Academic Review of "The Horse Whisperer"

The Horse Whisperer. Dir. Robert Redford. Perf. Robert Redford, Kristin Scott Thomas, Scarlett Johansson. Touchstone Pictures, 1998.

Photograph courtesy of https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Horse_Whisperer_(film)

Plot Summary

            Early one winter’s morning, teenager Grace MacLean and her best friend Judith take their horses out for an early ride.  Throughout their ride, they come to a slope, which has become slippery in the icy conditions.  Judith’s horse Gulliver slips and falls into Grace’s horse Pilgrim.  The two pairs fall down the hill, coming to a stop on a road below.  A truck slides around a corner and collides with them.  Judith and Gulliver are killed, while Grace and Pilgrim are left badly injured.  After the accident, Grace is left with a partially amputated right leg and Pilgrim becomes unmanageable due to the trauma he experienced.  Unwilling to put him down, Grace’s mother Annie is convinced that the recovery of her daughter is directly linked to that of Pilgrim’s. 

Photograph courtesy of http://www.sky.com/tv/movie/the-horse-whisperer-1998

            Annie tracks down a man by the name of Tom Booker, also known as the “horse whisperer”.  He is a talented trainer with the gift to understand horses, and the people who ride them.  Tom agrees to help so Annie and Grace make the long journey from New York to a remote ranch in Montana.  Here Grace, Annie and Pilgrim are tested to their limits to come together to heal one another.  As time ensues, Tom helps this family overcome their horrific past and gain back trust towards each other as well having the courage to get back in the saddle.  During this healing process, Tom and Annie reach a mutual attraction, despite the fact that Annie is married.  She is then faced with a near impossible decision between the life she has and the life she wants.          

Analysis

            Coming into this project, the idea being analyzed is that Hollywood often portrays ranching and farming in a very stereotypical way.  Throughout this paper, it will be discussed whether or not The Horse Whisperer follows those same guidelines. 

            The important role that farmers and ranchers play in American’s every day lives is often times overlooked.  Film usually does not take the time to emphasize this fact, but instead dives into the idea that ranchers are perhaps lower than other people, socially and that they do not necessarily care about their land, animals, etc.  Or they focus on the more glamorous aspects of ranching, like rodeo.  This is where the Horse Whisperer differs. 

            When the characters based out of Montana are established, it is apparent that they have a deep connection with the land that they work.  It is centered on the Booker family and their cattle ranch.  This movie takes the unique approach towards showing what actually happens on a ranch.  Included is showing working in the mud, feeding in early hours and allowing a 9-year-old to drive the ranch truck.  Anybody who has lived the ranching life will agree that it is not easy, but it is possibly the most rewarding work any man can do.

            As well as correctly interpreting the work, this movie also accurately depicts the relationship between man and horse.  The bond between a rancher and their horse is like nothing else.  He is not just an animal, he is your constant and loyal companion.  When considering this delicate relationship, a man by the name of Buck Brannaman was brought in to oversee this representation.  It is about establishing a very intimate and trusting relationship with the animal and then striving to never violate that trust.

Photograph courtesy of Irinel Petreseu

“When it comes to the sequence for Pilgrim's accident, it is strictly the magic and illusion of filmmaking that will leave audiences thinking they have seen a harrowing crash. A representative of the American Humane Association (A.H.A.) was on the set every day that animals worked, both in New York and in Montana”. 

            The Horse Whisperer is an incredible landmark in filmmaking.  It explores all human emotion, while still managing to accurately interoperate what ranch life is really like.  From the family dynamic to the mud caked boots, this film does farmers justice, and plays an important role in bringing awareness to the importance that these families play in American society.  The Ohio State Extension highlighted a set of skills that an American farmer must posses.  "A farmer must possess skills in the following professions: welding, accounting, farm law, politician, wildlife officer, veterinarian, construction, finance, animal husbandry, corporate executive, marketing, entomologist, plant pathologist, good neighbor, plumber, electrician, research scientist and an eternal optimist, just to mention a few." 

