Addy has the buddy support syndrome down pretty pat.
Now, what this film is about ultimately is a person called a "Sin Eater." This mysterious figure eats the sins of those who have been ostracized or condemned by the church, but one never knows whether this is a good or bad character. Helgeland's script also numbs this. The inclusion of the little boy and girl demons is never explained; there are some really dull sequences and the strange bar in the Vatican wholly incredible.
Peter Weller's bald cardinal wants to be Pope is also poorly written and mediocrally performed.
Ledger has one very effective scene that occurs with the apparent suicide of his love. It's the strongest acting moment in the film.
Sossamyn is beautiful for sure, and plays her strange part rather well (why did she try to kill Ledger? It's never fully explained).
Addy and Ledger's chemistry is not as effective as it was in Knight's Tale.
In this time of troubles for the Catholic Church, a film like THE ORDER will certainly not benefit their credence in the religious community. Ledger's fall from grace likewise paints a poor portrait of the clergy.
THE ORDER is not a horrible film, but it's not all that great either.

A Fate Worse Than Death
Writer/director Brian Helgeland and actor Heath Ledger, first teamed up for the enjoyable mideval romp, A Knight's Tale. For their second film together, called The Order, things get a whole lot darker and much less enjoyable.

Father Alex Bernier (Ledger) is a conflicted, rather rebellious priest, who is asked to travel to Rome to investigate the strange death of his mentor. The young priest's investigation leads him to suspect that the death was the work of the Sin Eater, an ancient figure who plays God on earth by absolving the unforgivable sins outside the Church, allowing great evil to go unpunished.

Designed as a thriller, The Order sets up more like the Bible, written in Latin, that you, as the viewer, have to translate in order to understand what's going on. It's a shame that the movie is all atmosphere and no substance. Not even the casting of Peter Weller, who's always good--even if the film is not, can save the movie. Many other faces from A Knights Tale are back, making the film seem like it has potential, but that strategy falls flat too. The thrills and chills are few and far between. I was bored folks.

The audio commentary from Helgeland is ok for what it's worth. But it's hard to relish the making of stuff as much, if the film is sub-par, at best. The DVD extras also include a series of "unrated" deleted scenes that wouldn't have made a difference, if they made it in the final cut. You can also watch a series of dailies, or rough footage, as well. Both the deleted scenes and the dailies are fashioned with optional director's commentary. The theatrical trailer tops off the bonus material on the disc. If you do decide to watch The Order at all, you can do so, in either the full-screen or widescreen formats.

My suggestion: Order up A Knights Tale instead of this rag-tag disappointment.

An actually interesting movie.
Most people did not like this movie, well I understand why. This movie is a bit complecated and artsy so to say :P, but i understood it as a movie in witch you were not supposed to really be scared but instead you should put your self in the shoes of the characters and try to see the world the way they do. Good and Evil nothing more then a bar like place were demons and priests fight, priests with there power of exorcism, and demons with there demonic powers. Its a weird flick ill say that. VERY WEIRD, but i cant deny i dug it.....i mean if you look at it.....in this world of demons vs priests you could say the Sin Eater was like the inbetween guy someone who played outside of the rules, and yet was interesting in the reason for what he did. Nothing more then a man who wants to give redemption for those who cant get it anywere else, In the movie its not Gods fault good people go to hell but its the fault of the church that is not perfect so you could say the sin eater was a fale safe kind of thing for the world.......ok im done sounding like a moron thanks :P

An okay movie!
This is a good movie in a weird way, but most of it is too boring with a stupid plot. You see it once and then you don't want to see it again. If you want to see a movie with very little action and bad acting and special effects, well this is it. ... Read more

Reviews (8)

Paul Tripp Saves Christmas in this Musical Yultide Classic!
Pioneer kids tv educator:Paul Tripp makes his leep to

The big screen in this musical Christmas tale that is

both heartwarming,funny and pogient.

"The Christmast That Almost Wasn't"tells the story of

a mean and vindictive miser:"Phinease T.Prune"(played by

romantic singing lead:Rosino Brazzi of "South Pacific

Movie Fame).Who hates Christmas and Santa so much..that

he buys up the entire North Pole..Including Santa's work-

shop and home and raises his rent bill so high!

That Santa can't pay the rent and he hires a struggleing

lawyer:"Sam Whipple"(Paul Tripp)to help him deal with

"Mr.Prune".

Seeing that "Prune"will not listen to reason and he

refuses to disregard the rent bill.

"Whipple"gets Santa a job at"Prim's Dept.Store"where

he listens to the kids'Christmas wishes ,entertains them

and helps to sell "Mr.Prim's"(played by another well known

kids tv personality:"Wonderama's","Just For Fun's"and

"Let Take A Trip's"Sonny Fox)toys during the holidays.

