Hidalgo [Blu-ray]

Director: Joe Johnston

Overview

From Joe Johnston, the director of Jurassic Park III and Jumanji comes Hidalgo, based on the true story of a Pony Express delivery man and his horse. Viggo Mortensen stars as Frank T. Hopkins, the ambitious postal worker in question who travels around the world with the titular equine to compete in an arduous and dangerous high-stakes race. Along the way, Hopkins and Hidalgo run into their share of colorful characters and adventurous predicaments. Omar Sharif and Malcolm McDowell co-star.

Product Details

Release Date:	04/01/2008
UPC:	0786936756159
Original Release:	2004
Rating:	PG-13
Source:	TOUCHSTONE / DISNEY
Region Code:	A
Presentation:	[Wide Screen]
Sound:	[Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround]
Language:	English
Time:	2:16:00
Sales rank:	9,715

Special Features

Sand & Celluoid" making-of featurette - a behind-the-scenes look at the special effects and the adventure of Hidalgo; "America's First Horse" - venture beyond the movie to the incredible story of Hidalgo's ancestors, The Spanish Mustangs

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Viggo Mortensen	Frank Hopkins
Zuleikha Robinson	Jazira
Omar Sharif	Sheikh Riyadh
Louise Lombard	Lady Anne Davenport
Adam Alexi-Malle	Aziz
Silas Carson	Katib
Harsh Nayyar	Yusef
J.K. Simmons	Buffalo Bill Cody
Adoni Maropis	Sakr
Victor Talmadge	Rau Rasmussen
Peter Mensah	Jaffa
Joshua Wolf Coleman	The Kurd
Franky Mwangi	Slave Boy
Floyd 'Red Crow' Westerman	Chief Eagle Horn
Elizabeth Berridge	Annie Oakley
C. Thomas Howell	Preston Webb
Stevan Rimkus	Military Cistern Lieutenant
Jerry Hardin	Nate Salisbury
Frank Collison	Texas Jack
Sven-Ole Thorsen	Actor
Chris Owen	First Soldier
Marshall Manesh	Camel Skinner
Philip Sounding Sides	Chief Big Foot
George Gerdes	Major Whitside
Todd Kimsey	Corporal at Wounded Knee
Ed Nah New Rider Weber	Old Lakota Woman
Adam Ozturk	Bedouin Rider
John Prosky	Officer at Horse Corral
Michael Canavan	Cattleman
David Midthunder	Black Coyote
Lee Trotter	Soldier at Wounded Knee
Dave Florek	Sentry at Wounded Knee
Jeff Kober	Sergeant at Wounded Knee
Sam Sako	Call to Prayer Singer
Te'Amir Sweeney	Tower Boy
Jake Miller	Ghost Dance Singer
Mary Ellis	Mary
Clement Richards	Lakota Wagon Driver
Kimberly Norris Guerrero	Frank's Mother
Zachary Badasci	Young Frank Hopkins
Malcolm McDowell	Lord Davenport (uncredited)
Sa?d Taghmaoui	Prince Bin Al Reeh
James Newton Howard	Composer

Technical Credits

John Fusco

Tim Alexander	Special Effects
Nancy Foy	Casting
Pat Romano	Stunts
Casey Silver	Producer
Bruno Van Zeebroeck	Special Effects
Don Zepfel	Executive Producer
John Fusco	Screenwriter
Patricia Carr	Producer
Joseph Bonn	Sound Effects
Mary H. Ellis	Sound Effects
Rachid Abbad	Stunts

Editorial Reviews

A mixture of Indiana Jones and Lawrence of Arabia seasoned with old-fashioned horse opera, this stirring adventure movie falls just short of "classic" designation but warrants several viewings for its lavish production values and ebullient action sequences. Purportedly based on the real-life exploits of one Frank T. Hopkins (played here by Viggo Mortensen), Hidalgo takes place in 1890, by which time the former cavalry dispatch rider and champion endurance rider has been reduced to working in Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show. Hopkins is challenged by Sheik Riyadh (Omar Sharif) to compete against the finest Arabian stallions in "the Ocean of Fire" -- a 3,000-mile race across the blazing Middle Eastern desert. Hopkins and his compact mustang aren't given much chance of finishing the race, much less winning it, but a competing English noblewoman (Louise Lombard) arranges to sabotage the American, just in case. Joe Johnston is no stranger to high adventure, having directed Jurassic Park III and The Rocketeer, and he imbues the material with thematic and pictorial flourishes worthy of the most memorable big-screen epics. Standout sequences include a breathtaking attempt by Hopkins to outrun a raging sandstorm and his thrilling rescue of Riyadh's kidnapped daughter (Zuleikha Robinson) from bloodthirsty Bedouins. The sober, brooding quality that Mortensen brings to most of his roles is particularly apt for Hopkins, a freedom-loving loner haunted by the abuse of Indians he witnessed while riding for the U.S. Cavalry. Sharif's fine performance invariably invites comparison to his supporting turn in 1962's Lawrence, and we're happy to report that he's every bit as effective in this film. While Hidalgo plainly lacks that hard-to-define something that separates the classic from the merely good, it succeeds magnificently as invigorating escapist entertainment -- and there's certainly nothing ignoble about that.