Director
Gary Ross
Leading Actors/Actresses
Jeff Bridges, Tobey Maguire
Supporting Actors/Actresses
Chris Cooper, Elizabeth Banks, William H. Macy
Genre
Drama, History, Sport
Language
English
Awards
Nominated for 7 Oscars: Best Film Editing, Best Cinematography, Best Writing - Adapted Screenplay, Best Costume Design, Best Art Direction-Set Decoration, Best Sound Mixing, Best Picture
Date of Release
2003
Producer
Kathleen Kennedy, Frank Marshall, Gary Ross, Jane Sindell
Setting and Context
1910-1938: New York, California, Tijuana, Mexico
Narrator and Point of View
POV is that of Howard and Red. Narrator is David McCullough.
Tone and Mood
Dramatic, Realistic, Suspenseful
Protagonist and Antagonist
Protagonists are Seabiscuit, Red, Howard, Tom. Protagonists are War Admiral and Riddle.
Major Conflict
Howard loses his son in an automobile accident which ends his marriage. Red's family loses everything in the stock market crash of 1929, Tom is a drifter with no place to call home, and Seabiscuit is a horse that no one believes can win. They come together to challenge millionaire Samuel Riddle, owner of War Admiral to a race which Riddle will not accept.
Climax
Riddle agrees to a head to head race which Seabiscuit wins. He later is hurt in a race and is nurtured back to health by Red who rides him, after he's healed, to victory with the help of Red's friend and fellow jockey Woolf.
Foreshadowing
The hardship of Red, Howard, Tom and Seabiscuit's lives foreshadow the intersection they experience to bring healing in all of their lives.
Understatement
It is understated that Woolf will fall back to allow Seabiscuit to "get a look" allowing him to win the race.
Innovations in Filming or Lighting or Camera Techniques
N/A
Allusions
The film is an allusion to the strength and hope that the American people needed from the underdog story of Seabiscuit during a time of great hardship in the country.
Paradox
Every time a horse is lame the owner puts it down. Paradoxically, Tom and Howard never choose to put down anyone or anything that is broken. This includes Seabiscuit and Red.
Parallelism
The stories of Red, Tom, Seabiscuit, and Howard parallel each other as each of these characters have been broken in their lives and the journey to healing is paralleled in them.
