User reviews

Mary O'Hara's novel "My Friend Flicka" is the basis for this wonderful family oriented movie. Directed by Michael Mayer, a man whose work we had admired before, offers a positive view of a Wyoming family that is struggling to make a living out the ranch where they raise horses and the changes that are happening around them.

At the center of the story is Katy McLaughlin, a young woman who is happier being in the family ranch than at the boarding school, where she seems to be out of place. When Katy goes back home after not completing a key exam, she begins to feel like a human being. All the great outdoors are at her finger tips. The horses she loves are also part of her life.

A fearless rider, Katy is surprised one day by a mountain lion who comes near her. A mustang that appears out of nowhere comes to her rescue, attracting Katy's attention. A bond will develop between the young woman and the horse that will prove it to be a mutual love and respect they feel about one another. She names the horse Flicka and becomes her champion when her father feels a mustang doesn't belong in the ranch because what it will do to the other pure bred horses. In the end, the father, as well as the family realize how deep Katy cares for Flicka and the way the horse responds to her.

Alison Lohman, who is seen as Flicka, is an actress that seems a natural no matter what role she is asked to play. Tim McGraw does justice to the father, and lovely Maria Bello is perfect as the mother.

The beautiful cinematography by J. Michael Muro does wonders to create the right atmosphere in which the action is presented. The same can be said for the musical score of Aaron Zigman, which is tuneful and fits well in the picture. There is no doubt Michael Mayer will continue to surprise us in his future projects.

Highly recommended for all families.

Katy (Lohman) a teenager finds a wild mustang and decides that is her horse and sets out to tame it. Her father (McGraw) doesn't want her to end up on a ranch and wants her to go to college.

Yes, it's corny, sappy and all that. But just like a great big, juicy, cheeseburger sometimes you just "gotta have one." This is good family entertainment and the kids will love it. Everything works, the dialogue, the scenery, the acting, the music and, of course, the horses.

What's not to like when you see a herd of horses running full out over the plains and there are many scenes like that in here as the ranch is a Quarter Horse Ranch. There is something majestic watching those horses run.

The setting is in Wyoming and we get to see some really great scenery and the camera could have lingered longer on this landscape and yet we did not see the Big Sky, something for which Wyoming is famous for as well as Montana. I was once in Wyoming and saw the Big Sky and there is nothing like it. You look at those nearby gigantic, almost touchable, clouds and you know there something special there. And, when you look, you don't have to look up too far. But, sadly, no Big Sky in here. Maybe Flicka 2?

However, as mentioned this is good family fun and I'm getting hungry. Maybe a cheeseburger…….

Violence:No, Sex: No, Nudity: No, Language:No

"Flicka" (2006) bridges several sub-genres, unfortunately it is one of the weakest examples of each. It's a horse movie (the original is better, as are "National Velvet", The Horse Whisperer" and for that matter most episodes of "The Saddle Club" and "Spin & Marty"). It's a "wild mustangs as a metaphor for the changing West" movie ("The Misfits" and "Billy Jack" do it better). It's an overwrought coming of age melodrama (countless other films do this better as well as most of the stuff you find playing on Lifetime).

It's also an Alison Lohman film and in all fairness contains one of her best performances. Lohman is always excellent and in "Flicka" she is given a lot to work with and handles it all quite well. However, the scripting and editing assembly work are so weak that her strong performance (and nice supporting work by Maria Bello and Ryan Kwanten) cannot turn this thing into a high quality film. You might notice that neither the two screenwriters nor the director have been involved in any feature productions since the release of the film.

"Flicka" was a major release (over 2900 theaters in the U.S.) and turned a profit at the box office. I credit shrewd packaging by the film's producers as they focused from inception on insuring that the project would be bankable. They incorporated elements that pre-sold the film beyond its target audience of pre-teen girls. Tim McGraw was cast to bring in his large fan base, Kwanten was counted on to draw a fair number of teenage girls into the multi- plex, and there were so few live action family films in 2006 that it was able to tap into an under-supplied market.

As for Mary O'Hara's beloved children's book (My Friend Flicka-previously adapted into two feature films and a television show, is credited), it would be more accurate to say "inspired by" rather than "adapted from". The original's ten-year-old hero has been changed to a 16-year-old heroine named Katy McLaughlin (Lohman).

