Miracle of the White Stallions (1963)

Director:

Arthur Hiller

Writers:

AJ Carothers (writer)
Alois Podhajsky (book)

Release Date:

29 March 1963 (USA)

Genre:

Family | Drama | War | Adventure

Tagline:

The day a war stood still!

Plot:

In WWII Austria, Col. Alois Podhajsky must protect his beloved Lipizzaner stallions and make sure that they are surrendered into the right hands...

Plot Keywords:

Horse | Austria | WWII | Color In Title | German Army

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Robert Taylor	...	Col. Podhajsky
Lilli Palmer	...	Vedena Podhajsky
Curd Jürgens	...	Gen. Tellheim (as Curt Jurgens)
Eddie Albert	...	Rider Otto
James Franciscus	...	Maj. Hoffman
John Larch	...	General George S. Patton, Jr.
Brigitte Horney	...	Countess Arco-Valley
Philip Abbott	...	Col. Reed
Charles Régnier	...	Gen. Stryker
Erik Schumann	...	Capt. Ranhoff
Douglas Fowley	...	Lt. General Walton H. Walker
Philo Hauser	...	Dispatcher
Max Haufler	...	Engineer
Michael Janisch	...	Refugee Leader
Fritz Wepper	...	Rider Hans

Also Known As:

The Flight of the White Stallions (UK)

Runtime:

93 min | 118 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Stereo (RCA Sound Recording)

Certification:

Australia:G | Finland:S

Filming Locations:

Atelier Rosenhügel, Vienna, Austria

Company:

Walt Disney Productions

Trivia:

The red uniform that is used at the end of the movie is not original. The Spanish Riding school never used a red uniform. Disney found the original brown uniform too simple for a gala opening and introduced these uniforms.

Movie Connections:

Edited into "Disneyland: Flight of the White Stallions: Part 2 (#12.6)" (1965)

7/10 ****/5 ~ Underrated, intelligent, mature Walt Disney adventure.

This exceptional live-action Walt Disney adventure-drama might have benefited from a warmer actor in the lead role, but Robot Taylor (pun intended) nevertheless brings strength and conviction to the part of an angry but caring man. The supporting cast is uniformly excellent, especially Lilli Palmer and Curt Jurgens who supply a depth of emotion to a dry and unsentimental story.

The film works the family-oriented animal interest of the Lippizan horses into the framework of a dramatic and often suspenseful wartime adventure. One needn't be a horse-lover to be caught up in the story and end up caring about the animals which in this film are symbols of art, grace and beauty surviving a war-torn world. The audience is teased with glimpses of the stallions at play and in training and learns to appreciate their value so that the full-blown horse-show finale comes as a welcome joy.

The well-produced movie was filmed on location in Austria and is handsomely photographed. There is a gripping battle scene and adults will be impressed with the maturity of the entire project.