not as good as all the hype

A movie that not only functions as a solid scarefest but a razor-sharp satire.

It's a movie as timely as it is provocative and amazingly, for much of its running time, it is weirdly funny.

A terrific literary drama and character piece that shows how the process of creating art can be seen differently by those doing it and those looking at it from the outside.

The horse gets hit by a car and dies! Awful! So awful that I lost interest in the kid, and fast-forwarded till the ending. If you're a horse lover, don't watch this movie.

Nope! This is not that. Even if they want you to think it is. This is a story of ambition. Struggle for the ultimate destination. And I know those words are heavy but they suit here for the Pete.

What the hell kind of person thinks it is a good idea to make a movie like this? Must be friends with the idiot who made Manchester By the Sea because there is something called purposeful violence in film, but there are some things that are so far embedded in taboo that you should just not go there. Divine Dog Syndrome is a film term...same thing goes for horses. What the hell drives someone to write that horrific scene into a film is beyond me. Charlie lost and lost again...the horse getting spooked would have been the moment where he saved what couldn't be saved...like himself and there is the hope. I do not care if this gets posted, but I would like you to forward this to the dick who thought it was a pivotal moment that needed to be in the final cut. Coming of age is supposed to give hope and inspire. You did neither. I grabbed a Sharpie and wrote on the dvd, "do not watch horse dies" before returning it to redbox. If someone did that for me with Manchester, I would be better off today.

Charley is only 15 years old but so far has had a pretty hard and unstable life. His mother is gone and he stays with his father who doesn't have much to give Charley in the way of either the basics or emotional support. On his new job working for Del, a horse racing businessman, Charley forms a connection with Lean On Pete aka Pete, an aging quarter horse whose running days are numbered. The story line is a bit predictable in a general way and there seems to be no message conveyed by the film. It did hold my interest for the most part mainly because I found it well acted.