I normally rant a bit when an older actress is cast as a teenager but Lohman is the Mary Pickford of her day and with her cute face and freckles still looks physically believable playing a teen. Her new look for the film, long curly hair-dyed dark, makes her look a lot like Kari Russell (insert "very Irish" here). In this remake it's totally Katy's story (in the original the parents had a more central role) and is told from her point-of-view. She even does a short voice-over commentary to begin and close the film. Normally this POV stuff leads to viewer identification and connection, but the scripting and directing works against Lohman and you stay distanced from her character.

Katy is mega-headstrong, uncomfortable and bored at her boarding school but at one with the wilds of her family's horse ranch in Wyoming. Her father is grooming Katy's older brother Howard to eventually take over the ranch, clueless about Howard's desire to escape and about Katy's affinity for the place. She is the chip-off-the-old-block, not her brother.

The title character is a two-year old black mustang mare that is a source of conflict between Katy and her father for most of the film. While the movie looks pretty the thin plot, the poor sequencing, and absence of "genuine" emotion" doesn't add up to a particularly satisfying viewing experience.

Then again, what do I know? I'm only a child.

So many times when writers "update" a movie, they destroy it by changing the heartwarming plot into something colder and more distant. Flicka remains true to the book, even if they made Flicka's owner a girt instead of a boy. Allison Lohman, really deserves credit as the teenage girl with spirit who find Flicka, a similarly spirited mustang. Her mother is Maria Bello (Doctor on ER, owner of Coyote Ugly) and her father is a beardless Tim McGraw (that took a while to get use to). Tim does a surprisingly good job as "Dad," and although its not perfect, he doesn't detract from the movie.

Expect lots of tears - bring lots of tissue.

My daughter and I are avid movie-goers. We both agree that the movie market is over-glutted with CGI animated flicks. We saw both "Over the Hedge," and "The Wild," and they left us cold. We may give "Flushed Away" a chance, only because the guys behind the beloved "Wallace & Gromit films, and "Chicken Run." "Flicka" has it problems, such as a female lead who looks far too old to be in high school, a "brother" who acts likes he is flirting with her more than his on-screen girlfriend! and an impossibly perfect mom, but it still does not disappoint. Of course I read the original "Flicka" book as a child AND remember the old B&W TV series! This movie doesn't even come close, but from the moment the rodeo guy took Flicka away until the end of the movie, my daughter and I were crying buckets! I also think that hunky Tim McGraw was superb, and was jealous of Maria Bello when they did the slow dance!

This is about a teenaged and traumatized young girl named Katy McLaughlin(Alison Lohman). After his boarding school she returns to home along with her lovely mother(Maria Bello) and family . The adolescent tries rehabilitate a wild horse and simultaneously her father(Tim McGraw). She captures it, being gently handled , she tames the wild stallion and names it Flicka. The magnificent horse escapes and Katy is determined effort to find her missing black colt. The father along with his cowboys(Danny Pino) tracks it down and is captured again and sold to a rodeo competition owner. But domineering father over her and brother(Ryan Kwanten) drives them both a renowned Mustang championship, a spectacular rodeo with savage horses.

The story concerns on a rebel teenager and a wild and intelligent horse who comes to be his best friend. The tale gets to capture the qualities about love, sacrifice, friendship and dramatic parents-sons relationship. Although is slow moving at times and some pedestrian, the movie is still effective enough to hold interest and bring a tear or two. Evocative and pleasant musical score by Aaron Zigman and glamorous,stunning cinematography by Michael Muro, reflecting spectacular outdoors. Director Michael Mayer after his impressive directorial debut('At home at the end of the world' with Colin Farrell and Dallas Roberts who plays here a secondary role) directs his second movie, exquisitely filmed and with many precious moments . The picture is a worthwhile treat the whole family can enjoy.

Another films about teens-horses relationship are the following : Tonka(directed by Lewis R. Foster with Sal Mineo), The Black Stallion(1979, Carrol Ballard) and different versions about 'Black Beauty' novel by Anne Sewell, directed by Max Nosseck(1946), filmed by James Hill(1971) with Mark Lester, and adaptation by Caroline Thomson(1994) with Sean Bean, among others.

This movie, while it was a good story, was horribly acted. At best, it can be described as over and under acted, which is quite an accomplishment. It's obvious that Tim McGraw as limited acting ability and Maria Bello's performance it quite disappointing. It must be stated that the script was as equally terrible as the acting that accompanied it.The best part of the movie is its visible stimulation. The movie location, Wyoming, is stunning and it must be said that the film's makers certainly choose the right locale. But that is as far as the goodness goes. I hear that"Flicka" is based on a book. My advice, skip the movie and read the book. It has to be better than this pile of crap on film.

