Admirable film.

I really wanted to like this movie. I feel terribly cynical trashing it, and that's why I'm giving it a middling 5. Actually, I'm giving it a 5 because there were some superb performances.

This is a small, humorous movie in some ways, but it has a huge heart. What a nice experience.

One of the worst ways to make a cult movie is to set out to make a cult movie.

An interesting blip on Matthau's resume is this family-oriented character study, which concerns a single father striving to make a mark in the horse racing industry. He plays a man with three sons who barely scrapes by as a boarder and trainer of racing steeds. When his eldest son Rubin makes a questionable purchase for a friend of theirs, he makes amends by raising and training the horse's well-bred offspring in exchange for partial, temporary ownership of him. Rubin trains the horses, middle son Burns is a jockey who rides him and little tyke Hershewe loves and nurtures him (when he isn't accidentally overworking him or putting him in some other danger!) As the promise of the title creature begins to shine through, both seedy, fat cat owner Hamilton and no-nonsense, top-notch breeder Smith make overtures with regards to buying him. However, Matthau, despite the hefty offers, is bent on having himself a winner just once in his life, no matter the cost. Matthau is slightly miscast as a Louisiana Cajun, but sinks into his role the best he can and uses his considerable talent to overcome most of its hurdles. Smith, a woman who dripped austere class in almost every role, adds a dash of taste and prestige to the proceedings. Webber, who plays Hamilton's second-in-command, does a decent job while Hamilton is enjoyably slimy, as he often was in films. (Note, however, how Webber takes a beating, his face pummeled - literally - into the ground and yet the following day he is perfectly fine!) If the three sons seem a bit disjointed from one another, apart from not really being related of course, it could have to do with the fact that there are at least 10 years in age between each of them! Rubin was 32 at the time. He runs hot and cold, sometimes coming off effectively and other times appearing a bit high! He does wear some interestingly faded jeans, though. Burns has less to do, but is fine. Hershewe manages to stay pretty appealing despite the sometimes annoying and idiotic things his character is compelled to do. Bissell (in his last feature film) does a nice job as a veterinarian. One of the first in a wave of boy & horse flicks to hit theaters in the late 70's ("The Champ" and "The Black Stallion" were around the corner), this is compelling, but also a little confounding. Despite being aimed at children, it contains a hefty helping of foul language (Matthau's nickname is "Coonass!") and a very graphic scene of horse birth along with plenty of boozing and squabbling. While it's refreshing in this day of homogenized, generic, CGI-infested, brand name mongering JUNK to look back and see what children were expected to watch, it may still not be a film that all parents will find suitable (or that children will find particularly interesting!) A wealth of location shooting and use of authentic extras help lend a feeling of verisimilitude to the movie. The music ranges from effective to fairly agonizing (the title song, among others, providing "flavorful" noise.) Fans of Matthau or of horse racing will likely find this more tolerable than others.

This is a great family film dealing with down to earth people who enjoy their local interests dealing mainly with horse racing. Lloyd Bourdelle, (Walter Matthau) is a farmer who also raises quarter horses and has a young son named Casey Bourdelle, who loves horses. Lloyd is able to raise a full grown horse who he calls "Casey's Shadow" after his son and this horse breaks all speed records and is a possible winner of a million dollar race. Sarah Blue, ( Alexis Smith) becomes interested in this horse and offers to buy the horse for $500,00 dollars, however, this horse receives serious injuries to his legs and Lloyd receives a serious set-back which upsets the entire family. Walter Matthau gave an outstanding performance and this is a great film to view and enjoy.

A wonderful family movie & a beautiful horse movie. 75+ %entertainment. Casey, Buddy, Kelly Marsh are very interesting and lovable characters. The horses are real beauties.Has the horse racing as a backdrop for showing how luck is sometimes nothing but some good commonsense. Shows how kids can do stupid things for stupid reasons. Shows how adults can do stupid things for selfish reasons. The very realistically portrayed characters transform the unrealistic theme of the film into something everyone can relate to.Andrew Rubin puts in a wonderful performance as Buddy,the sensible elder brother. Somewhat reminded me of Aidan Quinn(eyes, speech delivery, facial appearance). Casey makes you fall in love with the character because of the earnestness. Sarah Blue is also nicely portrayed by Alexis Smith. Lloyd Bourdelle, the father, is played by Walter Matthau and he IS the character.Though there is room for improvement in the movie, its a very enjoyable, feel-good movie.

Well made children's film about a young boy and the horse he hopes to make a champion. Matthau is here to guide us through the picture.