2020-04-01_Total_Film

A

s lively and determined as its racehorse hero,

this spirited little movie is an unlikely but

appealing winner. Unrolling the true story of

Dream Alliance, the steeplechase champion

bred on a Welsh allotment in 2001 by housewife Jan Vokes,

it’s a nags-to-riches underdog tale (as previously related

in 2015’s Sundance-hit doco Dark Horse).

Rich Tea biscuit than Seabiscuit, mostly

focusing on the domestic struggles of

Jan and her washed-up husband Brian

(a sweetly shambolic Owen ‘Ser Alliser’

Teale) and the redemption of horse-

mad tax advisor Howard (Damian

Lewis, excellently understated).

Like all racing films, the plot uses

a predictable template of promise,

near-tragedy, and a nail-biting finish.

But Lyn films the track action with

heart-pumping speed, the scary

smack of the hurdles against horse

and rider putting you right in the

saddle. Unafraid of a good time or

that emotional fervour that the

syndicate call ‘hwyl’, its a proudly

Welsh production, right down to

the Manic Street Preachers and Super

Furry Animals hits that help it romp

home. Kate Stables

Thoroughbred Toni Colette is

outstanding as the no-nonsense

small-town wife and barmaid,

overlooked and desperate to make

something of herself. Like an equine

The Full Monty, the scrappy village

syndicate she puts together are

battered by austerity and job losses,

but paying a hard-won £10 a week

for Dream Alliance’s training at a

posh racing stable buoys them up

with big hopes.

Director Euros Lyn doesn’t overdo

the deprivation or the race-track class

clash, however, keeping the mood

sharp and funny as the beery, cheery

villagers follow their star stallion’s

bumpy career. As a drama, it’s more

CERTIFICATEPGDIRECTOREurosLyn

STARRINGToniColle

eDamianLewisOwen

TealeJoannaPageSCREENPLAYNeilMcKay

DISTRIBUTORWarnerBrosRUNNINGTIME

        mins

DREAM HORSE

Grand National treasure...

RELEASE DATE TBC

THE VERDICT

Toni Colette is first past the post

in an unashamedly feelgood real-life

racing-com.

REAL

OUT 24 APRIL

After bit parts in The Last Jedi and

Doctor Who, rising actor Aki

Omoshaybi multi-tasks as writer,

director and lead for his more

naturalistic British romance.

Omoshaybi and Pippa Bennett-

Warner (TV’s Harlots) bring

unforced charm to Kyle and Jamie,

struggling twentysomethings

whose fumbled attempts at dating

become stymied by the histories

and hardships they try to conceal.

Their schematic traumas stack the

dramatic deck somewhat, but

Omoshaybi is good at the small

moments: those awkward

intimacies and exchanges that

imply more than they explain.

You want the best for these

characters. Kevin Harley

BILLY ELLIOT

OUT 10 APRIL

Twenty years ago, first-time actor

Jamie Bell beat 2,000 boys to land

the lead in Stephen Daldry’s feisty

fairytale, the heartwarming story

of a working-class lad from the

North East whose aspirations to

be a ballet dancer could not be

more at odds with the striking

coal miners and riot police that

divide his beleaguered North-East

town. You’ll want to plié along too

after watching this rough

diamond become a sparkling gem

under the patient tutelage of Julie

Walters, backed by a soundtrack

of vintage bangers (‘I Love To

Boogie’, ‘Town Called Malice’)

that will have you tapping your

feet. Neil Smith

“I’msorryI’mfeelingalittle

horse”Dangitthatoldgag’s

bettersaidoutloudwereckon

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GAMESRADARCOM/TOTALFILM APRIL 2020 | TOTAL FILM