ACE AND THE CHRISTMAS MIRACLE

 

Jeri Jacquin

Coming to DVD from director Asif Akbar and Lionsgate is a family film for the holiday season with ACE AND THE CHRISTMAS MIRACLE.

Living comfortably on a farm in Temecula, California (land of no snow) is a former racehorse named Ace (voiced by Jon Lovitz) who introduces us to his two-legged family Daniel (Keaton Cadrez) and mom Amanda (Brade Roderick). Ace loves his family and the life on the small sunny ranch.

Someone not having a good sunshine life is Tony Romano (Steven Chase), a scam artist bug killer who cannot get his con on. He gets a call from his Uncle Vito (Jack Vecchio) who offers him a sure thing! He calls buddy Dougie (Robert J. Fox) to get him in on it as well. Once that’s set, he’s off to Big Freddie (James Chalke) to pick up a few dollars.

The annual Christmas Derby is set to take place and Tony wants to make a ‘financial investment’ in his future because he believes Uncle Vito’s tip is a sure thing. Having until Christmas Eve, Big Freddie wants to make sure he gets his loan or Jasper and Joey will be making a special holiday visit. Well, things do not exactly cross the finish line for Tony!

While contemplating what is going to happen, Tony ends up meeting bartender Amanda and talking about life. Back with Ace, Amanda tells Daniel that the horse will be going away for a few days. Giving Tony a job with Ace, an accident happens and suddenly he can hear the horse talk!

Now, Tony can make things happen and Ace can prove he has a trick or two up his hooves.

Chase as Tony starts out the gate a little rough but as the film goes on, the giggling turns into laughter. Once he gets the bump on the head, his life changes in ways he never thought possible. Its not going to be easy but Tony and Ace become a working duo with Dougie. Fox as Dougie likes hanging out with Tony no matter how much trouble they seem to get into together.

Roderick as Amanda is very fond of Ace and knows that the horse is Daniels best friend. Once Tony and Dougie come into her life, she wonders if things just got better or worse. Cadrez as Daniel is a young boy who loves Ace and watches the adults get into their messes.

Lovitz as the voice of Ace does what he always does, give great one liners and snide comment delivery that bring on even more laughs.

Other cast include Courtney Akbar as Tina, Michael Cervantes as Josh, Kenny Powell as Jasper, Chris Cope as Officer Ernie, and Nick Annunziata as Brandon.

Lionsgate is a global leader in motion picture production and distribution for theatres, television, home entertainment and more. Theatre franchises include THE HUNGER GAMES, and DIVERGENT along with JOHN WICK. Now, adding this film to its 16,000-motion picture and television titles you can see everything coming soon as well as available now at http://www.lionsgate.com.

ACE AND THE CHRISTMAS MIRACLE is a family film that is shot in the sunny wine country of Temecula. Ace the horse is hilarious and is not about to be taken anyway but instead makes a deal with Tony. Settling debts and making life a little easier for Amanda and Daniel, Tony has to decide what to do with his life.

The film is sweet and charming! The fun is between Ace, Tony and Dougie with Amanda being the non-believer. All of that comes crashing down when truths come out and people stop believing in one another. Christmas is the time for miracles, Tony and Ace want to make sure dreams can come true.

In the end – when the horse starts talking be prepared to laugh!

 

 

 

 

 

DREAM HORSE

 

Jeri Jacquin

Coming to theatres and then On Demand From writer/director John Gatins and Bleeker Street comes a story of surprise, a community together and a DREAM HORSE.

Jan Vokes (Toni Collette) lives in a small Welsh town where everybody knows everybody. Getting up and going to work at the market and then at the local pub, Jan is feeling the itch to do something more with her life. That's when she gets the idea to buy a mare and breed a race horse.

Husband Brian "Daisy" (Owen Teale) cannot believe what his wife could be thinking but finds himself building a stable in their back yard. Knowing it is going to take a flow of money to make this happen, Jan enlists the help of Howard Davies (Damian Lewis) who has some experience with horses.

Calling a town meeting, Jan explains her plan and soon discovers that there is excitement brewing and many want to be included. Now comes the hard part, finding a mare and finding the right horse to breed her with. As things begin to fall into place - a foal is born, and the town is abuzz. The group comes together and names their spirted young foal Dream Alliance.

Now it is time for the alliance to see what their faith and money have brought them. It is time to race until Dream finds himself and his alliance at the Welsh Grand Nationals.

Collette as Jan is perfect for this role in that she has the ability to make her role look easy. Pushed by life and a strong belief in something better for everyone, Collette gives her character the same feistiness as the foal she is truly fond of.

Lewis as Davies is a man who has a history, both good and not so good, with horse racing. Not so sure about Jan from the beginning, Lewis gives his character a second chance to make things right with the choices he has made in his life and making good on a past mistake with his family. Lewis also gets the opportunity to play a role that is not as intense as his HOMELAND and BILLIONS character and it is nice to see.

Vokes as Owen is a man who has been letting the television tell him about the world around him. Once Dream comes into their lives, he finds that passion for life can be found in a smelly stable - and he is happy about it. Trying to support his wife and do right by the townspeople is where his difficulties lie.

