The Bottom Line
Pros
- A very informative and entertaining presentation of the life of John Henry
- Makes extensive use of ineterviews of the people who were with him most
- Footage of thrilling stretch runs will ensure he is never forgotten
Cons
- None. We could find no fault in this work about an all time great Thoroughbred
Description
- The writers included extensive interview clips with the people who were with him most
- These included his breeder, owners, trainers, and jockeys, and later, his caretakers at the Kentucky Horse Park.
- One of the more heart-wrenching stories was that of early trainer Phil Marino, who had John Henry in Louisiana
- Losing John Henry all but ruined Marino's career, making him the laughingstock of the local racing community
- He turned to drugs and alcohol, and was unable to quit until John Henry's retirement was announced
- Since then he turned his life around and was able to resume his training career.
- Interviews with "superfans" were included, who religiously followed his career and made regular visits to the Horse Park
Guide Review - John Henry: The Steel Driving Racehorse DVD
The story is told chronologically, with each racing year concluded with a recap showing his career record up to that point (starts, wins, seconds, thirds, and earnings). Many photographs are included, mostly to highlight his "faults" -- his rough fur coat, his bad knees, his small size, and his mean demeanor -- none of which affected his ability on the track. A vet found that his heart was abnormally large, only slightly smaller than that of Secretariat. It was no surprise that John Henry excelled at long distances on both turf and dirt, wearing down his tiring competition in thrilling stretch runs.
The viewer will see many of his races, including the memorable 1981 Arlington Million where he defeated The Bart by a head-bob. After that win on the turf he won the Jockey Club Gold Cup on the Belmont dirt, then run at 1 1/2 miles, leading to an Eclipse Awards sweep. Not only was he unanimously voted Horse of the Year, he or his connections won every other award they were nominated for: he was also champion older horse and champion turf horse, while Dotsam Stable (Sam and Dorothy Rubin) was outstanding owner, Ron McAnally won outstanding trainer, and Bill Shoemaker was outstanding jockey, the only time the Hall of Famer won the Eclipse. At the age of 9, he won the Arlington Million again to earn him his second Horse of the Year title, closing out his career at the Meadowlands in the Ballantine Scotch Classic. Contemporary racing fans will see many parallels to current superstar Zenyatta, in that both excited the crowds with thrilling come-from-behind finishes and narrow margins of victory.
To end the film, Duddy and Koby included footage from John Henry's memorial service at the Kentucky Horse Park, including the eulogy read by Horse Park executive director John Nicholson. The hundreds who came out to pay their respects, including some who flew across the country to attend, showed just how he touched the lives of so many people with his courage on the track and as racing's elder statesman at the Hall of Champions after he retired.
