I read the book, but... - The Black Stallion (1979) Discussion

[–] summerlilac 18 years ago

Definitely. See it. If you liked the book, you'll love the film. It is beautiful.There are a few differences, but do books and films ever go page for page??? No. Harry Potter films are a good example of that.

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[–] houndawg3 15 years ago

Book was good. Movie sucked. Horribly miscast. Kelly Reno didn't match Alec's description at all. Alec was a red headed teenager in the book and the movie showed him has dark headed little boy. Tony the Italian vegetable peddler was changed to the token black guy. Stuff was changed that didn't need to be. The Black wasn't even black. Stick with the book and your own imagination.

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[–] jaybabb 15 years ago

Kelly Reno was chosen because he has been riding horses since he was 4 years old.

Books are differernt than movies. The movie can not become the book. They are two differrnt mediums. I love this movie on it's own merits.

I happen to dislike Archie Bunker with great passion and conviction

Jay

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[–] houndawg3 14 years ago

There are plenty of other people who have been riding horses since they were little, but that doesn't matter. Kelly Reno was completely wrong for the role.

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[–] buyorsell888 13 years ago

Agreed!!!

His casting has bothered me since I saw the film in the theater.

Alec Ramsey was a teen age red head. Not a ten year old with autism....

See the movie, the beach scenes are gorgeous but make sure you read every book in the series. They are wonderful. Read The Island Stallion series too.

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[–] artistathome 12 years ago

Kelly Reno was 13 and where do you get off saying that about autism?

Youre an idiot.

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[–] jaybabb 12 years ago

Kelly Reno did not have Autism-I don't know where that rumor started. He was 13-but looked like 10. That being said, I liked him in the movie-regardless of the book.

Conspiracy therories are cleverly thought out to evade the real truth

Jay

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[–] mistyjewel 11 years ago

Apparently since you love the book you'll hate the movie. I saw the movie countless times as a kid before I got older and read the books, so Kelly Reno's Alec was ingrained in my mind, and the book Alec being a redhead has always seemed off to me.

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[–] blackno31 10 years ago

I can see this is an old post, but had I read it back in 2007 I would have said "Don't bother." I read every single one of Walter Farley's "Black Stallion" books as a pre-teen, ending with "The Black Stallion & The Girl" (I believe there was only one after that). I can say with all honesty that while the movie is beautiful, it does not accurately follow the book. Basically they took a fantastic read and turned it into an "art film". I can't stand movies that insist upon themselves for art's sake. Thus I don't own this movie, although I do still own the book, which I received for Christmas when I was in the 5th grade.

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