I am watching this movie right now and was about to delete it from my PVR to make space. I thought I would have a quick look to see what it was like and it hooked me from the start. The acting is good if not great and the story holds the attention well. It is not a sentimentalised view of war as the synopsis might indicate and it does not gloss over the brutality of war either. It has the qualities of good anti war movies like The Red Badge of Courage or All Quiet on the Western Front - no bad thing. Channel 5 doesn't always have dross movies on in the afternoon obviously-many I have tried have been awful cheap romances or unthrilling "thrillers"!!

I was leery of the title, as it sounded somewhat sentimental, yet our local librarian recommended my selection. Good call. This movie, unlike some Civil War movies, offers a real look at the humanity behind the soldier. What is mesmerizing is how the birth of a colt to an army mare changed the persona of the unit. The colt has all sorts of symbolism: new life among death; hope; redemption; promise. I hope to find a copy of the short story the film is based on and compare it to this film. One of the best scenes is when Jim, the main character, is sharing a meal with a farm family and as he describes his home state, he breaks down in tears from homesickness and despair. A touching and revealing film. A different look at the Civil War. While the ending is a horrible surprise, it is fitting for the irony portrayed throughout the film.

If you like your movies sappy, then this one's for you. I can't help but think how much tragedy would have been prevented in this movie via the use of a concept I like to call "scouts". I'm all for the suspension of disbelief (especially when watching a movie on the hallmark channel) but the idea that a guy could be riding his horse around in a war and *not* know it was pregnant strains incredulity to it's limits. I'm not the target audience and I admit that I was forced to watch this but I really didn't like this movie. I found it pretty amazing how much outright death this had for a family movie. The ending especially could be pretty traumatic for little kids.

This movie is well acted, and the colt shows the humanity of people even during a war. If you haven't seen a civil war movie in some time this is an interesting look at this time in our history without taking away from the essential theme that all civil war movies try to show which is that it was a vicious war with lots of suffering from both the north and south and no one was exempt from the horrors of the war. The Colt takes you away from the brutality and makes the characters seem more humane. The character of Jim is well acted and I would be surprised if this Kid is not a big star someday. The ending works for the story, but I was hoping it would have ended differently.