I will admit that Spirit Untamed was not exactly a movie I was excited to see, but we had our niece staying for the weekend and this was her pick. This is made by the good folks at DreamWorks who I am a huge fan of. I would actually go as far as to say that a great deal of what DreamWorks has done gives Pixar a real run for their money.
How to Stream or Download Spirit Untamed
To stream or to download the film from a digital store, click on the Download button located towards the end of this review.
The Movie Review
I do have very vague memories of the original Spirt movie that was released all the way back in 2002. Netflix would turn that into the series, Spirit Riding Free in 2017 which would prove to be very popular. Spirit Untamed is based on the Riding Free show and fans of that will probably enjoy what is on offer here.
Granted my knowledge of the show is very limited, but my niece tried her best to fill me in on the way to the theatre. The movie is quite easy to follow and it is about a little girl called Lucky. Her mother was a superstar in the riding circuit, doing these amazing tricks and stunts, but after an accident, she dies and Lucky is sent to live in the city with her grandfather and aunt.
I found Lucky to be a very likable kid and I am sure kids will really take to her. Isabela Merced does a great job of bringing her to life. Actually, while I am on that, DreamWorks got some great talent for this movie including Jake Gyllenhaal, Andre Braugher, Julianne Moore, and Eliza Gonzalez to name a few.
It is decided that Lucky should go and stay with her estranged father who lives in the Wild West-style town of Miradero. While on her way to Miradero, she notices a group of wild horses, one of whom is Spirt and she is captivated by him. She tells her father and due to what happened to Lucky’s mother, he wants her to have nothing to do with horses.
The whole relationship between Lucky and her father is quite interesting and you can tell that the two want to bond, but they have no idea how to. Things are complicated as Lucky ignores her father’s request and bonds with Spirit. Seeing her and Spirit bond is pretty cool and that sets up the main plot of the movie.
A bunch of no-good wranglers wants to capture Spirit and his fellow horses to sell them off where they will be worked to death! Lucky, Spirt and some friends work together to try and save the horses from this cruel fate. Look, the movie gets zero points for originality and you can see where it is all coming from a mile away. However, it is a fun watch with the kids.
My niece who likes the Netflix show seemed to really enjoy the movie and said that she had a good time. I think that Spirit Untamed is decent enough, but it is kind of forgettable. I have seen my niece a couple of times since we saw it and she has never brought it up again. If you are looking for something fun to watch with the kids, you can do worse, just do not expect to be blown away.