The townsfolk and family round out the rest of the cast and provide laughs, smiles and a sense of community so thank you goes to Nicholas Farrell as Phillip Hobbs, Sian Phillips as Maureen, Karl Johnson as Kerby, Peter Davison as Lord Avery, Steffan Rhodri as Gerwyn, Anthony O'Donnell as Maldwyn, Alex Jordan as Johnson White, Max Hutchinson as James Lingsford, Lynda Baron as Elsie, Asheq Akhtar as Peter, and Darren Evans as Goose.

Bleeker Street is a New York City film company that has brought outstanding films to the public. Their library includes TRUMBO, DENIAL, THE LOST CITY OF Z, BEIRUT, HOTEL MUMBAI, ORDINARY LOVE and THE ROADS NOT TAKEN. For more information on the titles from Bleeker Street please visit www.bleeckerstreetmedia.com.

DREAM HORSE has many facets to it for a wide-ranging audience. First, it is a story based on the life of Dream Alliance and the history of his races. There were many other races than the ones shown in the film and he did exceedingly well and retired in 2012 to a life of leisure.

The film is also the story of a Welsh community who came together for something that gave them all great joy and excitement. There is something to be said for that, especially in times where a community can feel apart and disconnected.

Finally, it is the story of a woman who did something unique and saw it through till the end. She didn't hesitate to make decisions and made it perfectly clear that her objective was to protect Dream at all costs. Standing up for herself brought others around her to do the very same and that is everything.

So gather the family to watch a story that is filled with determination, love, friendship and understanding for both the two legged and four legged creatures of the earth and enjoy DREAM HORSE.

In the end - hearts will race!

THE MUSTANG

Jeri Jacquin

Coming to limited release from director Laure de Clermont-Tonnerre and Focus Features comes a story of self-redemption with the help of THE MUSTANG.

Roman Coleman (Matthias Schoenaerts) has been in prison for twelve years. Mainly keeping to himself in solitary, his temper flares in a second bringing him even more problems. Transferred to a new prison, he refuses to help anyone understand how to get through, not even daughter Martha (Gideon Adlon).

Outside the prison walls are horse stalls and a man named Myles (Bruce Dern) who teaches inmates how to prepare horses for sale. These are mustangs captured by the government and land management and all sale proceeds go back to them. At first Roman has no interested until he hears continual banging from a stall away from the corals.

Then he comes face to face with a very angry mustang and Roman is captured in another way. Myles sees that there is something between the two and brings the convict into the prisons program. Put in the hands of inmate Elijah (Keith Johnson), Roman gets a lesson here and there about how to reach the untouchable horse.

Newly named Marcus, Roman works his new ward daily and something happens to them both. So much so that when daughter Martha comes to visit, Roman confesses what brought him to jail and hopes there can be something between father and daughter once again.

Roman has other worries as well when top inmate Dan (Josh Stewart) decides he wants something from his cell mate and is willing to hurt Martha to make that happen. Both Roman and Marcus become a mixture of emotions and just when they are in sync – one sudden jolt forces them both to come to terms with who they are and where they are meant to be.

It is all in how you define love and freedom!

Schoenaerts as Roman gives absolutely everything to this role. There is anger, confusion, heart, soul, rage, revenge, and confession – just a gambit of where he once was to where we meet him. Strong willed from the film’s beginning, Schoenaerts character is broken down slowly and surely by a beautiful animal that has so much in common with Roman. I could not take my eyes of this actor who portrays a man who slowly comes to terms with a mistake brought on by anger that just can’t seems to subside.

Dern as Myles is a horse trainer who sees something click between Roman and Marcus. He puts a skittish faith and sees it pay off daily. Even when the unthinkable happens, Dern is strong in character and lends it to Roman when he needs it the most. Dern has always been on my list of amazing actors and it is satisfying to see him continue to jump in and lasso a role that suits him.

Aldon as Martha has just as much anger as her father but she is less physical about it. Instead hiding it in the way she speaks as bits of anger seep out with anger at being left alone growing up. Johnson as Elijah is very happy working with horses and takes a keen interest in seeing that Roman succeeds. The problem is that is outside the prison, what happens inside is something else.

 Other cast include Jason Mitchell as Henry, Thomas Smittle as Tom, Noel Gugliemi as Roberto, George Schroeder as Officer Peters and Connie Britton as the Psychologist.

THE MUSTANG has a storyline that tugs every fiber of a being. From the beginning of the film and the horses are captured, it plants the seed of emotion wondering why these beautiful creatures can’t just be left alone. In that instant, the film becomes personal to watch.

It is personal in regards to the horses and everything after that. There is a mental encouragement that happens as the film goes on – encouraging the horse to let go of its anger but not let go of its spirit and encouraging Roman to stop hiding from the world. The final encouragement is that they both realize they are cut from the same universal cloth.

There is also a constant shift in the film that takes the two steps forward and five steps back in both Roman and Marcus yet there is no way as the viewer to lose hope. Schoenaerts and the lovely mustang we know as Marcus invite us into a story that only the two of them can possibly tell.

The film is cinematically beautiful with the surrounding wilderness and plopped in its center is a brick building holding men. Between the wilderness and the prison is a place of hope that, at times, makes you forget about the other two worlds. Unfortunately, the other two worlds are very, very powerful.

In the end – they are both untamed souls and kindred spirits!