We can all agree that there is something undeniably exciting about a horse running at full speed. After all, there is a reason why horse racing is a really popular sport, right?
Horses have been around us for centuries, and there is no doubt that they’ve influenced our culture in many ways. That’s why we often see horses taking all the action in movies. But when it comes to horses running at full speed in movies, we usually talk about horse racing movies. However, horse racing movies are not exactly action movies.
Yes, there is action on the racetrack, but most of them are dramas, adventure movies, or true story movies. Nothing blows up, there is no fighting or chaos. This got us thinking, which action movies have the fastest horses, and are there any horses used in action movies?
The short answer is yes! There are plenty of action movies, where the story may not be around horses, but there are certainly many horse-running scenes to analyze. Let’s dive deeper into horse racing scenes from action movies and find out which are the best.
“John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum”
When we talk about action movies, John Wick is probably the first thing that comes to mind. But what does John Wick have to do with horses? Well, in John Wick: Chapter 3 Parabellum (2019), Keanu Reeves turns a New York City stable into a battleground.
There is a huge fighting scene in a thoroughbred horse racing stable in New York, and all the horses look incredibly fast. It’s kind of shocking how all the horses remained calm with all the fighting and chaos going around. Horses are kicking enemies in mid-flight, bullets are flying around, and the black stallions are calm and collected.
This wasn’t CGI. The horses in the movie were real, and they were trained for precision stunts. Kenu himself did parts of the sequence with professional wranglers overseeing every move. But what does this scene have to do with speed? Well, as John Wick finished kicking the heck out of all enemies, he climbed on a horse in style, and the horse stormed out of the stable.
“The Lone Ranger” (2013)
Now this is a movie where horses get much more screen time. The Lone Ranger gave us one of the best horse action scenes in movies. Silver, the Ranger’s trusty white stallion, practically defied physics.
The horse is incredibly fast, and if this were true, he would have been much faster than the legendary Secretariat or other fast horses we see on modern horse racing events like the Breeders’ Cup or the Kentucky Derby.
In other words, if Silver was in a horse race, everyone would have placed bets on this horse. Handicappers would analyze the situation, see the unbelievable speed of Ranger’s horse, and immediately see that there is no competition for him.
But Silver is not running in horse racing events, and most of the action in The Lone Ranger is not real. So, if you want to bet on horse racing events, you still need to do your own research, like most handicappers do. If you are an experienced handicapper, maybe you should test your skills and compete in TwinSpires handicapper tournaments. More info on the link below: https://www.twinspires.com/tournaments/
In the Lone Ranger, filmmakers used digital effects with real stunts just to keep Silver’s speed authentic. The visual of Johnny Depp’s Tonto riding alongside Armie Hammer’s Lone Ranger is a huge adrenaline hit. If you want an action movie with some great horse scenes, this is the one you should watch.
“Django Unchained” (2012)
Next, we have Quentin Tarantino’s Django Unchained, which is basically a western movie full of horses. Django’s confidence, swagger, and revenge all play out in how he rides.
There are plenty of horse-riding scenes, where Django’s (Jamie Foxx) performance was incredible. Foxx was an experienced horse rider before filming, which added an extra layer of authenticity to the horse scenes. On top of that, Jamie Foxx also rode his own horse, making it look even more authentic.
His horse was named Cheetah, which says a lot about the horse’s speed.
“Gladiator” (2000)
Let’s talk about Maximus – The Gladiator. This isn’t a horse movie, nor are horses’ part of the main action, but there are some quite impressive chariot and cavalry horse scenes. Horses stormed the arena as Roman soldiers clashed, dust and fire, filling the air.
The movie is a true masterpiece, thanks to Ridley Scott, the director. He had an incredible attention to detail, even for horses. His approach was to treat horses like soldiers, disciplined, powerful, and fearless.
These sequences were done with a mix of real horses and animatronics, filmed across multiple countries.
“The Mummy” and “Braveheart”
The Mummy (1999) is another legendary movie that we all want to watch even 25 years later. This is a great action movie full of horse action, and one of the first movies that started the VFX trend and movie editing trend. That’s why this movie looks much better than the sequels.
In this movie, horses take the main action. We can see Brendan Fraser and Rachel Weisz race across dunes as a sandstorm swirls behind them. Another incredible scene was the huge army of horses that lined up to fight the skeletons.
And then there’s Braveheart (1995). Here we have Mel Gibson and his epic battles with his horse. Horses are the focus of this movie, and some incredible scenes will be remembered forever.
So, there are not many horse action movies, but there are many action movies with incredible horse scenes. Which is your favorite?