PUC Chronicle

Issue date: 2/26/07 Section: Entertainment

Media Credit: IMDB.COM "Flicka," starring Alison Lohman and Tim McGraw, storyline deals with personal struggles and defending one's beliefs.

In my mind, "Flicka" three strikes against it before watching it.

It has Maria Bello - I disliked her character in "Secret Window." Tim McGraw's acting skills (in "Friday Night Lights") left me unimpressed and "Flicka" is about a horse. They are beautiful animals and while I do not them wish any harm but I am rather leery of them.

The DVD cover makes it look like a light-hearted story about a girl and her horse.

While there are moments like this, the main part of the movie deals with struggles, mainly struggling to stand up for what you believe in.

Katy McLaughlin (Alison Lohman) is Rob (McGraw) and Nell's (Bello) daughter. She attends boarding school, where she doesn't quite fit in. Katy is more comfortable being on the family ranch, wearing jeans and cowgirl shirts.

Home for the summer, Katy sneaks out for a late night horse ride. Her horse, Yankee, is spooked by a mountain lion and throws her off. A black Mustang horse (which Katy later names Flicka, meaning "pretty girl") comes to Katy's rescue and scares off the mountain lion.

Excited, Katy heads home to tell her family. In the mean time, her school had faxed a letter home telling her parents she'll be held behind if she does not finish an essay she had ample time to do.

This angers Rob because the family makes sacrifices for her to go to school and college. Katy is told she must help out around the ranch and finish her paper. Nell acts as a mediator for her family. While Katy helps out around the ranch, she brings Flicka back which causes a disruption with her family's other horses. Her dad doesn't want Katy to ride the "loco" thing, as he describes it.

Katy once again goes against her father's wishes and works to gain Flicka's trust during the night. Both Katy and Flicka are misunderstood by those around them-a reason why they bond so easily.

Katy eventually takes Flicka out for a ride and falls. Rob sells Flicka to the local rodeo manager, who plans on making her a rodeo star. This does not sit well with other members of her family because they know Rob knows it's wrong.

Katy and her brother Howard (Ryan Kwanten) enter the AWild Horse Race at the rodeo in hopes they can win money and buy Flicka back. Katy dresses up as a boy so no one will recognize her and ends up riding Flicka in the race. The duo end up in a bad storm and get lost.

Director Michael Mayer does a good job bringing out the dynamics of the story; a daughter and father who are at odds, a family who holds onto their ranch while others are selling their land, and a girl who believes in her beloved horse. While the story dragged at times, it better than I thought it would be.

The DVD contains McGraw's music video for "My Little Girl," commentary from the director, deleted scenes and a gag reel.

"Flicka" is rated PG for some mild language.

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