Spirit: Stallion of Cimarron

Theatrical Release Date: 2002 05 24 (USA)

UPC: 097360823547

Studio: Dreamworks Animated

MPAA Rating: G   Contains:[Mild Violence, Suitable for Children]

Summary: Screenwriter John Fusco returns to the Western themes of his previous films Young Guns and Thunderheart with this animated children's adventure from Dreamworks. Matt Damon supplies the voice of Spirit, a wild Mustang stallion living free in the Old West of the late 19th century, where he's captured by human horse traders and sold to a cavalry regiment at a frontier outpost. There, a cruel colonel (voice of James Cromwell) nearly succeeds in breaking the willful horse, but not quite. Spirit escapes in the company of another captive, Little Creek (voice of Daniel Studi), a Native American youth that tries to possess the magnificent animal by more humane means, but Spirit refuses to bend to human will even when he makes the acquaintance of Little Creek's beautiful and fiercely loyal mare, Rain. After he saves Little Creek's life in an Army raid, Spirit believes that the gravely injured Rain has perished after a tumble over a waterfall. Despondent, the horse is captured again by humans, enslaved this time for work in a pack team on the transcontinental railroad. Undaunted by the tragedies that befall him, Spirit manages to escape for a reunion with Little Creek, Rain, and his long-lost brethren. Featuring songs by rock singer Bryan Adams, Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron departs from other examples of its genre in that the horse protagonists do not speak or sing; only Spirit's voice is heard as voice-over narration. ~ Karl Williams, Rovi

Category: Children's/Family

Awards: Best Original Song – null Best Original Song – null Best Animated Feature – Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Best Animated Feature – Broadcast Film Critics Association Best Original Song – Hollywood Foreign Press Association Best Original Song – Hollywood Foreign Press Association

Features: cc
DWK: Dream Works Kids - This way to play!
Learn to draw Spirit with a DreamWorks animator
Interactive games including: Cimarron Slam and Mustang Derby
The animation Spirit:
A fascinating look at the integration of hand-drawn 2-D and computer-generated 3-D animation
The songs of Spirit:
Learn how Grammy-winner Bryan Adams and Academy Award winning composer Hans Zimmer brought Spirit's story to life through music
Storyboards
Filmmaker's commentary

Spirit: Stallion of Cimarron

Format: DVD

Release Date: 05/18/2010

Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1 Cinemascope

Audio: DD5.1 Dolby Digital 5.1, DS Dolby Surround (4.0)

Runtime: 83 Minutes

Sides: 1

Number of Discs: 1

Language(s) English,French,Spanish

Subtitles: English,French,Spanish

Region: USA & territories, Canada

Chapters: Disc #1 -- Spirit: Stallion of Cimarron
1. Young Spirit
2. Leader of Hills Herd
3. The Journey Begins
4. Spirit Meets Man
5. A Strange New Place
6. You Can't Braak Me
7. This One Scemed Different
8. The Great Escape
9. Indian Camp
10. Rain's World
11. Torn Two Ways
12. "Go Home"
13. The Cavalry Attacks
14. Remember Who You Are
15. Master Plan
16. Breaking Free
17. Leap of Faith
18. Farewell My Friend
19. The Return
20. End Credits

Josh Ralske

Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron is a technically innovative film, blending hand-drawn and computer animation with a seamlessness never approached before, but most viewers probably won't know the difference. They're more likely to notice how otherwise uninspired the film seems. The problems start with the filmmakers' decision not to have the animals talk. This was a wise choice, in some respects. As co-director Kelly Asbury has noted, they realized early on that "the minute you have a horse speak, it's a comedy." Caroline Thompson's 1994 live-action film Black Beauty successfully told the classic story from a (non-speaking) horse's point of view. And Jean-Jacques Annaud's 1988 film The Bear also effectively used a real animal in the lead. Matt Damon's voiceover, from the point-of-view of the horse, is used sparsely and effectively. But the animators for Spirit decided to use the unrealistic nature of the medium to make the horses more expressive. As they gesture, smile, shake their heads, raise eyebrows, and neigh, whinny, and grunt at each other (at times sounding more like Chewbacca than horses) in a recognizably human (and decidedly un-horse-like) way, one begins to wish they'd just spit it out. Despite some pleasant Old West scenery early on, the film picks up considerable steam once Spirit comes into contact with humans, and the plot kicks in. This leads to a few exciting, well-animated action sequences, particularly one involving Spirit and a team of horses being forced to drag a train engine up a hill. The film doesn't approach the heights of modern animation, and its childish simplicity, as exemplified by the insipid Bryan Adams songs on the soundtrack, may bore adults. But it is likely to keep younger children entertained. ~ Josh Ralske, Rovi

Cast and Crew: Charles Napier  Actor 
John Rubano  Actor 
Michael Horse  Actor 
Zahn McClarnon  Actor 
Chopper Bernet  Actor 
Jeff LeBeau  Actor 
Donald Fullilove  Actor 
Robert Cait  Actor 
Adam Paul  Actor 
Richard McGonagle  Actor 
Matt Levin  Actor 
Meredith Wells  Actor 
John Fusco  Screenwriter 
Hans Zimmer  Composer (Music Score) 
Mireille Soria  Producer 
Jeffrey Katzenberg  Producer 
Kelly Asbury  Director 
Lorna Cook  Director 
Marylata E. Jacob  Composer (Music Score) 
Matt Damon  Actor 
James Cromwell  Actor 
Daniel Studi  Actor 

Country: USA