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All the Pretty Horses Review

Other Critics provided by Metacritic.com

Critics scores range from 0 to 100, with higher scores indicating more favorable reviews.

  • 3.0
    55

    out of 100

    Metascore®
    Mixed or average reviews
    based on a weighted average of all
    critic review scores.

  • 33

    out of 100

    Entertainment Weekly Lisa Schwarzbaum

    McCarthy's rawhide has become movie Naugahyde, a substance unknown in literature or in nature.

    Read Full Review

  • 50

    out of 100

    USA Today Mike Clark

    As this year's literary adaptations go, Horses comes a lot closer to being a truly bad movie than "The Perfect Storm" did, yet it would be hard to argue that the two are not the year's most disappointing in terms of trampled hopes.

    Read Full Review

  • 50

    out of 100

    Variety Todd McCarthy

    A half-broken adaptation of Cormac McCarthy's great modern Western novel. Neither dull nor exciting.

    Read Full Review

  • 70

    out of 100

    The New York Times Dana Stevens

    The movie, for all its prettiness, manages to be shallow and portentous at the same time.

    Read Full Review

  • 70

    out of 100

    Los Angeles Times Kenneth Turan

    In an odd way Pretty Horses has been too faithful to the spirit of this somber, fatalistic, melancholy romance, too much a stubborn ode to stoicism, to light any emotional fires.

    Read Full Review

  • 88

    out of 100

    Chicago Sun-Times Roger Ebert

    You can see how this movie could have been jacked up into a one-level action picture, but what makes it special is how Thornton modulates the material.

    Read Full Review

  • 88

    out of 100

    Chicago Tribune Michael Wilmington

    Thornton and his excellent company summon up for us the long rides, dangerous companions, rites of passage, the mad love and, most of all, the special relationship between the man/boys that rode over the border and the horses that carried them there.

  • See all All the Pretty Horses reviews at Metacritic.com

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For Families provided by Common Sense Media

Iffy for 13+

Adequate but disappointing book adaptation.

What Parents Need to Know

Parents need to know that a main character is dragged away and shot while his friends wait and listen. There is some prison brawling. After Alejandra sleeps with Cole, she loses her family's love. Frequent coarse language is used in conversation, but no extreme expletives. Cole lies to Rocha about riding into Mexico with Blevins and pursues a secret affair with his daughter. Cole and Alejandra kiss and swim naked (viewers only see shoulders). Later, we see them in bed together. Cole must fight in order to stay alive in prison. Both he and Rawlins get beat up, and Cole ends up stabbing a man to death. There is some gunfighting.

  • Families can talk about the violence in the prison. Do you think it was realistic? What do you think the aunt meant when she said that all a woman has is her reputation?

The good stuff
  • message true0

    Messages: After Alejandra sleeps with Cole, she loses her family's love.

What to watch for
  • violence false3

    Violence: Cole must fight in order to stay alive in prison. Both he and Rawlins get beat up, and Cole ends up stabbing a man to death. A main character dragged away and executed (offscreen). Some gunfighting. Some prison brawling.

  • sex false3

    Sex: Cole and Alejandra kiss and swim naked (we only see shoulders). Later, we see them in bed together.

  • language false3

    Language: Frequent course language used in conversation, but no extreme expletives.

  • consumerism false0

    Consumerism: Not an issue

  • drugsalcoholtobacco false0

    Drinking, drugs and smoking: Not an issue

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© Common Sense Media Inc. 2010. All rights reserved.

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