Ruffian trailer on ESPN broadcast

[GenuineRisk]

Originally Posted by blackthroatedwind

It was a joke.

Oh. Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha.... ha?

Hee hee. My bad.

[blackthroatedwind]

I never said it was a funny one.

[GenuineRisk]

Originally Posted by blackthroatedwind

I never said it was a funny one.

But your last response definitely is. Very quick; well done, sir. Me like funny posts.

[letswastemoney]

This movie's end is a tragedy. Won't people look even more down on horse racing if they see this?

Originally Posted by letswastemoney

This movie's end is a tragedy. Won't people look even more down on horse racing if they see this?

Depends how its delivered to non-racing fans. If the emphasis in on the majesty, talent, and brave heart of the filly, than it wont hurt as much. If the story is truly all about the build to the breakdown and no real story after that, then it fails to help the sport.

One quote i've always held with me is "Without pain there'd be no compassion". She's the equine eqivalent of that for me.

[GenuineRisk]

Originally Posted by Balletto

Depends how its delivered to non-racing fans. If the emphasis in on the majesty, talent, and brave heart of the filly, than it wont hurt as much. If the story is truly all about the build to the breakdown and no real story after that, then it fails to help the sport.

One quote i've always held with me is "Without pain there'd be no compassion". She's the equine eqivalent of that for me.

I think Balletto's right in that if it's handled right, I think it won't necessarily turn people off. I liked in the trailer how one of the actors was comparing Ruffian to James Dean, Marilyn Monroe-- silly on one level, yes, but on another level, it sets up an image of an incredible talent who burned so brightly but so briefly- which is a dramatic universality people can connect with. If they can convey that kind of idea-- an athlete who too rare and too special to last, I think it will convey the tragedy without turning into an opportunity for bashing horse racing.

My battered paperback copy of Jane Schwartz' book has a blurb from the Seattle Times' review: "Compelling, informative and ultimately touching. This is a first-class book; Ruffian deserves no less." Fingers crossed we'll be saying the same thing about the movie!

[GenuineRisk]

Not, of course, that we'd be saying the movie is a book. Then we'd be stupid. Or the movie was really boring.

Not that books are boring, of course. I happen to own several.

[sumitas]

Originally Posted by Balletto

Depends how its delivered to non-racing fans. If the emphasis in on the majesty, talent, and brave heart of the filly, than it wont hurt as much. If the story is truly all about the build to the breakdown and no real story after that, then it fails to help the sport.

One quote i've always held with me is "Without pain there'd be no compassion". She's the equine eqivalent of that for me.

This sport needs to help itself. In some ways it is by finally introducing poly instead of that evil dirt.

Way, way more needs to be done to weed out and punish the frauds, crooks and cheats in this sport. And eliminate that cruel dirt surface. That will help the sport the most, instead of pining for a sugarcoated movie about a great horse that rose way ABOVE the sport.