Hidalgo Movie Review

Has Potential

Hidalgo is an interesting film for me. When I was a kid, I remember watching previews for it on either VHS or DVD, I can't remember which and I always wanted to see this film. I never got the chance, but the other day I was fortunate enough to watch this film, fulfilling a tiny childhood dream of mine.
Hidalgo follows Frank Hopkins (Viggo Mortensen) and his horse, Hidalgo. They did many different jobs from Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show, U.S. Cavalry dispatch, Cowboy, and Racer. Frank Hopkins is challenged to race in The Ocean Of Fire, a 3,000 mile race across the Arabian Desert. Will this race be too much for him? Or will his horse and himself pull through and win?
Alright, Hidalgo has potential as a film. Viggo Mortensen is a good actor, and the story itself is interesting, but this film has poor pacing which does impact the overall story. I really think Hidalgo could have been great.
Viggo Mortensen did a fine job with what he had to work with in Hidalgo. I think he portrayed his character to the best of his ability. I think if he could have had a better script or director, this would be one of his great films he'd be known for. The other cast did alright.
Now, the story of Hidalgo is based on a true story. It takes place in 1890 and I know I caught a few historical inaccuracies. This isn't my time period so I can't comment too much about the specifics, but if you're a history buff, just be aware of this going in. One thing Hidalgo as a film did do right is make me want to look up the true story this film was based on. I think that's a plus if a movie can make you want to know the real events.
The pacing in this film is bad. This puzzles me because of it's 136 minute runtime. That is a great amount of time to tell a well paced story. Don't get me wrong, there are some good entertaining scenes in Hidalgo, but if the pacing was better this film would have been elevated to such great heights. I don't know if it was the director, or the script that was at fault, but I don't blame the cast or crew at large.
Hidalgo did come out in 2004 and it kinda feels like it. Some movies just feel like products of their era, and others are timeless. Just know if you decide to watch Hidalgo it's best to go into this film with a 2004 mindset. Your average film was stylized quite differently than the average film of today.
I think they could have done a little better with the music. Nothing stood out to me, and everything kinda felt like background. For the most part, the coloring of the film is pretty good. There are one or two scenes where you can tell something is off, but overall it works pretty well.
I'll praise the film for the bond between Frank Hopkins and Hidalgo. There is some chemistry there and I would have liked to have seen more of it. It would have been cool if their backstory was discussed a little more.
If you're feeling nostalgic for an early 2k film, then Hidalgo wouldn't be a bad choice. There is some good, and some bad. I'm conflicted on the final rating for this film. I want to score it 0.1 points higher but I can't bring myself to do it. I'd recommend watching this film if you can get it for free or if you really have an early 2k itch, then I'd say a cheap rent would be passable. Even though it didn't turn out like I expected, I don't regret seeing, Hidalgo.



final score: 2.9/5