Equine depression

A movie that started showing up in the FXM rotation a month or two ago is The Sad Horse. It's going to be on again tomorrow afternoon (May 6) at 1:40 PM and then again at 4:30 AM Thursday, so you've got two chances to watch it.

After the opening credits, we unfortunately get a panned-and-scanned print, down to 4:3. David Ladd, son of Alan and future husband of Charlie's Angel Cheryl, plays Jackie Connors, a young boy who has survived polio and the death of his mother. He's being sent with his beloved rescue dog to his grandfather's ranch/stable (Grandpa, called "Captain", is played by Chill Wills) for the summer by his dad because Dad wants to get remarried and needs to tie up all those loose ends with his future wife. Jackie will have the chance to grow up a bit under Grandpa's tutelage.

It's an OK life between Jackie and his Grandfather, getting to do things like horseback riding and explore for the legendary treasure that never really got buried on the ranch, while watching out for the pumas that are up in the hills around the ranch. (Although the movie takes place at a ranch and stars Chill Wills, it's really not a western, but a light drama set in a then-contemporary western setting.)

Into their lives comes Leslie MacDonald (Patrice Wymore, the widow of Errol Flynn). She's estranged from her husband Bill (Rex Reason), and has brought their race horse North Wind to the ranch. Apparently North Wind has lost the passion for racing, ever since its last companion, a dog, died.

Jackie begins to learn a little about growing up from being around an adult like Leslie with her problems and by helping take care of the horse. But a big problem comes when Jackie's dog happens to be just the thing for North Wind, helping to bring the horse back around to some sort of equine happiness and the possibility of racing again. The summer is going to end, and Jackie and his dog are going to go home. What's North Wind going to do?

So, of course, Leslie comes up with an idea that seems eminently sensible to her, which is to offer to buy Jackie's dog for a sum of money big enough to set up Jackie's college education. But really, who the hell thinks buying a dog off a little kid is a good idea?

The Sad Horse isn't a bad little movie, although it's certainly nothing that will be remembered as a great movie. A decade or two earlier, it probably would have been a solid, if forgotten B movie; by the time it came out in 1959, it's material that probably would have worked better as episodic TV.

But there are also some big problems. In addition to the print being panned and scanned, there's also the ending, which I felt was a terrible cop-out. Overall, I have a feeling that this is the sort of movie that it's going to be terribly appealing to more modern audiences, or people not into older movies.

Still, watch for yourself. It doesn't seem to be on DVD, so you're going to have to catch the FXM showings.