Phar Lap (film)
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| Phar Lap | |
|---|---|
 Promotional poster from the 1983 film |
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| Directed by | Simon Wincer |
| Produced by | John Sexton |
| Written by | David Williamson |
| Starring | Tom Burlinson Martin Vaughan Ron Leibman |
| Running time | 107 min |
| Country | Australia |
| Language | English |
| IMDb profile | |
Phar Lap (also released as "Phar Lap: Heart of a Nation") is a 1983 film about the Australian racehorse Phar Lap. The film starred Tom Burlinson and was written by famous Australian playwright David Williamson.
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[edit] Plot
The film starts with Phar Lap in the USA. Shortly after the film starts, Phar Lap, called "Bobby" by his strapper Tommy Woodcock (Burlinson), collapses and dies shortly afterwards. The remainder of the film is done in as a flashback.
Phar Lap is being seen delivered to Australia from New Zealand and is greeted by trainer Harry Telford (Vaughan) and owner Dave Davis (Leibman). Davis is not impressed with the underweight, wart-ridden colt and demands Telford to sell him immediately. Telford protests saying that the horse's pedigree is exceptional with Carbine on both sides of his bloodlines. Davis agrees to lease Telford the horse, keeping only one third of the winnings, but with Telford paying for the upkeep and the training of the horse.
As Phar Lap is brought into the stables, him and Woodcock form a bond. During training, Phar Lap is worked hard by Telford, and when questioned about this strategy by Woodcock, Telford fires him. Telford reinstates Woodcock, as the horse has stopped eating. The bond is formed between Woodcock and Phar Lap at this stage.
Phar Lap's initial races are not successful, but Woodcock tries to "educate" the horse to pass other horses on the racetrack, and this proves successful at the AJC Derby run at Randwick, Sydney . The film depicts that this was Phar Lap's first win (although in actual fact it was at the RRC Maiden Juvenile Handicap in the previous racing season), thus saving Phar Lap from being sold and Telford from bankruptcy.
Fortunes change for all involved with Phar Lap, and Davis schemes on how to capitalize on the horse's success through betting. Phar Lap is depicted to win the 1930 Melbourne Cup, while finishing eighth in the following year's Melbourne Cup. Also depicted is the weight carried by Phar Lap as ordered by the VRC in order "to better horse racing". At this point in time, Telford has had enough with all the attention that Phar Lap attracts, and has established himself as a successful trainer with his own stables in Melbourne. An opportunity arises that sees Phar Lap racing in Mexico, with Woodcock as the horse's trainer.
The film completes with Phar Lap winning the race in Mexico, and returns to the sequences at the start of the film.
[edit] Differences from Country to Country
In the United States version of the film the story is played out in a more traditional way with the film opening with Phar Lap getting off the boat this was done to make the ending more dramatic since unlike Australians in the United States the story of Phar Lap is not well known.
[edit] Trivia
- Tommy Woodcock makes a cameo appearance as a trainer.
- The role of Phar Lap was played by Towering Inferno. In 1999, Towering Inferno was killed in Sydney by lightning. Phar Lap's name is taken from Thai word for lightning (faá-laêp - ฟ้าแลบ).
[edit] External links
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