Black Beauty (2020)

Black Beauty (2020) earns its keep by treating its famous story not as a dusty classic to be recited, but as a living plea for empathy—one that lets you feel the wind of the open West and the ache of being uprooted. Ashley Avis frames the horse’s journey with sweeping, tactile landscapes and a gentle, earnest mood, while Mackenzie Foy gives Jo a bruised, determined warmth that makes their bond feel like something discovered rather than scripted, and Kate Winslet’s narration adds a steady, soulful presence. It’s a drama that believes kindness is an action, not a slogan, and it doesn’t shy away from the emotional weight of loss and mistreatment, which may be tough for sensitive viewers. But if you’re on the fence and want a heartfelt, visually beautiful film that champions partnership over “breaking,” this one is easy to root for.

Black Beauty (2020) clearly wants to be a heartfelt, modernized animal-and-human bond story with a gentle message about compassion and “partnering” instead of breaking horses. The problem is it often feels like a tidy, TV-movie-style sequence of hardships and new owners, with pacing and structure that can make the journey feel more like checkpoints than a richly lived story. If you’re hoping for the novel’s sharper bite and broader social commentary, this version leans heavily into simplified human drama and can come off emotionally earnest but a bit thin. Still, Kate Winslet’s narration adds warmth, the film is family-friendly on paper, and if you mainly want a comforting, tear-jerking horse rescue tale, it will likely do the job.