This story in its original incarnation had some appeal. Coming of age, proving one's self, contact with nature — which in the original story was clearly conflated with confronting wild adolescent hormones. This was also the case of the "girl's" version "National Velvet" filmed immediately after the first, 1943, film of "My Friend Flicka."

Both of those new-sex-as-wild-horse stories were sappy and ordinary on the surface, but solid enough to last, to (almost) become a classics. Now see what has happened here: this fairly simple natural form has been beset upon by wildcats who have shredded it, turning it into the opposite of what it wants to be.

In the original form, the parents are simply dim but good. Everyone in the story is baffled by puberty, and only differ on how to handle it. In this disemboweled version, the girl is simply wild. She was wild before, during and presumably after we see her. Her dumbfounded parents only know how to fight, not to counsel. In the original, at the end is a harmony, a merging of child and beast where the beast is tamed and controllable and the child now empowered.

In this mortally wounded carcass, the girl wants to remain wild. We know she will be promiscuous, live unhappily (probably creating some new unhappy kids) and die. We know she will be sick or wounded but defiant in every event in her life. We know her parents will comply eventually to every request and wonder why they should be so cursed.

What a strange thing to celebrate harmful obstinacy. I suppose it is one legacy of how we sell presidents in the US.

And the cinematography. I found it ordinary in every respect.

Ted's Evaluation -- 1 of 3: You can find something better to do with this part of your life.

Katy (Allison Lohman) loves her horses and the large ranch her family owns in Wyoming. Just on the verge of graduation from high school, Katy is sent home from the private academy she attends, for not submitting a final essay. Her father decrees that she will work hard on the ranch and finish her schoolwork in the coming summer. One day, Katy rides out in the morning and discovers a Mustang on their property. She is enchanted. Dad is outraged, for he has no use for a wild horse stirring up trouble in his own herd of stallions and mares. But, as luck would have it, the Mustang ends up fenced in their yard and Katy, calling the horse Flicka, secretly trains her at night. That is, until the day her father sells Flicka to a rodeo. How do you spell heartbreak? This is, first, a beautiful film to watch. The setting in Wyoming is wild and lovely, just like Katy herself. Lohman does a nice turn as the young girl who loves horses with her whole being. Tim McGraw and Maria Bello also give fine performances as her parents. The story has plenty of warmth and heartwrench, making tissues necessary in abundance. If you know any horse loving young girls, it would be criminal not to bring this movie to them. They will be in seventh heaven at any viewing. But, truly, anyone who loves animals and breath taking scenery, will adore Flicka.

Mary O'Hara must be doing spins in her grave! It was bad enough what Hollywood did originally to her books (all three of them in the series) without this version hitting the screen. This was not a "kid's book" (I've seen the reference...obviously from someone who never read the books); it was a series of books about the complex relationships of a family living in 1940's Wyoming: A loving mother, father, TWO sons, and an infant daughter. The father/son conflict between the younger son and the father, and the relationship between the brothers, Ken and Howard, were well crafted; as was the very deep (and at times) troubled love relationship between Rob and Nell. What could have been a sweeping family saga was turned into a sappy boy loves horse opus for Roddy McDowell (great actor!), shortly after his successes in the Lassie boy loves dog films.

Just once, I'd like to see Hollywood get it right. If the book ain't broke, don't fix it!!

If you wanted it to be exactly like the book you are going to be disappointed. However the movie was awesome and I loved every bit of it. It was well done and the acting was great. I re-read the book to get my bearings and saw how different it was but still in love with the movie. The set was gorgeous and the horses are beautiful. Tim McGraw has proved himself to be a wonderful actor. And changing the "main" characters from Male boy to Female , I think, made the movie better. I cried like a baby in parts even when I knew how it turns out. We can all relate to Katy and her issues- makes her more real in peoples eyes. The book has so many descriptions in it you may lose the story at some point but the movie keeps right on trucking.

