Two in Revolt

I saw this film several nights ago. It is a curious admixture of wild-life/documentary/ drama. Director Glenn Tryon's early days in Idaho no doubt gave him a feeling for the great outdoors. There are people in this film, to be sure. There's the love story that goes on between two youngsters on a ranch where race-horses are bred. There's the father and ranch owner whose aspirations are more aristocratic than practical. Embarrassingly, there is Willie Best's shuffling, which makes it a difficult watch for Black viewers. However, the two principal actors are animals. Our zoological protagonists are the ones who are in revolt in this film. A horse named "Warrior" and a dog named "Lightning" are born within days of each other. They grow up together on the ranch forming a special rapport that few humans can influence. Each revolts in a way that only animals can, but largely because they are intelligent and high spirited. Glenn Tryon's direction almost works, but he leaves too many ends loose in the animal scenes--which are plentiful-- and it is up to the viewer to determine for him/herself what is going on at a particular point. The direction, however, is a pre-cursor to the Walt Disney and Marlon Perkins animal type adventures that would be pervasive on television in the 1950s. While this is not a great film, it does manage to raise itself slightly above the bar of the average "B" flick because of the animal actors. The one saving grace of the film is that it is not mushy, and thankfully it does not take itself too seriously. I do not recommend it highly, but it is a worthwhile watch.

The first comment I want to make is that one of the leads John Arledge who plays the young trainer is the spitting image of Steve Martin. With that out of the way the movie was very charming. From the title you would think it was about people revolting, but no it is about 2 animals. A half Shepard half wolf Lightning and a horse Warrior. The dog and the young pony bond but people are afraid that the wolf half of the dog will harm the animal so part of the early part of the movie is about Lightning being forced off the ranch and fending it on his own. Don't worry he makes out OK. Meanwhile back at the ranch Warrior turns out to be a first class racer and someone is out to steal him since the owner will not give him up. And now the action starts. Lightning gets a wind of something not being right and discovers his Pal trying to get way from the thieves. I am not going to spoil what happens. But I was impressed. The movie is a precursor to all of the Disney movies like Homeward Bound. But without all of the mushy sentimentality. There was a little side story about the trainer and the rich ranch owner daughter. But nothing distracting. The charm of seeing the 2 stars interact is priceless. The last scene of the movie Warrior sees his friend Lightning and dumps the jockey on his back to go play. I loved it.

Touching but not at all tear-jerking story about a half dog half wolf named Lighting who's forced out of the Benton horse farm and into the wild while his childhood or yearling friend, the majestic and strikingly handsome stallion, Warrior grew up without him only to later reunite with Lighting under the most unusual of circumstances.

Out on his own Lighting reverted back in order to survive in the wild to his wolf pedigree taking charge, by defeating the alpha male of a wolf pack and becoming the most feared canine in the county. Back at Benton's ranch Warrior grows up to be a powerful and fast as a bolt of lighting bay colt who's undoubtedly headed for racing greatness running morning quarter mile bullet workouts at unbelievable 21 or less second clips.

With the jealous and greedy hoodlum George Mason, Emmett Vogan, not being able to persuade Warrior's owner Cyrus Benton, Moroni Olsen, to sell the bay colt to him Mason and his hoods do the next best thing horse-nap Warrior out of his stall. Like his canine friend Lighting the rambunctious Warrior reverts back to his wild and free ingrained instincts and breaks away from the Mason gang, putting a number of them in the hospital. Warrior hooks up with a band of wild mustangs becoming their alpha, like Lighting with the wolf pack, stallion.

In the wild the two long lost friends meet and instinctively recognize each other from their early days at the Benton farm and become inseparable. It's the much smaller Lighting who comes to the aid of big and strapping warrior in a number of exciting scenes in the film. One in which he ferociously attacks one of Mason's hoods, who was trying to re-capture warrior. Lighting's wild and unrelenting attack on the hood was both so shocking and realistic, and all in one take, that for a moment I didn't think that I was watching a make-believe Hollywood movie.

Besides the two top animal stars there's also the love story between the Benton ranch's young horse trainer John Woods, John Arledge, and Mr. Benton's sweet and pretty teenage daughter Gloria, Louise Latiman.

During the movie John changes Mr. Benton's mind in his feeling that he doesn't have the right and proper breeding, the old man thinks of everything in life as a thoroughbred pedigree chart, to marry his sophisticated and well educated daughter. Mr. Benton later changes his mind at the end of the film when Mr. Benton realizes that John, like the half wolf and non-blue bred Lighting, had a lot more going for him in what he did in real life then what his blood-lines indicate on paper of how high up in the social register he is.