            It is not very often when something produced in Hollywood does justice to how the working man lives.  The Horse Whisperer achieves this.  It not only shows how a rancher lives, but shows that there is great pride to be found in such work and that a man really can live and work simultaneously with this earth and her creatures.           

Citations

"The Horse Whisperer: About the Production." Film Scouts. Web.

"Avoid the Common Stereotypes of Farming." Ohio State Extension. Web.

The Horse Whisperer. Dir. Robert Redford. Perf. Robert Redford, Kristin Scott Thomas, Scarlett Johansson. Touchstone Pictures, 1998.

Farm Legislature:  Feeding our Future

Background of the Farm Bills:

The farm bill of the United States is the primary agriculture and food policy tool of the federal government.  It is passed every five years and umbrellas anything to do with the United States Department of Agriculture.  These bills can be highly controversial, and can impact very specific aspects of peoples lives, including food safety, international trade, and the overall well-being of rural communities.  

The farm bill was first created during the Great Depression to give financial assistance farmers who suffered from an excess of crops creating low prices, as well as to control food supply at this time.  It was passed in 1933 as part of Franklin D Roosevelt's New Deal.  

Nutrition for Today's Generation:

21.4% of the Farm Bill's mandatory spending distribution goes towards child nutrition.  My degree that I am working towards here at Utah State University is in Communication Disorders.  I will be working with children every single day, usually within a school setting.  It is a well know and researched fact that a child's nutrition stability directly affects their ability to learn.  The program illustrated at extension.org provides three ways nutrition influences a student's learning potential and performance in school.  They are as follows:

1.  Improve Nutrition to Increase Brain Function
"Several studies show that nutritional status can directly affect mental capacity among school-aged children.  For example, iron deficiency, even in early stages, can decrease dopamine transmission, thus negatively impacting cognition.  Deficiencies in other vitamins and mineral,s specifically thiamine, vitamin E, vitamin B, iodine, and zinc, are shown to inhibit cognitive abilities and mental concentration.  Additionally, amino acid and carbohydrate supplementation can improve perception, intuition, and reasoning.  There are also a number of studies showing that improvements in nutrient intake can influence the cognitive ability and intelligence levels of school-aged children."

2.  Provide a Balanced Diet for Better Behaviors and Learning Environments
"Good nutrition helps students show up at school prepared to learn.  Because improvements in nutrition make students healthier, students are likely to have fewer absences and attend class more frequently.  Studies show that malnutrition leads to behavior problems, and that sugar has a negative impact on child behavior.  However, these affects can be counteracted when children consume a balanced diet that includes protein, fat, complex carbohydrates, and fiber.  Thus students will have more time in class, and students will have fewer interruptions in learning over the course of the school year.  Additional, student' behavior may improve and cause fewer disruption in the classroom, creating a better learning environment for each student in the class."

3.  Promote Diet Quality for Positive School Outcomes
"Sociologists and economists have looked more closely at the impact of a student's diet and nutrition on academic and behavioral outcomes.  Researchers generally find that a higher quality diet is associated with better performance on exams, and that programs focused on increasing student's health also show modest improvements in students' academic test scores.  Other studies find that improving the quality of students' diets leads to students being on task more often, increases math test scores, possibly increases reading test scores, and increases attendance.  Additionally, eliminating the sale of soft drinks in vending machines in school and replacing them with other drinks had a positive effect on behavioral outcomes such as tardiness and disciplinary referrals."

Photograph courtesy of https://www.realbuzz.com/articles/healthy-eating-for-kids/

A child's nutrition has the power to greatly affect his or her academic experience.  Children deserve to have every opportunity presented to them and through federal government funding, proper nutrition can reach a greater number of our nation's children.

3 Ways Nutrition Influences Student Learning Potential and School Performance. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://articles.extension.org/pages/68774/3-ways-nutrition-influences-student-learning-potential-and-school-performance