The Black Stallion Returns

Since I reviewed The Black Stallion, I of course need to review it's sequel as well. Unfairly dismissed as a bad movie, The Black Stallion Returns is actually a decent and satisfyingly rousing adventure in it's own right. The biggest problem is that it has the misfortune of being the follow-up to The Black Stallion, a film that is admittingly a very tough act to follow. 

We catch up with Alec Ramsey (played by Kelly Reno) sometime after the events of the first film. Him and his Mom (played by Teri Garr) have moved from the suburbs to their own farm so they would have more room for The Black (played again primarily by Cass Ole). One night though, The Black is kidnapped by Ishak (played by Ferdy Mayne) as the horse originally belonged to him and in his view he is simply reclaiming his property. Once Alec discovers that they are taking The Black back to Morocco, he stows away on a plane (barely pausing to call home to his poor, distraught mother first), and heads off in hot pursuit of his beloved horse. 

Upon arriving in Morocco, Alec has a difficult time trying to get help to find his beloved horse until he meets Raj (played by Vincent Spano), who begrudgingly agrees to help Alec. The two journey across the desert to locate Ishak's tribe and with it, Alec's Black. Once they are reunited, Alec finds himself smack dab in a power struggle between Ishak's tribe and another. It is to be settled with an annual horse race that is run every five years. The victorious tribe gets their choice of the losers horses as well a prestige, wealth and power over the desert (eh, I guess it beats just going to war). Alec pleads his case to Ishak, who is sympathetic but needs The Black to run and hopefully win the race, with his daughter Tabari (played by Jodi Thelen) as the intended jockey. But there is one small problem, The Black won't let her ride him, only Alec. So, once again Alec faces having to ride in another horse race, only this time around the stakes are much, much higher.

Any sequel to a film like The Black Stallion was going to have a bit of an uphill battle ahead of it. Aside from some nitpicks here and there (Mickey Rooney is sorely missed here, for example), Returns does make for a decent follow-up. There was no way they were going to recapture some of the more magical moments from the first film and I'm actually glad they didn't try. The cinematography is still quite impressive, with plenty of great desert scenery as a backdrop for the film. The story requires a bit more suspension of disbelief this time and does seem a bit more convoluted, but as a straight forward adventure tale it works well, largely due to Kelly Reno's understated and endearing performance that keeps his role from being just another stereotypical movie kid. I also have to give credit to Georges Delerue's score for the film that is some of the most gorgeous and moving music I've heard in a film. It's a much more traditional score than what Carmine Coppola did for the first film, but I just fell in love with it and have since downloaded it on my iPod. 

Overall, The Black Stallion Returns, is a decent (but not perfect) follow up if taken on it's own merits. If you're fond of the original film, you'll probably enjoy the sequel as well. I know I did, and even found myself wishing there had been a third one too, but that may just be me.