The picture talks upon Frank Hopkins (Viggo Mortensen) a real cowboy who participated with his horse called ¨Hidalgo¨ in an extraordinary racehorse : ¨ Oceans of fire¨, a 3.000 mile survival race across the risky Arabian desert . He'll take on ominous Arab riders and many dangers . The confrontation will be terrible and he'll face off imposing winds , locust plague , quicksands... though he'll love an Arab princess (Zuleikha Robinson) , Sheik's daughter (Omar Shariff) too . The film is based on historic deeds and famous people , thus : the ¨Wounded Knee slaughter¨ (1890) ; besides , there appears : Buffalo Bill Cody (J.K.Simmons) , Annie Oakley (Elizabeth Berridge) and Indian chiefs: Eagle Horn (Floyd Red Crow Westerman) , Sitting Bull , Crazy Horse and Big Foot . The final duel amongst the horsemen is breathtaking and overwhelming .

This moving motion picture blends adventures , action , a love story , emotions and results to be pretty amusing . From the beginning to end the adventure-action is unstoppable , it's fast moving and for that reason packs a lot of entertainment . The final horse scene was filmed in Browning, Montana , 550 different horses were used in that scene , the horses all came from different owners, so to tell them apart, their hooves were branded . Sets and production design are spellbinding and the Oriental landscapes are mesmerizing . Special effects (FX) by Industrial Light and Magic ILM (George Lucas's ownership) are top-notch , as especially the impressive digital storm . The movie was well directed by Joe Johnston , including Shelly Johnson's riveting cinematography and James Newton Howard's fascinating musical score . The film obtained success at box office around the world and United States was number one . The flick will appeal to Oriental adventure enthusiasts and Viggo Mortensen fans . Rating : Very good , well worth watching .

This film purports to be the adventures of a man named Frank Hopkins, a mixed race cowboy who lived during the late 19th century through much of the 20th century. From what I am able to gather, Mr. Hopkins claimed to have done many things...though many of them either cannot be verified or have clearly been disproven. Sadly for this film, according to the IMDB trivia and other information I've read, the central core of the movie, the great race in the Middle East NEVER OCCURRED! So, if you are looking for a history lesson, skip this one. On the other hand, true or not (and I would venture to say NOT),the story is a wonderful and sweeping adventure...the sort of old fashioned story you rarely see today.

The story begins just before the infamous Wounded Knee Massacre in 1890. Following his witnessing the aftermath of this horrible event, Frank Hopkins (Viggo Mortensen) is horribly disturbed and suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. For some time, his life is directionless and he drinks heavily...until fate brings him a challenge. His skills on the horse are almost legendary and an emissary from Arabia has arrived in the States to get him to participate in an insanely dangerous race across the Arabian Desert. Hopking goes and the vast majority of the film follows him during this race. It's surprisingly engaging and interesting...something I had a hard time believing! Overall, very well done...I just wish it was true...like the movie SEEMS to indicate!

By the way, in the final scene you learn that the wild mustangs are allowed to live and they live happily ever after. This is true to many horse lovers and folks with tender hearts. However, according to SOME environmentalists, these non-native horses have destroyed the ecosystem out west. So, one person's blessing is another's plague!

Frank Hopkins (Viggo Mortensen) is a long distance rider on his mustang Hidalgo. He's half native American but he lives as a white man. It's December 29, 1890 and he's there to see the aftermath of the Wounded Knee Massacre. He becomes a drunk, haunted by the event, and riding in Buffalo Bill Cody (J.K. Simmons)'s Wild West Show. He takes on a challenge from Sheikh Riyadh (Omar Sharif) to ride in a 1000 year old 3000 mile race in the Arabian desert. Riyadh's purebred horse Al-Hattal is the favorite. His bandit nephew is jealous and looking to take the family honor of owing the prized horse. Riyadh's daughter Jazira is desperate for it to lose so she isn't forced to marry the prince rider as his 5th wife. Lady Anne Davenport has the other favorite in the race.

This is an old fashion high adventure. At times, it has the feel of Indiana Jones. It's a nice underdog story. This is a throwback movie. I would like to drop the Wounded Knee reference. It's unnecessary and over-the-top. Otherwise, this is a movie from the golden age of Hollywood in the best tradition.