Dreamer (2005 film)
| Directed by | John Gatins |
|---|---|
| Produced by | Brian Robbins Hunt Lowry Michael Tollin |
| Written by | John Gatins |
| Starring | Kurt Russell Dakota Fanning Kris Kristofferson |
| Music by | John Debney |
| Cinematography | Fred Murphy |
| Edited by | David Rosenbloom |
| Production company |
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| Distributed by | DreamWorks Pictures |
| Release dates | September 10, 2005(TIFF) October 21, 2005 |
| Running time | 102 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $32 million |
| Box office | $38,741,734 |
Dreamer is a 2005 American family drama film starring Kurt Russell and Dakota Fanning, inspired by the true story of an injuredThoroughbred racehorse named Mariah’s Storm. The film was written and directed by John Gatins, marking his directorial debut.
Plot[edit]
Ben (Kurt Russell), a horse trainer who takes his work very seriously, neglects his precocious daughter while he pours his heart into the care of the horses that he trains.
Determined to make good on her father’s overdue promise, Cale (Dakota Fanning) prods him to take her along to work and succeeds. One morning, a horse named Soñador falls during a race, injuring herself so badly that Ben’s boss, Palmer, demands the horse be put down. Having Cale along, Ben instead strikes a bargain with Palmer and becomes the owner of the wounded horse. With no job and facing foreclosure on his property, he decides to breed Soñador.
Cale, having fallen in love at first sight with Soñador, begins to sneak out to the barn at night to see her. She also sneaks over to see her grandfather, ‘Pop’, Ben’s dad (Kris Kristofferson), who loves teaching his granddaughter about horses.
One day, Cale hears her father tell her mother, Lily (Elisabeth Shue), that Soñador has ruined them. Lily responds that Soñador is the best thing that has ever happened to them, alluding to the fact that Ben is finally spending much-needed time with Cale.
Hurt after hearing the conversation, Cale sets out to run away and saddles Soñador. Not knowing of Cale’s plan, Ben enters the barn. The door slams behind him, and a startled Soñador bolts out of the barn with Cale hanging on for dear life. Ben scrambles to his truck and sets out after them.
This incident begins to cement the newly forming bond between father and daughter and heal the wounds of the whole family. In the end, Soñador wins a major race and goes from being a negative focal point to the hero of the movie.
Cast[edit]
- Kurt Russell as Ben Crane
- Dakota Fanning as Cale Crane
- Kris Kristofferson as Pops Crane
- Elisabeth Shue as Lilly Crane
- David Morse as Everett Palmer
- Freddy Rodríguez as Manolin Vallarta
- Luis Guzmán as Balon
- Oded Fehr as Prince Sadir
- Ken Howard as Bill Ford
- Holmes Osborne as Doc Fleming
Production and cast[edit]
The movie is loosely inspired by the story of the mare Mariah’s Storm. She was a promising filly who was being pointed towards the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies in 1993 but then broke her cannon bone (the incident is mentioned in the film by Sonador’s veterinarian). She recovered and later won some graded stakes races. She started in the 1995Breeders’ Cup Distaff and finished ninth. She was owned by Thunderhead Farms and trained by Don Von Hemel. She is now known mostly for being the dam of Giant’s Causeway. In the movie, when Cale and Ben go to Ashford Stud to check out the studs, the stallions they are naming, such as Fusaichi Pegasus, Giant’s Causeway, Mariah’s Storm, Johannesburg and Grand Slam, are real horses who actually stand at Ashford. However, the actual stallions were not used in filming. Stand-ins were placed in their stalls instead. In the scene where Sonya is considered for the Breeder’s Cup, Prince Sadir says that his horse “Rapid Cat is sired by Storm Cat, the best sire in the world.” Coincidentally, Mariah’s Storm (on whom Sonya is based) was bred to Storm Cat.
While doing research in Kentucky, the director/writer came upon a vet who told him about a racehorse who miraculously made a comeback after a serious injury, and he loosely based the script on this story. Before being picked up by DreamWorks, the script was presented to Paramount Pictures and Warner Bros, but both declined. Director John Gatins was told that if he could get Dakota Fanning in the lead role his movie would get a green-light. He went to see Fanning’s agent and finally got the young actress to sign on. The role of Cale Crane was originally written for a boy, and the role was changed specifically so that Dakota Fanning could play it. The first script that was sent to Fanning actually had the word “boy” in the character description.
To produce the soundtrack, an advance showing of this film was shown to a number of recording artists, who were then asked to submit ideas for theme songs. Bethany Dillon‘s song “Dreamer” was chosen out of all the submissions.
