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Movies / On DVD / Flicka
Flicka

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Flicka (2006)

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Reviews Counted:75

Fresh:40

Rotten:35

Average Rating:5.7/10

Consensus: The rebellious protagonist will rally girls and children, but adults may find Flicka saddled with thin characters, over-the-top dialogue, and a plot that wanders into the countryside and never comes back.

Runtime: 1 hr 50 mins

Genre: Dramas

Synopsis: In FLICKA, a contemporary motion picture adaptation of Mary O'Hara's beloved novel My Friend Flicka, 16-year-old Katy McLaughlin (Alison Lohman) dreams of fulfilling her family legacy by working on... In FLICKA, a contemporary motion picture adaptation of Mary O'Hara's beloved novel My Friend Flicka, 16-year-old Katy McLaughlin (Alison Lohman) dreams of fulfilling her family legacy by working on her father's ranch in modern-day Wyoming. But Katy's father (Tim McGraw) wants more for her, insisting that Katy go to college. Katy finds a wild mustang, which she names Flicka, and sets out to make her a riding horse. But Flicka and Katy are more alike than she could have imagined. Like Katy, Flicka has a disdain for authority and is not about to give up her freedom without a fight. The principal character in the book and in its two motion picture incarnations was an adolescent boy. But this new version tells the story through the eyes of headstrong Katy McLaughlin. Katy is enrolled in a private school on the outskirts of Laramie, Wyoming, but her heart is with her sprawling family ranch in the state's remote mountain region. Katy returns home to the ranch, and soon becomes enamored of a wild mustang filly she finds in the mountain woods. She names the long-legged, ebony horse Flicka, or "beautiful young girl," in Swedish. But Katy's rancher father, the equally-willful Rob, sees nothing but trouble coming from the untamed animal and discourages his daughter from keeping her. Nonetheless, conflicted by a need to harness her own wild ways yet stay true to a free spirit within, Katy sets out to break through to Flicka and transform her into a riding horse. Despite her father's disapproval, Katy goes on and forms an unbreakable bond with the wild horse. Her relationship with Flicka becomes a catalyst for change for the entire McLaughlin family, which is at a major crossroads: Katy's dad is considering selling the ailing ranch, brother Howard (RYAN KWANTEN) wants to leave Wyoming for college in Boston, and her mother Nell (MARIA BELLO) is fighting to keep her family from falling apart. Can Katy ultimately tame her beloved Flicka and prove everyone wrong about the wild-hearted mustang? Will Rob find a way to support his daughter yet still keep her safe through this momentous life passage? And can the McLaughlins hold onto the ranch that they've worked so hard to maintain throughout a sea of social and economic change? -- © 20th Century Fox [More]

Starring: Alison Lohman, Maria Bello, Dallas Roberts, Tim McGraw

Starring: Alison Lohman, Maria Bello, Dallas Roberts, Tim McGraw, Ryan Kwanten, Danny Pino, Jeffrey Nordling, Kaylee DeFer, Dey Young

Director: Michael Mayer

Director: Michael Mayer
Screenwriter: Laurence Konner, Mark Rosenthal
Composer: Aaron Zigman
Studio: 20th Century Fox

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Reviews for Flicka

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1 - 20 (sorted by critic A-Z; UK critics are listed first)
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Often very beautiful looking, but gracelessly directed.

Full Review Source: Newsday | comment Comment
10/20/06
John Anderson
John Anderson
Newsday

Flicka does not seem to be pandering to the dictates of Hollywood formula filmmaking, and everything about it seems structured to evoke that special love which young girls seem to universally feel for the equine species.

Full Review Source: Seattle Post-Intelligencer | comment Comment
10/19/06
William Arnold
William Arnold
Seattle Post-Intelligencer

Flicka is a classic tearjerker but may be a little too old-fashioned for its own good.

Full Review Source: Hollywood.com | comment Comment
10/20/06
Kit Bowen
Kit Bowen
Hollywood.com

There's plenty of singing and haircutting and pretty landscape and annoying crap to fill in the blanks between confrontations.

