Seabiscuit

Name: Seabiscuit
Genre: Drama, History, Sport
Released: July 25, 2003
Duration: 141 min
Rating: 72
Cast: Chris Cooper, Jeff Bridges

2003

METASCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 43 Critic Reviews

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USER SCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 61 Ratings

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7.1	User Score Generally favorable reviews based on 61 Ratings

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Seabiscuit

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Movie Details & Credits

Universal Pictures | Release Date: July 25, 2003 | PG-13

Starring: Chris Cooper, Jeff Bridges

Summary: The tale of a down-and-out racehorse that took the entire nation on the ride of a lifetime. (Universal Pictures)

Director: Gary Ross

Genre(s): Drama, History, Sport

Rating: PG-13

Runtime: 141 min

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Critic Reviews

100

Michael Sragow

Seabiscuit revives the sweeping pleasures of movies that address and respect the mass audience, raising the common denominator instead of pandering to it. This crowd-pleaser rouses honest and engulfing cheers. Read full review

Desson Thomson

Yes, it's that cheesy, but it's also surprisingly appealing. After all, the horse Seabiscuit really WAS that phenomenal. Read full review

Stanley Kauffmann

Aesop endowed animals with human traits to teach us lessons. Seabiscuit almost does the reverse. By means of Ross's adroit shooting and editing, we ourselves pound bravely along the track. Read full review

Jami Bernard

This rousing story of the comeback colt comes close to a modern-day Frank Capra film without the pandering or mawkishness. Yes, it's a bit hokey, but if you fight the movie's gait you'll miss the excitement of the race. Read full review

Peter Rainer

Watching this movie, you get the feeling that the Depression existed so that Seabiscuit could be memorialized. Read full review

J. Hoberman

More mystical than mysterious, Seabiscuit is a proudly cornball sentimental epic -- a reverential paean to a vanished America that's steeped in inspirational uplift and played for world-historical pathos. Read full review

David Sterritt

I found much of it as emotionally rigged as a crooked horse race. Read full review

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User Reviews

Jollyjoe1000

Oct 27, 2015

It's a great movie and it is a unbelievably good and I think is a sports movie that should be watched more often to motivate everyone that any one can be great at anything, and that you should keep trying at something until you succeed

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

MarisaR.

Mar 9, 2006

Hey Im a nineteen Year old Jockey and i have Two three year old Thoroughbred colts There names are Stryder and Arwen, Stryder is a Pallamino, And Arwen is a Buckskin and they are 16.6 hands they are vary spirited horses and they are vary competive anyways i love your Seabiscuit website Hey Im a nineteen Year old Jockey and i have Two three year old Thoroughbred colts There names are Stryder and Arwen, Stryder is a Pallamino, And Arwen is a Buckskin and they are 16.6 hands they are vary spirited horses and they are vary competive anyways i love your Seabiscuit website anyways nice job.… Expand

0 of 1 users found this helpful

jacob4

Jul 4, 2014

A great 5-star masterpiece full of comedy, heart, friendship,and inspiration. Good casting choices, good race scenes, and one of Gary Ross' best movies. A spectacular must see!

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

[Anonymous]

Sep 15, 2005

Not perfect, but having a heart is surely a plus. Maguire and the horse almost perfectly mirror each other. Perhaps an underrated classic.

0 of 0 users found this helpful

Compi24

Nov 28, 2012

"Seabiscuit" is a 2003 biographical period drama about one of the greatest and most notable horses in American Horseracing History. The movie follows the story of a wealthy man (Bridges) who hires an unconventional trainer (Cooper) during The Great Depression to help him find an appropriate"Seabiscuit" is a 2003 biographical period drama about one of the greatest and most notable horses in American Horseracing History. The movie follows the story of a wealthy man (Bridges) who hires an unconventional trainer (Cooper) during The Great Depression to help him find an appropriate horse to enter into the races. They soon stumble upon a young man (Maguire) that they soon choose to be their jockey. I truly enjoyed this movie - there's just so much to really appreciate about it. First off, and most noticeably, is the wonderful cast of characters here. I know this movie's title makes you think this film is just about the horse, but it's also about the truly remarkable people behind him. Tobey Maguire plays Red Pollard, Seabiscuit's jockey, and his performance in this movie is really quite compelling to see. His character's stubbornness is something that you'd think you'd hate, but it's actually something I, and probably most people will, find to be his most enjoyable trait. Ross also does a really effective job of drawing parallels between Pollard and Seabiscuit. This, in a sense, helps solidify the relationship between the two characters. Chris Cooper does a really fine job of playing the unorthodox, yet effective trainer, Tom Smith. However, my most favorite character in this movie is Charles Howard, played by Jeff Bridges. There's just something about a guy, who's been dealt a bad hand of cards trying to make the best of his life do something good for society. I think It's through Howard's character and Bridges magnificent performance that we really get to see what Seabiscuit's presence throughout the Depression really meant for the American people - he was a beacon of hope. The screenplay is incredibly well done, as I find many lines of this movie to be memorable and quotable. After watching the special features, I was really impressed by the intense amount of preparation and work that went into this movie. Nearly every race was historically choreographed and rehearsed, and it really helps you gain a sense that these are the actual events as they transpired. One of the only problems I have with this movie is the length. Nearly an hour of this movie is exposition and I feel that a good amount of it could've been cut out. Did that hinder my ability to enjoy this movie? No not really, so I won't knock this movie much at all. In the end, I felt that "Seabiscuit" was a great underdog sports film with a truly inspiring tone that sticks with you.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

amheretojudge

Mar 29, 2019

One Long Winning Race.

Seabiscuit Ross believes in the old testimony. He breathes that old textbook method of being informative more than entertaining. And he is so confident in the malleability of his script, that details are encouraged- after being frightened by the sudden rise of someOne Long Winning Race.

Seabiscuit

Ross believes in the old testimony. He breathes that old textbook method of being informative more than entertaining. And he is so confident in the malleability of his script, that details are encouraged- after being frightened by the sudden rise of some birds, the horse tries to run around the last act of the film that helps Tobey Maguire realize its capability- more than the antic itself. The first act is spent upon establishing the various characters before merging their subplots for one big dramatic event or a race, either one.

And so is its second half, similar to it, a mirror like adaptation is of Gary Ross and clean and clear vision he gets in the end. There is maturity and precision in each frame that keeps emotions above all, even the storytelling. Personally, I felt connected with the idea of each character sweating in the field for a pet animal that is never, for an instance, thought of as anything but a child to them. This sort of similar aspect to J. K. Rowling's Harry Potter books, is heartwarming.

The horse that is brimmed of a theme of being "the one" is moving enough to heal the broken characters, especially Maguire that goes through an incredible process comes off as the highlight of the game. Jeff Bridges as the father figure, not only sees the horse and Tobey as a metaphor, but tries to places them as their own kids that he loses unfortunately in the beginning of the film. Chris Cooper as the strict coach, the apt supervisor to the film, and surprisingly honest and practical that claims to speak the truth, he certainly tries to. Seabiscuit is a winning bet from the scratch, with a cast of caliber like such and a creator so passionate, it does appeal to a stadium filled audience.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

WillFH

Apr 14, 2020

This whole movie is just a reverse Ratatouille. A cheap knockoff to say the least.

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

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75	#75 Best Movie of 2003
81	#81 Most Discussed Movie of 2003