I do believe the comments of 'jodynh' are some of the most profoundly idiotic I have come across in perusal of these message boards. Really I'm stunned! What ridiculously sweeping statements to make. Have you ever seen any statistics on suicide in Ireland?! Although suicide has increased in recent times in Ireland, this increase still only brings the statistics to levels on a par with those of many other western countries. If anything the rates of suicide in Ireland were, in the past, generally distinctly lower than those of many other countries due to the country having been predominantly Catholic, a religion which attaches a degree of stigma to suicide, which Catholicism considers a mortal sin. I would seriously question the authenticity of your 'online Irish friend' if this is the information which he is providing.
Also, 'just show footage of the horse running around'!!!!! I would hope I'm safe in the assumption you are not employed in the creative/comissioning processes of the entertainment industry if thats your idea for a children's movie!
Furthermore, excuse me as it has been a while since I have seen this movie, but as I remember, the movie is far from an 'unwatchable mess'. It manages to be multi-dimensional in providing storylines which appeal to both the adult and child viewer, being the painfully real process of dealing and coping with grief and the more fantastical notion of the magical horse, respectively. It acknowledges problems faced by the Irish travelling community, a long misunderstood minority in the country. The film has sociological and cultural complexity, subtlety and symbolism which can keep the adult engaged whilst the children enjoy the simplicity of the child character's cowboy fantasy.
For the record neither the people nor the land of Ireland are hideous, there is the same broad range of good and bad seen in every country the world over, including the US.
And of course this is a good childhood film, it's a refreshing break from the saccharine sweet, sugar coated, idealised and entirely ficticious premises of many Disney and other more mainstream typically 'child' oriented films. It shows things don't always turn out just how you might like, people die, adults can be mean, parents find things hard sometimes too... but it essentially shows there is goodness in the world, that regardless of the bad things, good will find a way to shine through. The film is obviously unsuited to very young children but for older children provides a bridge between the fantastical escapism of childhood and the harsher realities of the grown up world. I believe it hits the mark for what it is trying to achieve.
Apologies if you find any of what I've said offensive but I do feel the flippancy and lack of basic understanding conveyed in your comments warranted such a response.
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hope1354
19 years ago
It is unfortunate that the original poster seemed to miss the whole point of the movie. You and some of the others hit upon a very pressing problem. That is, America seems to pull most of the strings when it comes to the making of films and in America children's movie's always have to have an uplifting message with a happy ending. People see so much of that and when a movie comes out from a different perspective or from a different culture then a lot of people immediately think they don't like it because it is different than what they are used to seeing. Their minds have become so numb in the thinking department because most of what "Hollywood" puts out there is formulitic and dull. I have grown quite annoyed with the lack of creativity and imagination here in America. Film makers in this country treat us adults like we are children too in most cases. They seem to think we cannot think "outside the box" and spoon-feed us all the same dribble over and over. Then if a movie comes out that doesn't follow the "formula" you see a lot of people once again upset because they have been served some different kind of cusine instead of their usual macaroni and cheese. It's like when they think that people could never accept a comic in a serious role. They limit us in many ways. It seems like they say "We know we are more intellegent than you so don't worry, we will give you what your poor little pea brains can handle."
I don't mean to say that nice little movies than are sweet and cute don't have a place. It's just so sad that movies like Into the West don't always get much of a chance and it's marketing and promoting of these type of movies don't get the same kind of care like a Disney movie would.
And before anyone attacks me, I am a proud American. But I also am tired of seeing laziness on the part of the film makers because it creates a laziness in people's thinking process it seems to me. It is really bad when the only movies America can come up with is from an old TV show such as "The Brady Bunch" or "Bewitched". Some of these may be fine but...
Karen
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