Saw "Buck" today. Most memorable lines: "A horse can feel a mosquito land on its butt..." "You can move a horse with your energy. It's a dance." "I live in the moment." "I haven't grown up yet." In the film, Robert Redford says that Buck is the "real deal" and he is. Of the three men that Nicholas Evans based his popular novel, "The Horse Whisperer" on, Buck Brannaman is the sole surviving one. This biopic shows Buck's "day at the office" as he travels from ranch to farm, teaching groundwork, horsemanship, colt starting, ranch roping and cattle work. He misses his family but when together, it is obvious that it is quality time for all.
It may seem heavy-handed in our politically correct society to take someone's money for a service and then tell them something they may not want to hear. It may not seem like good customer service, but is it better to placate--the easier path--or to help? As someone with a lot of his own baggage, Buck recognizes it in his clients and knows it builds braces, hardness and even shut-down in their horses. He calls it as he sees it. Some can take it and learn. Others pack and leave.
Buck's candor and dry wit are reminiscent of another cowboy, Will Rogers. It gets under your skin and sticks like a burr in a blanket. It has a sense of timelessness, ancient wisdom, mystical, yet somehow, something that is known telepathically to herd creatures. He translates for the human.
"Buck" is a movie about a genuine human being who cares about others and--yes, more importantly--the horses who need an advocate to express their feelings. It shows that instead of letting a hard start in life be a stumbling block, it can be a challenge to a more elevated spiritual level. A win/win for all.
If some get the feeling that Buck prefers horses to humans, understand that horses speak truth. Their reactions reflect the treatment they have received and it can be read like a book. He says, "Your horse is a mirror of you. Some may not like what they see." Some might.
"Buck" barely flips the pages of Buck's life experience in the 88-minute final cut of the 300 minutes filmed, but that 88 minutes is intriguing to many--even those who have never touched nor owned a horse.
It may seem heavy-handed in our politically correct society to take someone's money for a service and then tell them something they may not want to hear. It may not seem like good customer service, but is it better to placate--the easier path--or to help? As someone with a lot of his own baggage, Buck recognizes it in his clients and knows it builds braces, hardness and even shut-down in their horses. He calls it as he sees it. Some can take it and learn. Others pack and leave.
Buck's candor and dry wit are reminiscent of another cowboy, Will Rogers. It gets under your skin and sticks like a burr in a blanket. It has a sense of timelessness, ancient wisdom, mystical, yet somehow, something that is known telepathically to herd creatures. He translates for the human.
"Buck" is a movie about a genuine human being who cares about others and--yes, more importantly--the horses who need an advocate to express their feelings. It shows that instead of letting a hard start in life be a stumbling block, it can be a challenge to a more elevated spiritual level. A win/win for all.
If some get the feeling that Buck prefers horses to humans, understand that horses speak truth. Their reactions reflect the treatment they have received and it can be read like a book. He says, "Your horse is a mirror of you. Some may not like what they see." Some might.
"Buck" barely flips the pages of Buck's life experience in the 88-minute final cut of the 300 minutes filmed, but that 88 minutes is intriguing to many--even those who have never touched nor owned a horse.