Katy McLaughlin (Alison Lohman) struggles in boarding school and would rather work at the family horse farm. Her father Rob (Tim McGraw) is grooming her older brother Howard (Ryan Kwanten) to take over instead but that's not his dream. She returns home to the ranch with her father, brother, mother Nell (Maria Bello), ranch hands Jack (Danny Pino) and Gus (Dallas Roberts). On a harrowing ride, she is rescued by a wild mustang from a mountain lion. They capture the horse and she calls her "Flicka". Her father balks at the expense and muddying of his purebred horse herd. He entertains an offer for the ranch which makes Howard happy and angers Katy. He sells Flicka to the Rodeo. With the help of Howard and his girlfriend Miranda Koop (Kaylee DeFer), Katy enters the rodeo as a man. When her father figures out the rouse, she decides to escape with Flicka.

Alison is getting a little too old to play a teenager. Tim McGraw is not the most imposing presence which his character needs badly. Maria Bello doesn't feel like a country wife. Most of it still works as a simple family movie. There are no real surprises. It's sentimental old fashion. There are a lot of horses and there are beautiful vistas. The drama is old time stuff and the villain is a mountain lion.

Finally, a family friendly movie with substance and great messages to uplift young people and really everyone! First, I remember reading the book My Friend Flicka, so it brought back such wonderful memories . The beautiful scenery and the photography and filming of it was breathtaking. The Director Michael and his DP and Camera crew did a remarkable job. I had the pleasure to meet Michael Mayer after the premiere tonight, what a nice and outgoing gentleman. Looking forward to seeing more projects directed by Micahl and with hopes to work with him as one of his actors.

What a beautiful sight it was to watch a movie with beautiful horses, and green scenery with beautiful hillsides and mountains from Wyoming......It reaffirmed to me how Wonderful is God who created such beautiful land and animals.

The music composer did a remarkable job. The music really enhances the movie and then the song Tim McGraw wrote, wow! Melodic and meaningful! Tim Surprised me on what a great actor he is too! Everyone ought to go see this movie......Finally something for the kids to see.....No cursing, no bloody killing and violence, no immoral behavior........Finally......Kudos to 20th Century Fox for standing behind this project.

Wishing Flicka to hit big this weekend! Leslie Berger

Not all the remakes of classic movies which poured out of Hollywood in 2006 were dreadful, only 90% of them were. FLICA is the exception, a very good family film with decent acting and beautiful photography, even though it failed somewhat in emotional punch.

Imagine this remake assigned to Peter Jackson and how he might have trashed it with his stupid ideas and budget excess. Stop! Forget that and enjoy this one. Tim McGraw did OK as the Dad and with a country music star in that role there's also a fine country soundtrack and Mr McGraw does not hog this for himself.

Aside from the good story and Wyoming scenery, I enjoyed watching Maria Bello as the Mom. Good thing the new version is updated to 2006 and not set in 1943. They did not have knockout-beautiful mothers of teenage girls in 1943 --- take my word, I was there --- but we've sure got 'em these days. Horse ranches, Home Depot, across the street, they're just everywhere.

One thing they DID have in 1943 that we don't have anymore is movie stars that can seriously act, and put across a performance that knocks you out. I can only imagine the young Roddy McDowell playing the lead as he did in the original, a classic, which begot the sequel, Thunderhead, Son of Flica.

this movie was good and sad. it had some fun parts but yet some sad ones. it is good for all ages and will touch many peoples hearts. the actors did a great job and i loved being able to watch a good country movie singer act. this movie also had a good but surprising ending. i cried in this movie and you could hear other people sniffing their noses...maybe they had a cold but i highly doubt that. i am excited that they will also have a book series as well as the movie. Katie was great in the movie and was passionate and followed her heart. she will show young ones to do the same. i am very proud with this movie. it turned out to be better than it was put out to be. great job!

I just went and seen this Movie. I loved it, it's a beautiful story. The Location and Horses are BEAUTIFUL. Alison Lohman does a wonderful job as Katy. Her emotion at one point in the movie made me cry. Her love for Flicka is known from the moment she sees her in the Mountains. The mother played by Maria Bello and is the glue that holds th family together. If there is a problem or conflict she tries to work out the problem. Ryan Kwanten plays Howard the son. He is cute. And he is the one the father wants to take over the ranch when the time comes. Katy(Lohman)and Howard(Kwanten) aren't just sister and brother but best friends. Tim McGraw does a pretty good job. The way he shows the characters love for his family is awesome. I can't wait for it to come out in the stores.

