| Original Score: 3/5 | Apr 1, 2006

It manages to be a watchable, even enjoyable movie about and for girls, and in our world of candy-coated sparkly pink crap, that's a rare and commendable thing.

| Original Score: 3/5 | Oct 29, 2005

Despite thoroughbred work from Dakota Fanning, by the time the movie hits the final furlong it's only good for the glue factory.

| Original Score: 2/5 | Oct 25, 2005

A great family film.

Full Review | Oct 24, 2005

For family audiences seeking easy assurance, moral certitude and, of course, moving scenes of a gorgeous, galloping horse.

| Oct 21, 2005

Lovely family film, which has a way of resonating in one's imagination for days.

Full Review | Original Score: 3.5/4 | Oct 21, 2005

As a sports drama -- a genre that's gotten entirely too much play lately -- Dreamer is singularly unexciting.

| Original Score: 2/4 | Oct 21, 2005

It's to Fanning's and Russell's credit, and the filmmakers', that the formula never gets the better of the film.

Full Review | Original Score: 3/4 | Oct 21, 2005

It makes a solid case that a wounded horse can heal a wounded family.

Full Review | Original Score: 3.5/4 | Oct 21, 2005

Fanning and Russell are a perfect, sweet-and-sour pair. And, of course, the horse is absolutely beautiful -- which, in the end, is what this all comes down to, anyway.

| Original Score: 2.5/4 | Oct 21, 2005

Gatins is so worshipful of a child's starry-eyed aspirations that he forgets to ground them in narrative honesty.

Full Review | Original Score: 2.5/4 | Oct 21, 2005

Treads a well-worn path that will likely feel familiar even to the newest crop of horse-crazy girls.

Full Review | Original Score: 2/4 | Oct 21, 2005

Absolutely solid family entertainment, Dreamer: Inspired by a True Story is corn-fed, wholesome and thoroughly satisfying.

Full Review | Original Score: B+ | Oct 21, 2005

Most of what it lacks in originality, it compensates for in spirit, and its success is dependent on the commitment of the actors and the sense of family they evoke.

Full Review | Original Score: 3/4 | Oct 21, 2005

It canters. It gallops. It clears fences of familiarity with grace. It stands two hands above most flicks bred for families, stirring pleasure at its fine-muscled gait.

Full Review | Original Score: 3.5/4 | Oct 21, 2005

Any girl (and a lot of boys) in the target age group are going to make Dreamer one of their favorite films.

| Original Score: 3/4 | Oct 21, 2005

Closer to Seabiscuit than to Racing Stripes. For that, you can thank the entire cast of able underplayers, most notably Dakota Fanning.

| Original Score: 2.5/4 | Oct 21, 2005

Fanning and Russell make this watchable family entertainment, if not necessarily at today's prices.

| Original Score: 2.5/4 | Oct 20, 2005

Yes, Dreamer follows a formula, but the formula, when applied with skill and intelligence, as it is here, is pretty much foolproof.

Full Review | Original Score: 3/5 | Oct 20, 2005

The low-key charm of its setting underscores the easygoing performances of a relaxed, well-matched cast.

| Original Score: 3/5 | Oct 20, 2005