Stars: Ed Begley, Jr. (She-Devil, Meet The Applegates), Mimi Rogers (Someone To Watch Over Me, The Rapture), Ari Meyers (TV's "Kate & Allie"). LIVE Home Video sent screeners of this title to video retailers to see if they would approve it as a "Retailer's Choice" and they did. A strong film for teens which upholds traditional values (without being religious), Dark Horse tells the story of Allie (Meyers), a young teen who has relocated with her father (Begley) and her little brother to a small rural town from L.A. following the death of her mother. Although Allie tries to act the part of the big fish in the small pond, her grades are slipping, and she's starting to hang out with the wrong kids. After being involved in a small fender bender in which other kids had been drinking, Allie is given 10 weekends of community service on a local horse ranch. There she meets the tough-but-sensitive owner Susan Hadley (Rogers) and the recuperating thoroughbred Jet. During the final third of the film, Allie has an accident that will forever change both her life and her way of thinking. Films about teens that deal honestly with adolescent problems and pressures are pretty rare, but Dark Horse remains true to its subject up until the final scenes. Then, the melodrama gets a bit thick, and the ending aims for a jumbo-Kleenex finale but ends up being more of a Susan Hayward I Want To Live Jr. maudlin capper. Still, a good story, fine acting, and gorgeous cinematography outweigh the mawkish close. Far superior to Disney's recent horse film Wild Hearts Can't Be Broken. Audience: Good for the whole family.
Dark Horse
Family drama, LIVE Home Video, 1992, Color, 98 min., $89.98 (3-pack--$179.86), rated: PG Video Movies
Dark Horse
Star Ratings
As of March 2022, Video Librarian has changed from a four-star rating system to a five-star one. This change allows our reviewers to have a wider range of critical viewpoints, as well as to synchronize with Google’s rating structure. This change affects all reviews from March 2022 onwards. All reviews from before this period will still retain their original rating. Future film submissions will be considered our new 1-5 star criteria.
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