After the movie, Kurt Russell bought Dakota Fanning a real Palomino horse, whom she named Goldie.
Box office[edit]
Dreamer opened in second place at the box office behind Doom, with $9,178,233 earned for a $4,573 average from 2,007 theaters. In its second weekend, it held well with a 33% drop to fourth place with $6,132,856 earned for a $2,462 average from being expanded to 2,491 theaters and lifting its two-week total to $17,374,339. It held up even better in its third weekend, only slipping 22% to sixth place and $4,794,741 for a $1,832 average from being expanded to 2,617 theaters. In its fourth weekend, it once again held well with another 22% slide to $3,728,510 and ninth place, for a $1,363 average from being expanded to its widest release, 2,735 theaters.
The film closed on January 5, 2006, after 77 days of release and grossing $32,751,093 domestically along with an additional $5,990,639 overseas for a worldwide total of $38,741,732. Produced on a $32 million budget, the film is considered a so-so film at the box office, as it barely recouped its budget.
Mariah’s Storm
 |
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| Sire | Rahy |
| Grandsire | Blushing Groom |
| Dam | Immense |
| Damsire | Roberto |
| Sex | Mare |
| Foaled | 1991 |
| Country | United States |
| Colour | Bay |
| Breeder | Crescent Farm |
| Owner | Thunderhead Farms |
| Trainer | Don Von Hemel |
| Record | 16: 10-2-1 |
| Earnings | $724,894 |
| Major wins | |
| Arlington-Washington Lassie Stakes (1993) Ak-Sar-Ben Oaks (1994) Arlington Oaks (1994) Arlington Matron Stakes (1995) Falls City Handicap (1995) Turfway Breeders’ Cup Stakes (1995) |
|
| Honours | |
| Mariah’s Storm Stakes at Arlington Park | |
| Last updated on June 18, 2007 | |
Mariah’s Storm (born April 1, 1991, in Kentucky) was an American thoroughbred racehorse, bred by Donald T. Johnson’s Crescent Farm in Lexington, Kentucky. She suffered a serious injury while racing but later made a full recovery and continued her career.
In 2005, film director John Gatins made a motion picture titled Dreamer: Inspired by a True Story in which the horse “Soñador” is based on Mariah’s Storm.
Background[edit]
Mariah’s Storm was a very well-bred filly with high racing potential. She was a daughter of Rahy, who also sired 2001 European Horse of the Year Fantastic Light, Noverre, Champion 3-Year-Old in England, and Dreaming of Anna, 2006 U.S. 2-Year-Old Champion Filly & Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies winner. Mariah’s Storm’s grandsire was the important Blushing Groom, and her damsire was Epsom Derby winner Roberto.
In 1993, Mariah’s Storm was working on building points to qualify for a chance to run in that fall’s Breeders’ Cup when she fractured her front left cannon bone while running in the Alcibiades Stakes at Keeneland Race Course. When a horse injures her cannon bone, it usually ends her racing career. However, Mariah’s Storm’s owners and trainers refused to give up hope and with the work of several skilled veterinarians, the fractured cannon bone healed and strengthened.
Full Recovery[edit]
In September 1993, before the injury occurred, Mariah’s Storm won the Arlington-Washington Lassie Stakes at Chicago’s Arlington Park. This was a Grade III stakes for two-year old-fillies. After her injury healed and she fully recovered, she made a return to racing in 1994 and won the Arlington Oaks. In 1995, she won the Arlington Matron Stakes. Since her record of winning all three stakes races at Arlington Park was a rare accomplishment, Arlington officials named the Mariah’s Storm Stakes in her honor.
Racing at age four, in September 1995 Mariah’s Storm won the Turfway Breeders’ Cup Stakes at Turfway Park, defeating future U.S. Racing Hall of Fame filly Serena’s Song, also a daughter of Rahy. She then won the Falls City Handicap at Churchill Downs and competed in the Breeders’ Cup Distaff, where she finished ninth in a ten-horse field.
Produce Record[edit]
Mariah’s Storm made her mark on the racing industry as a broodmare, producing the great Giant’s Causeway (by Storm Cat), the European Horse of the Year for 2000. She also produced Freud, a full brother to Giant’s Causeway who stands at Sequel Stallions New York. Freud was the leading sire in New York in 2008.
In the Media[edit]
The movie Dreamer (2005 film) was loosely based on the story of Mariah’s Storm. However, in the movie, Soñador (the horse based on Mariah’s Storm) won the Breeders’ Cup Classic (as the fifth filly ever to participate in that race), whereas in real life, Mariah’s Storm ran in the Breeders’ Cup Distaff and finished ninth of ten.
