Diagonaldi Very well executed

CommentsXp Best movie ever!

Beystiman It's fun, it's light, [but] it has a hard time when its tries to get heavy.

Abegail Noëlle While it is a pity that the story wasn't told with more visual finesse, this is trivial compared to our real-world problems. It takes a good movie to put that into perspective.

roddekker Set in California during The Great Depression of the 1930's - "They Shoot Horses, Don't They?" is all about the wretchedness, and all the utter hopelessness of an era of impoverishment like none other in American history.Here the viewer is witness to every despairing detail of destitution. All so graphically depicted. All so clearly unfolded through the sad experiences of a pitiful collection of marathon dancers, each one at the utter brink of desperation.This is a dance marathon to beat all other dance marathons. To date it has been running now, non-stop, for 2 months, solid. It's guaranteed to be a real record-breaker.And, the one, final couple that remains on their feet to the bitter end, out-dancing all others, will be crowned the winners, receiving as their hard-earned reward a grand prize of $1,500. Not much money by today's standards, but, for the many who were absolutely poverty-stricken during The Depression, it represented a literal fortune.Yep. That's what "They Shoot Horses, Don't They?" is all about.

fezziwig2084 First of all, 'They shoot horses don't they' is not for the fainthearted or those looking for a feel good firm. It depicts a variety of characters who enter a grueling dance contest during the Great Depression. Only the last couple remaining will receive the prize money. Over time the contestants will go through various stages of exhaustion and some have psychological breakdowns. The film direction is great, the characters feel real and the time period feels appropriate. This firm can sometimes be physically exhausting to watch at times and can be slow moving at around two hours. Overall I would say that this was a great character study but not a movie that will appeal towards everyone's taste in movies, especially with the fast paced, quick cut action that people are used to seeing now. I recommend this movie for those who wish to see something different then what they're used to seeing.

mark.waltz With society moving towards degradation in the late 1960's, filmmakers took more serious looks at earlier eras romanticized during the golden age of Hollywood. The popular dance marathons of the early 1930's, most famously done in Atlantic City, were a cavalcade of desperate young people trying to survive through the depression. This movie serves as a metaphor for the lost youth of the late 1960's dealing with civil rights and a war in Vietnam they wanted no part of.Jane Fonda and Michael Sarrazin are just two of the contestants caught up in this hoopla as they struggle to last through the grueling dances, sprint races and bad entertainment provided by some of the pathetic people trying to either gain fame or win a sponsor. The faces of all of these contestants show their world weariness, especially Fonda's who seems to long for the peace of death. Add in Gig Young as the emcee/producer of the marathon, a lecherous man who has no qualms in attempting to rape one of the exhausted dancers (Susannah York). He is both equally ruthless and charming as he utilizes every trick in the book to put on a show. Reminding me of the emcee in "Cabaret", it is no wonder that when Kander and Ebb did their own marathon musical "Steel Pier", the emcee/host of that marathon was a combination of both characters in this and in "Cabaret".Depression films of the past fifty years have touched on the many aspects of survival, whether through the violence of "Bonnie and Clyde" or the sleaziness of "Ironweed". "They Shoot Horses" takes on the world of entertainment and adds in some sports plus lots of desperation, despair and finally exhaustion towards life itself, reminding us that each era has had its share of miserable social moments which looked like the end of civilized society.

seymourblack-1 "They Shoot Horses, Don't They?" makes such an indelible impression on anyone who sees it that they're never likely to either forget it or mix it up with any other movie they've ever seen. It's rare indeed for any movie to possess this kind of power but the sheer intensity of its story, the desperation of its characters and the quality of its cast really do make this film extremely memorable and quite unique.This depression-era drama about the experiences of a group of poverty stricken people who enter a dance marathon at a run-down ballroom on the Santa Monica Pier near L.A. describes the hopes that motivate them and also shows the suffering and humiliation that they experience as they struggle against impossible odds to chase their dreams of a $1,500 prize or the fame and fortune that could follow, if they get spotted by any of the talent scouts who might be in the audience. The depressing reality, however, is that the promises of these prizes (for different reasons) are both a sham and the contestants' endeavours are all in vain.Gloria Beatty (Jane Fonda) is a would-be actress whose experiences have made her very bitter and deeply cynical. She's habitually unpleasant to everybody she encounters but is, nevertheless, very determined to win the marathon. When her original partner is not allowed to compete for medical reasons, she quickly finds herself teamed up with Robert Syverton (Michael Sarrazin) who's an ex-farm boy who just happened to be in the vicinity and hadn't arrived with any intention of competing.Alice LeBlanc (Susannah York) is another aspiring actress who, despite her circumstances, takes a great pride in her appearance because she's convinced that she's likely to be recruited by some movie producer who'll spot her obvious talent. Harry Kline (Red Buttons) is an old sailor who lies about his age to enter the competition and is sure that his extensive experience of taking part in similar marathons will stand him in good stead this time around.Ruby (Bonnie Bodelia) is a heavily pregnant young woman who, together with her husband James (Bruce Dern), is competing in the hope of winning enough money to help with the expense of having their first baby.The ballroom full of couples who start the marathon are continually urged on by Rocky (Gig Young) who's the promoter of the event. He periodically hollers "Yowsa, Yowsa, Yowsa" to rouse both the competitors and the audience and every week "ups the stakes" by organising a Derby, which is a frantic, energy sapping, walking race which leads to the last three couples being eliminated on each occasion.What transpires during the marathon illustrates forcibly just how hopeless the lives of the competitors are, how futile their attempts to improve their circumstances are and how mercilessly their misfortunes are exploited by Rocky who never misses an opportunity to add to the contestants' humiliation and anguish. All this is done to entertain his audience who derive pleasure from watching the systematic degradation of less fortunate people and also leads to all the dancers losing their dignity and self respect.Gig Young's performance is sensational and made even more remarkable by the fact that his role is so different to those he normally played during his career. He's thoroughly convincing as the sleazy villain of the piece and exceptionally good at conveying his character's callous attitude to the competitors as he cruelly mocks their predicaments. Michael Sarrazin is ideal as the passive Robert who simply allows himself to be swept along by events and almost nonchalantly accepts whatever fate throws at him. Jane Fonda and Susannah York make their characters unforgettable and Red Buttons is marvellous as the determinedly optimistic and energetic "old salt"."They Shoot Horses, Don't They?" is a tragic and very human story which, despite its depressing subject matter and shocking conclusion, is both thought provoking and riveting from start to finish.