Film File - Secretariat

Horses have always found a niche audience in cinema right back to classics like 'National Velvet' and 'Black Beauty'. In this tale charting the life and times of Secretariat, a racehorse that captured the imagination of the world, audiences are taken back almost 40 years to witness a unique equine creation whose powers transcended anything that went before. Winning the holy grail of racing, the Triple Crown, a triumvirate of races open to three-year-olds, including the Kentucky Derby, the Preakness Stakes, and the final jewel, the Belmont Stakes. In the annals of horse racing, Secretariat took the phrase 'heart stopping' to new levels by barely inching wins in the first two races before blowing all the opposition away at Belmont, winning by a record-pulverizing 31 lengths. In 1973, a time of global uncertainty not unlike today, the massive, chestnut-coloured horse, known universally as Big Red, became one of those rare champions of the people like Arkle and Shergar in a film that will surely resonate with Irish cinema audiences. Secretariat is not just the tale of a remarkable horse, however, it is also the story of housewife and mother Penny Chenery (Diane Lane), the woman who agrees to take over her father's ailing Meadow Stables, despite her lack of horseracing experience. Against all odds, with the help of veteran trainer Lucien Laurin (John Malkovich), she manages to navigate the male-dominated business, ultimately fostering the first Triple Crown winner in 25 years with what many called the greatest racehorse of all time. The fact that Secretariat's story began with a coin toss is extraordinary enough - but the real irony is that the woman who became the owner of the world's greatest racehorse actually lost the fabled flip. Lucky for her. Christopher Chenery (Scott Glenn) struck a deal with legendary owner and breeder Ogden Phipps (James Cromwell) that a flipped coin would determine who'd get first pick of two foals produced by Phipps's stallion Bold Ruler and Chenery's mares Hasty Matilda and Somethingroyal. At the time of the all-important toss, Chenery's daughter, Penny, had already taken over the family business, and when Phipps won the toss, making what most deemed the obvious choice, Penny was left with the as yet unborn horse that would eventually become Secretariat. While the racing fraternity nodded in unison at the bad luck of a breeding novice, the indomitable Penny, who knew her bloodlines, banked on having actually gotten the better end of the deal. Time would prove her right - with a vengeance. For director Randall Wallace, the story of Secretariat was not just about a tremendous horse but also about what he calls “the mechanism of transformation that happens when a miracle occursâ€. The film, shot on location in Louisiana and Kentucky, is “about heart - Secretariat's and the heart of the woman who owned himâ€, he says. Not being conversant with the life and times of Secretariat is no barrier to enjoyment of this uplifting film, and if you're a racing fanatic who remembers every hoofbeat of that amazing 1973 triumph, all the better. Lane is perfectly cast as Cherney, a woman who bucked not only the racing world, but also the conservative society of the time and its belief that Southern belles would be better employed tending cradles and the mint julips of their thirsty husbands. While her husband Jack (Dylan Walsh) frets about society and their wayward daughters, Penny becomes the mother of four who blossoms in the expensive dirt of the male-dominated American racetrack. Malkovich, in a role where his natural tendency for the unconventional gets full rein, dresses in snazzy linen suits - prompting the nickname Superfly - whilst making disparaging remarks about the “monkey butts†controlling the racing industry of the day. 'Secretariat' has all the features common to Disney films - a good story, triumph against all odds, and the love of an animal and its owner that brings a tear to the eye. In these dark days of winter, it's the kind of entertainment that lets a little sunshine in.