AUGUST 2021 THE RIDER /3
“Dream Horse” Is A Dream Movie For The Whole Family
By Glenda Fordham, Entertainment columnist In cinemas across Canada now, and
available from your favourite streaming plat- forms in September, Dream Horse is a classic story of triumph against adversity. It’s a tale of how one woman strives to make her own dream a reality in a place where hope is thin on the ground. Living in a financially depressed Welsh
village, Jan Vokes works multiple jobs to make ends meet: a cashier and cleaner at the local grocery store and bartender at night at the local social club/pub. She dreams of owning a race- horse to give her a better life so she recruits her reluctant husband, Brian, and local accountant Howard Davies to help her bring together a syndicate of fellow villagers to breed a foal from the mare she purchased with the family’s meagre bank account. After finding the perfect sire, a foal is born and raised on their gardening allotment. The syndicate names the colt Dream Alliance. On the racetrack, he proves himself to be more than a match for the multi-million- pound racehorses he runs against; this true working-class champion takes on the establish- ment at their own game. Dream also alters the
lives of everyone in the syndicate, not least Jan’s. He is every- thing to her: friend, confidant and an escape from a life of always putting other people’s needs first. Based on a true story, the film, directed by Euros Lyn from
the screenplay by Neil Mckay, shows how Dream Alliance won the Welsh Grand National in 2009. Dream was no ordinary race- horse - he began to win races but after a terrible fall, where Dream almost severed a tendon and required stem-cell surgery, his recovery to win at the Welsh Grand National was nothing short of sensational. It was no surprise that after Dream’s epic win, Jan’s story made headline news and immediately attracted the attention of the film industry. Starring Aussie actress Toni Collette (Muriel’s Wedding,
Knives Out) who mastered the Welsh accent perfectly, and Damien Lewis (Wolf Hall, Homeland), the cast features a slew of Brit acting icons including Welsh legend Dame Siân Phillips (I, Claudius and Dune). The horses are beautiful to watch and are well-trained, especially the wee foal who portrays Dream Al- liance after losing his mum at birth. In fact, the horses were treated to an eight-week rehearsal period being introduced to cameras and to what they needed to achieve in each shot whether it was hurdles, flat racing, starting or stopping. The horses were never exposed to something that suddenly was out of their com- fort zone so bravo to the trainers and film crew for such on-set care.
I encourage you to stay in your seats for the end credits –
if you’re a fan of Tom Jones, you won’t regret it. And you’ll get to meet the real Jan, Brian and Howard, too. Ultimately, Dream Horse crosses the finish line to become
a classic story about a triumph against the odds. The underdog, or in this case, underhorse, had his day. Happy ending films can be a bit schmaltzy if the filmmakers don’t get it quite right, but in this case the film offers two joyous cinematic hours: a feel- good experience for all the family.
The Rider gives DREAM HORSE three (out of 4) hooves up!
Colleen Loach Continued from Page 1
lucky rub on the last fence, a square oxer depict- ing the Japanese calligraphy subject Ensō in its design, brought her total jumping penalties to 8.00.
A final score of 50.80 penalty points put
Loach and Qorry Blue d’Argouges in 28th place overall, narrowly missing the top-25 cut-off for advancing to the Jumping Individual Final. “I had hoped for a little bit better results,
to be completely honest, but I’m thrilled with my horse and it’s just where I’m at and where he’s at right now,” said Loach, whose finish rep- resented an admirable jump from her last Olympic appearance in Rio 2016, where she and Qorry Blue d’Argouges finished 42nd. “I can’t complain about my horse, he jumped really well.
It was just unfortunate that I had to go a little bit into that combination at 9 and then I wasn’t quick enough with my body to recover after for him. He felt good, he was a good boy.” Speaking of her teammate, Jessica
Phoenix, who withdrew her horse, Pavarotti from eventing competition at the first horse in- spection, Loach commented, “She handled it as well or better than anybody else I know would have. She was so supportive and right there for me and always smiling. Whatever I needed, she was out there getting and was just a really good cheerleader and teammate. I respect her a lot for the way she handled the situation.” The Canadian eventers were supported at
the Games by: Eventing Chef d’Équipe, Fleur Tipton; Eventing Veterinarian, Dr. Jan Henrik- sen; Team Farrier, Andy Vergut; Grooms, Jamie Kellock and Brooke Massie; and Equestrian
Team Lead, James Hood. “I am extremely proud of Colleen and
Qorry on their Olympic performance,” said Tip- ton. “I would also like to recognize and thank Peter and the entire team who worked tirelessly to support their effort – eventing is truly a team sport.” Individual gold went to Germany’s Julia
Krajewski and Amande de B’Neville on a final score of 26.00 penalty points. Tom McEwen of Great Britain rode Toledo de Kerser to the silver medal position with 29.30 penalties while bronze medallists, Andrew Hoy and Vassily de Lassos of Australia, followed just 0.30 penalty points behind. Great Britain secured the team gold (86.30 penalties), with Australia capturing silver (100.20 penalties) and France rounding out the podium in the bronze medal position (101.50 penalties).
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