Old Western Cowboy

Movie Review: Hidalgo

This movie is based on the life of Frank T. Hopkins called the Far Rider and the Blue Child, played by Viggo Mantehsen. His mother was a Sioux and his father was an army enlisted person. The movie begins at the end of a horse race that he wins. This type of event was the extreme sport of the day similar to the present day Iron man competition. He goes to visit his mother at Wounded Knee as he is carrying a dispatch for the officer in charge. He leaves and rides away. Hearing gunfire he races back to find everyone of his mothers people dead. He feels responsible and his life begins that downward spiral.

He joins a Wild West Show put on by Buffalo Bill Cody. He loses his direction in life and is drinking himself into oblivion. He is challenged to race, by a Sheik, played by Omar Sharif, because Cody has billed him as the greatest endurance racer in the world. The challenge is a race in the desert of three thousand miles.

Being at the bottom of the barrel and still blaming himself for the deaths at Wounded Knee he dismiss the offer and does not respond to the insults laid upon his horse, a true western Mustang. The Wild West Shows actors see that he needs to be on with his life and fork up the money for his entry fee and they send him off to prove that he is the greatest endurance horse racer in the world.

Arriving in Arabia he experiences many things and a major point is that his horse is insulted multiple times. When the race begins he paces himself and his horse, Hidalgo, they stay with the pack.   At the halfway mark they have survived and are still in the race. Many things happen in the second half of the race and Frank and Hidalgo continue to struggle threw the happenings. I will save the ending for your enjoyment. This is an excellent movie and in my top one hundred best.