Full Review Source: Jam! Movies | comment Comment
10/20/06
Liz Braun
Liz Braun
Jam! Movies

A new yet insistently old-fashioned spin on the kid-lit classic My Friend Flicka.

Full Review Source: Entertainment Weekly | comment Comment
10/18/06
Scott Brown
Scott Brown
Entertainment Weekly

There simply aren't enough scenes illustrating the burgeoning bond between Katy and Flicka.

Full Review Source: Creative Loafing | comment Comment
10/25/06
Matt Brunson
Matt Brunson
Creative Loafing

An engrossing and beautifully acted remake that salutes horses, freedom, and familial love in ways that stir the heart.

Full Review Source: Spirituality and Practice | comment Comment
11/05/06
Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat
Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat
Spirituality and Practice

Ultimately, the entire endeavor seems like an effort to cash in on a predictably bankable tale.

Full Review Source: Austin Chronicle | comment Comment
10/30/06
Toddy Burton
Toddy Burton
Austin Chronicle

Maria Bello's skill and onscreen presence speak volumes about the mother's thoughts and feelings, even when the script leaves her high and dry.

Full Review Source: Boxoffice Magazine | comment Comment
10/28/06
Bridget Byrne
Bridget Byrne
Boxoffice Magazine

This would fit right in with the "follow your heart" school of thought that has been common to, say, Disney films of the past 20 years.

Full Review Source: Christianity Today | comment Comment
10/20/06
Peter T. Chattaway
Peter T. Chattaway
Christianity Today

This is the kind of movie that many families are looking for, but all too rarely receive.

Full Review Source: Dallas Morning News | comment Comment
10/20/06
Nancy Churnin
Nancy Churnin
Dallas Morning News

Director Mayer knows how to tug at the heartstrings, and his admirably restrained cast keeps the family drama from becoming too sugary.

Full Review Source: TV Guide's Movie Guide | comment Comment
10/20/06
Angel Cohn
Angel Cohn
TV Guide's Movie Guide

If you seek high-quality family entertainment, you have a friend in "Flicka."

Full Review Source: Quad City Times (Davenport, IA) | comment Comment
10/29/06
Linda Cook
Linda Cook
Quad City Times (Davenport, IA)

Sentimental but not cloying, Flicka is family-friendly entertainment that hits almost all the right notes, even though it is playing the same old song.

Full Review Source: Minneapolis Star Tribune | comment Comment
10/19/06
Colin Covert
Colin Covert
Minneapolis Star Tribune

If it's going to be a paint-by-numbers plot then there should be an emotional core to hang it on.

Full Review Source: Calgary Movies | comment Comment
04/19/07
Ryan Cracknell
Ryan Cracknell
Calgary Movies

Girl meets horse yet again in this entertainingly ridiculous update of Mary O'Hara's 1941 childrens novel, My Friend Flicka.

Full Review Source: New York Times | comment Comment
10/19/06
Manohla Dargis
Manohla Dargis
New York Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Lohman tries her darnedest to put some spirit in this rustic Flicka flick, but she's burned by the buckboard-wooden dialogue and by McGraw, who better keep the reins on his day job.

Full Review Source: Boulder Weekly | comment Comment
10/23/06
Thomas Delapa
Thomas Delapa
Boulder Weekly

Flicka's simplicity may be its best attribute.

Full Review Source: Film Journal International | comment Comment
10/27/06
Daniel Eagan
Daniel Eagan
Film Journal International

It's about wild horses representing a special sort of speed, force, and freedom, beyond Wild West shows and shootouts and men with no names.

Full Review Source: PopMatters | comment Comment
10/30/06
Cynthia Fuchs
Cynthia Fuchs
PopMatters

The dull dialogue and predictable action corrals the actors.

Full Review Source: Associated Press | comment Comment
10/18/06
David Germain
David Germain
Associated Press
 
 
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Latest News for Flicka

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October 19, 2006: Critical Consensus: "Flags" Flies High; "The Prestige" Is Magic; "Flicka" Is A Pretty Good Ride; "Marie Antoinette" Spared Critical Guillotine
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