Spirit Untamed – Spirit Untamed (2021)

Directed by: Elaine Bogan, Ennio Torresan | 87 minutes | animation, family, adventure | Dutch voice cast: Vajèn van den Bosch, Stephanie van Eer, Sterre van Woudenberg, Peggy Vrijens, Kees Boot, Murth Mossel, Ruben Lürsen, Ellen ten Damme, Britt Dekker, Rogier Komproe, Nurlaila Karim, Benjamin Daalder | Original voice cast: Isabela Merced, Marsai Martin, Mckenna Grace, Walton Goggins, Andre Braugher, Julianne Moore, Jake Gyllenhaal, Eiza González, Lucian Perez, Joe Hart, Alejandra Blengio

As long as there are movies, horses and girls, there will be horse movies. This subgenre in the family films feeds a universal desire in many children: befriend a (wild) horse and get the positive feeling that comes with an outdoor activity. ‘Spirit untamed’ (‘Spirit Untamed’) fits seamlessly into the list of horse movies that come out on a regular basis.

In 2002 the hand-drawn ‘Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron’ was released, which was not a typical horse girl film, but a story about a wild horse who is captured by humans and trained against his will. This film by Kelly Asbury (1960-2020) and Lorna Cook was even nominated for an Oscar for best animated film. ‘Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron’ got a sequel on Netflix: animated series “Spirit Riding Free” ran there for three years. ‘Spirit untamed’ is a film adaptation of that. The makers have made a somewhat strange choice for this: the feature film is not a sequel, but a retelling of the series. Whether the fans of the series are happy with that remains to be seen.

As a toddler, Lucky Prescott witnesses the accident in which her mother, a renowned circus performer, is killed. Consumed with grief, her father decides it’s better that Lucky be raised by her sister’s grandfather and Aunt Cora. There has been no contact between father and daughter for about ten years, but when tomboy Lucky inadvertently damages her grandfather’s political career, she has no choice but to return to the town of Miradero. ‘Spirit untamed’ is set in America at the end of the nineteenth century. In this western-like setting, Lucky gets to know her father, discovers more about herself and makes new friends.

The story is not very innovative, but ‘Spirit untamed’ does a lot of good. First of all, the voice cast is very good: Isabela Merced does a fantastic job as the headstrong Lucky and Julianne Moore is fine as Aunt Cora. Jake Gyllenhaal doesn’t get much to do as father Jim Prescott, but puts heart and soul into this voice role. The animations are without a doubt beautiful, with beautiful views that let you dream away at the tranquility and overwhelming beauty of the still untouched nature. The characters look like any great Hollywood animated movie: with big shiny eyes and round faces. It is very nice that the film has girl power high on the agenda. Spirit itself still looks quite similar to its hand-drawn ancestor. But the film has little to do with the original, the development of teenage girl Lucky is central. Is it exciting? For young children, the answer is yes. Is it entertaining? The same applies to this. The screenplay is full of clichés, but still has some small surprises in store. If you fall outside the target group (horse girls or boys), this is not for you.