OK, so the critics don't like it because is is predictable and there's nothing really new about the story. Fair criticism..frankly, I predicted just about every turn the plot took before they happened. However, look past the fairly thin plot and see this movie through a child's eyes: BEAUTIFUL cinematography, good performances by the lead actors, not overly long (i.e. not long enough to put a child to sleep), and most importantly a happy ending. Look at it from a parent's perspective: a good story, a happy ending, but most of all a subtle warning about being too strict with your kids and putting your needs/wants ahead of theirs. This movie struck a chord with me as I sat watching it with my 2 daughters, and while I went in expecting to hate it I actually was moved by the story. Your results may vary, but if you have a 8-13 year old daughter, I can think of FAR worse ways to spend a couple of hours than taking her to this movie.

I was very disappointed in this movie and would not take a tween to see it. The girl disobeys the father at every turn. It seems she thinks he makes rules only for her to break them. To make it worse, the mother sides with the child and not with her spouse.

Beautiful camera work, but no one rides anymore without a walkie talkie or a cell phone attached to their body, especially when they ride alone over vast amounts of land. And what about a horse so wild that no one can go near it, but they pen it up without food or water for days and days and someone must have gone in with it to pick up the manure...... It's just too bad that they didn't remake the old Flicka story. It was a great story.

Its about time someone came out with a clean, funny, suspenseful, and outright wonderful family movie. I am sure I will watch this again, and again. Tim McGraw surprised me being able to act on top of singing. All of the actors and actresses in this film were really good. I think I only heard one cuss word which was very nice considering most films now. This movie made me laugh, cry and just feel good. A definite on being seen. If you want a good time with your family ... go watch this movie. Can be watched by all ages. It does a few parts that might be a little too intense for ages 6 and under but everyone else I think will love this movie as much as I did.

Sounds like ole ~T~ is just jealous of Tim. Look, this movie is not mind-bender, I mean, its FLICKA for pete's sake! Its for kids and young teens. Its a great family film. Tim's performance is much like his in Friday Night Lights. He chooses roles based on who he really is. And, yes ~T~ cowboys DO get that tan. Sorry. My dad has had that eternal tan for his entire life.

The movie is worth the time if you are into family flicks and good natured entertainment. Its not a drama, its not a comedy and its not an Emmy contender. Its a movie. Plain and simple. My kids enjoyed it and so did I.

At the age of 12, I read the first book of this trilogy of Mary O'Hara. I lent the books at the school-library, and somehow i still got them (17 years later). The books were old, had a wonderful smell, and i had this ritual of listening to the soundtrack of "Days of Thunder" while reading the books every night on my bed. This is the memory from my childhood that i remember and value the most of all. The way O'Hara described Wyoming and the life on the farm, with the horses, the nature, the interaction between the family-members... I have never, even since, had a reading-experience like that (and I study literature at the university). It made me want to go to the US and settle in Wyoming. It was a world that embraced me all the way. It made me dream of certain actors that could realize these novels (at that time, in 1990, Mel Gibson was the perfect Rob for instance...). I found out that it would have been best to make a series of them, because all the parts in the books were so important for the good experience you get, that they would have to be included. I have always dreamed of these books to be realized on screen. But I was also afraid that someone would pick up the idea and tell the story from the books in a wrong way. And guess what happened? Last week I got a dog. Wonder why I called him Chaps? Exactly. So, today I went to the local café and found the Flicka-movie. I can tell you all I was surprised, I hadn't even heard of the movie. I brought it home, and now I've seen it, well, it's almost impossible to describe how betrayed I feel. It actually hurts inside. I don't think I was that hurt even when my boyfriend left me. What?! Who would destroy and Hollywoodify this beautiful novel? I'm so shocked I just had to write. I guess the movie could have been good if it didn't have the references to the novels of Mary O'Hara, but it does, and that just totally break my heart. Didn't the producers or the directors or anyone that had anything to do with this film-production ever read the three novels? This is a production that belongs in the trash-can. The only aspect from the novels they almost got to work, was the "Green Grass of Wyoming". But, Rob isn't quite like that! Ken is not a girl. The interaction between the family is totally misleading. Gus WAS Swedish, so why not let him be that? The wrong story on the name of Flicka. And then to commit the awful crime to mix Flicka with Thunderhead!! I can't believe what certain people are able to do just for the cause of making dirty, commercial money. To press this wonderful story down to a 90 minutes production I consider impossible to do, and if not impossible, it would take a great work of art to make. 20th Century Fox has dishonored and totally stabbed in the back the author of the books, the characters in the books, the name Flicka, and all the readers who ACTUALLY have read the books and know what they are like. Shame on you!!! You really make my heart bleed.