This documentary tells the truly remarkable true story of the thoroughbred race horse Dream Alliance, and it is quite the Cinderella tale.In a small economically depressed Welsh mining town, a barmaid and cleaner at a local department store Jan Vokes was determined that despite all odds she was going to breed a race horse, and was the driving force behind a syndicate of local townspeople pooling and saving their money to do just that.They eventually found the mare Rewbell, who had a very brief unsuccessful racing career and was considered "mental" by her connections. She would be bred to the American stallion Bien Bien for a 3,000 pound stud fee, and this would lead to the birth of Dream Alliance.Incredibly, the horse was raised on an allotment, and would eventually be placed in the care of trainer Philip Hobbs and his assistant Johnson White. They evaluated Dream Alliance as not being very fast but having the "heart of a tiger".Well, as they say the rest is history as Dream Alliance would prove he could race and win steeplechase events among the racing elite, including the most prestigious Welsh Grand National. He would even be able to return to racing after a near fatal injury on the track, and became one of the first thoroughbreds to receive stem cell surgery.Of course, during all this time the Welsh townspeople in the syndicate were just thrilled with this amazingly improbable series of events. They seemed to particularly enjoy hobnobbing with the gentry at the racetracks and causing them all kinds of consternation.All in all, here in the States every once in a while a horse will come along with less than elite breeding, be backed by blue collar folks, and upend racing tradition by being hugely successful. This is one of those true stories and the film can be a feel-good tale for viewers of any age.

This movie is about a bunch of human friends who do not have movie star looks nor a lot of money. They chip in to syndicate the birth of a race horse. They go into the financial details and negotiations in a good humored way. The mating process happens and the horse born is a beautiful creature. The connection of this horse to the owners might be more sentimental than average because they are not rich people. They are not experienced but hire an experienced trainer.Some of the discussions take place at a pub table. There is some digression, mostly humorous. The background music is simply beautiful classical.If you have gone to a race or ridden or touched a horse you know they have a personality. You get that from this movie. You might feel greater things about your pets.The horse is not perfect. I will not divulge any race results. We all have our own first and last races. I won't mention how much they invested nor if they gained or lost money. In the end, this is a movie about working friendships and collaboration between humans and animals. A beautiful movie which evokes emotions and memories. This is a great movie about great relationships with a great animal. And we are all imperfect even the great.

"There are other things that I could do, but there's really nothing that I love as much as horse racing." Chantal SutherlandI dislike being forced to feel good, as movies from the likes of Disney Studios regularly do, but Dark Horse, writer/director Louise Osmond's documentary about the Welsh "thoroughbred," Dream Alliance, made me feel better than when I walked in because it's true! Owned by a group of Welsh commoners from a small town, Dream is a winner from its beauty to its heart.Not only is the story a rouser, but Osmond also uses cinematic techniques like artful slow motion, and she has the real characters from the story narrate with their abundant charm and impish humor. To listen to their affection for their horse and see how it has changed their lives to a loving community is to experience an authentic story. Although I'm not a fan of living anywhere other than the city, this town could easily win me over.Not surprisingly, Dark Horse won the Sundance audience award this January. It appeals to those who love a story about working folk one-upping the gentry in the sport of kings, and those, especially Americans, who favor the underdog winning the gold ring. In this story, the horse, in 2000 the brainchild of a local barmaid, Jan Vokes, is comfort and joy for a town that has experienced the shutdown of its mine and the loss of spirit.The strength of the doc is, as it should be, in the talking heads on camera, working-class folk with ample personality and pluck to make engaging commentators and models for a happy citizenry who never envy the swells, the usual owners of race horses. The class theme is handled by Osmond subtly and respectfully, easy enough because the Welsh are an independent and proud lot not about to envy anyone, much less the rich.Osmond crafts this story as if it were a seamless fiction, so filled it is with the vicissitudes of life that affect all of us not able to live off fortunes. The heroes of this story are the townspeople who invest in the horse when economic times are tough and ROI not certain. Beautiful horse. Beautiful film

Who doesn't enjoy listening to a real life story about a bunch of working class people who go out on a limb and invest what little money that they really cannot afford to spend, to see if their dream of owning a winning racehorse for a chance to enter the unattainable winners circle and have their picture taken with their champion racehorse?This is a well produced documentary style story of a group of 30 people who agreed to invest a weekly amount of 10 pounds for an entire year to bankroll a horse fund of $15,600 pounds. Their bankroll allowed them to purchase a mare for a paltry 600 pounds and find a stud with some racing credentials to which we get to witness the actual birth of this teams dream. By group consensus they chose to name their new colt Dream Alliance.Next, the group went looking for a horse Trainer to which they agreed to pay top dollar for securing his knowledge. Their logic in securing an experienced Trainer was they could have paid less for an inexperienced Trainer but they felt that since their yearling had no experience and neither did they, they had a better chance drawing from a well experienced Trainer to pass his knowledge on to their horse, than having an inexperienced Trainer pass on as little experience to an even greener horse.This story has its ups and downs and rather than give away any spoilers it is suffice to say that this group of 30 shared in Dream Alliance's victories and losses and that they seemed to have accomplished the impossible going from Nags to Riches over a several year period. What Mrs. Shullivan and I drew from this truly inspirational film was the sheer pride and joy Dream Alliance brought not only to this group of 30 investors and their extended families, but also to the small town they lived in, and eventually across all of Wales. This is a heartwarming true story with many narrative scenes occurring in the local towns pub where the original investor Jan came up with her idea to breed her own racehorse. It is a warm and sincere film well worth watching. I give it an 8 out of 10 rating.