But "Mr.Prune"is not one to be foiled by two good

guys.

And he conspires with his manservant:"Bascome"to

ruin the plans of our heroes.

Will he succeed in evicting The Clauses and their

workers and ruin Christmas for everyone?!

The film has a wonderful story and beautiful songs

performed by Mr.Tripp(who also wrote the tunes with Mr.Ray Carter),Mr.Brazzi and the actors playing
Santa and Mrs.Claus(Played by Mr.Brazzi's late wife Lida).

The sets are dark but charming and the acting is superb.

For anyone..who wants a truly charming and tuneful

Yultide Fantasy?

This is the one film to have.

One of best old time Family Holiday movies
If you are looking for a great family movie for Christmas, this is it!! My family has been watching this every year since it was released in 1966. My grown children still come home ( with thier children) to watch this movie together.

dvd a little different ...
great seeing this on DVD, but beware, a few changes have been made. the opening title of the film is not in english. the logo that opens the film is missing. the ending credits aren't in english either. the gag at the end of the film ("all characters are purely fictional -- except for santa claus!") is missing. to see the stuff cut here, buy a used copy of the old hbo vhs tape. oddly, this DVD has no extras; not even a trailer -- and it isn't widescreen. all that said, however, the quality is great, looking much better than the old tape. i like this film; if you do, buy the DVD. i only wish they wouldn't have cut anything out.

My First Movie
This was the first movie I saw in a movie theater. I, too, remember standing in line during a cold winter in Levittown, Long Island waiting with my friends to see this movie. Now, I share the memories with my own children.

tops
i remember waiting on line for this big time santa movie back in the early 70's on a cold saturday on long island at the old country movie in plainview lines around the block.the movie made you cry and at times you jumped out of your seat.f.t prune was the bad guy trying to take away christmas and almost falling off my seat until all the kids came thru for santa.thank charlie,remember him screaming out for help one of the best movies.i am trying to purchase the movie for my boy so we can watch it together.. ... Read more

Reviews (4)

Mel Brooks Is Very Funny
Yes thats right Mel Brooks is on top form, but the trobble is his co star Ezio Greggio is about as funny as a nose bleed, he has a complete lack of comic timing and no directing skills. This film would have been a comedy gem if Mel Brooks' talent had been able to take center stage more and it had some one else in Ezio Greggio part.

Its a shame to see what could have been a very good and funny film turn into total crud.

Funny
I loved this one. It was funny. Mel Brooks is funny as ever in this movie. That topless scene was funny.

...

PS: I would reccomend it to people who like Mel Brooks

madness is subjective
This Italian comedy directed and starring Ezio Greggio features some silly slapstick and pleasing ba-boom rhythm timing in the jokes. It also helps that Greggio is a likeable clown. Here he is the son of the Puccini health food company, a joke on Puccini's unhealthy operas, and ventures to Hollywood to bring back his father's WW2 friend, Mel Brooks. The casting of Brooks as a war hero clues you into what Greggio is getting himself into (and prefigures what happens when Brooks is finally brought back to the father), and Greggio adds to this by making the memory flashback to the act of heroism a deliberately staged event, with scratchy film stock and jumpy projection. Brooks' appearance is a continuation of his Harpo-like hair sticking up look from TV's Mad About You, which is both a lazy immediate indication of his behaviour and a sad indictment of a comediene past his prime. Brooks here is sweetly amusing with his want to burst into Al Jolson routines - that kind of gag defines the period of his humour - but it's hard not to remember a time when he was able to direct his own vehicles. Those films could be faulted but they still gave evidence of his own brand of lowbrow comic genius. Greggio plays off Brooks without upstaging him but, even as the relative straightman, clearly is the fresher performer. While Julie Condra as the requisite female interest doesn't have a comic skill to match Greggio and Brooks to be able to lift the proceedings to a higher level, and some of the supporting cast appear to be dubbed, Greggio stages some clever setpieces. A variation of the auction scene from North by Northwest this time set in a casino with Greggio unintentionally winning is funny, the standard wardrobe selection of having multiples of the same outfit cute, and the idea of the two hiding out in a monastery with monks who have a vow of silence is a delicious one even if the payoff is disappointing. Greggio may include a fart joke but not for gross out effect and the writing of Rudy De Luca and Steve Haberman provides for some running gags. Just when one begins to be deflated Greggio comes up with something to keep one watching.

5 Stars
I think this is the funniest movie within last 10 years. Mel Brooks hilarious as always ... Read more

Description

Directed by Enrico Coletti, Honey Sweet Love is a touching love story of a British commander falling in love with a local Sicilian girl in trying times during World War II.Sent to this part of the island to establish a radio station to communicate with allied forces, he finds black market operations, deceit and above all, love. ... Read more