A story of optimism found through a peculiar, abandoned racehorse unfolds. Set during the Depression, an undersized and considered “lazy” horse named Seabiscuit rises to become a champion, providing a boost to both his connections and the country at large. Jeff Bridges portrays the owner, Tobey Maguire is the jockey, and Chris Cooper embodies the trainer. Valerie Mahaffey appears as the owner’s wife. Drawing from actual events, "Seabiscuit" (2003) shares similarities in feel with another historical drama featuring Bridges, Francis Ford Coppola's “Tucker: The Man and His Dream” (1988). While I find “Tucker” to be a more compelling film due to its quicker pace and clarity of focus, "Seabiscuit" is certainly worthwhile. Similar to the historically-based “Jeremiah Johnson” (1972), the way this story is told trusts the audience’s ability to interpret what's not explicitly stated. A highlight is the anticipation leading up to the race against War Admiral and the excitement of that actual competition. Unaware of how things played out in reality, I found a few developments unexpected. The initial portion does feel somewhat slowed down by unnecessary information about the owner, though. The film’s length is 2 hours and 19 minutes, and filming took place in California, New York, and Kentucky. GRADE: B

Source on TMDB