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Poster for Seabiscuit

Seabiscuit

2003 · 53m
Directed by Stephen Ives

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Overview

He was boxy, with stumpy legs that wouldn't completely straighten a short straggly tail and an ungainly gait; though he didn't look the part, Seabiscuit was one of the most remarkable thoroughbred racehorses in history. In the 1930s, when Americans longed to escape the grim realities of Depression-era life, four men turned Seabiscuit into a national hero. They were his fabulously wealthy owner Charles Howard, his famously silent and stubborn trainer Tom Smith and the two hard-bitten, gifted jockeys who rode him to glory. By following the paths that brought these four together and in telling the story of Seabiscuit's unlikely career, this film illuminates the precarious economic conditions that defined America in the 1930s and explores the fascinating behind-the-scenes world of thoroughbred racing. Scott Glenn narrates.

Director and cast

Critics on Rotten Tomatoes

Top critics, in their words

All reviews
Rotten

Respectable when it should be thrilling, honorable when it should be rough and ready.

Todd McCarthy, Variety
Fresh

[It] may be too airbrushed for its own good, but in the end nothing can stop this story from putting a lump in your throat.

David Ansen, Newsweek
Rotten

I found this film stultifyingly self-important and, despite the regularity with which it cuts to the chase, weirdly static.

Jonathan Rosenbaum, Chicago Reader
Rotten

For a film about an unfancied underdog, Seabiscuit is just far too pleased with itself.

Trevor Johnston, Time Out
Rotten

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

Peter Rainer, New York Magazine/Vulture

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