MovieChat Forums > The Horse Whisperer (1998) Discussion > Tom's statement 'You did nothing wrong' ...

Tom's statement 'You did nothing wrong' and the truth...

posted 13 years ago by Florida2
3 replies | jump to latest

Ugh - that's the one line in the film that makes me cringe...

I've read a number of posts from horse owners (I'm not a horse owner or rider but I like them and I'm around them at least once a week), and the one thing most horse people seem to agree on when it comes to this film was the reason for the accident - the girls were goofing around in a big way and forced their horses to climb a snow and ice-covered hillside...

Grace, being the expert equestrian that the video said she was "Under the command of Miss..." should have known better, and agrees to "take a shortcut", which was a fatal decision...

Tom, unaware of the truth, later (in two separate scenes) tells Grace - who apparently has suffered a traumatic mental block and does not recall the goofing around before the accident, and fails to tell Tom this very important part of the story - "You did nothing wrong" - but that was said in error, because in truth they did everything wrong when it came to the safety of their horses...

So, hopefully the teens who watch this film realize that Grace and Judith did do something very wrong that caused the accident...

The horse owners that I see every weekend usually (but not always) are very careful with their animals, and know better when doing something that might cause an injury, so my advice is:

IGNORE TOM'S "YOU DID NOTHING WRONG" ADVICE!!!

[–] El_Jeffro 12 years ago

I had the impression that the the thing that Tom was talking about not being wrong was Grace's feelings about the accident, and her survivor's guilt over it. He didn't have to tell Grace that she and Judith could have been more careful, because she likely already figured it out for herself shortly after the accident. It was the part about her accepting the consequences and letting the crippling self-blame over it go that she needed help with. This was apparent to a certain degree in the context of Tom's story of the Blackfoot kid who snapped his neck in the diving accident. That wasn't a smart thing to do either, but he wasn't relating it to her just to teach her she should be more careful with all of life's risks. She already learned that lesson the hard way.

And sure, it was poor judgement to try and climb a steep slippery hill covered in snow and ice, but that wasn't the primary reason for the accident. It had more to do with that big-rig careening around the curve of a narrow, snow-covered country road at a speed that was too high for the road conditions. And the stupid driver, who wasn't paying very much attention to what was in front of him, had the nerve to blow his horn, when he should have been concentrating on keeping his brakes from locking up so he could better slow down and stop. Indeed, had the semi not been there, Grace, Pilgrim, and Gulliver would have been OK, and Judith might have had a concussion when she was knocked-out.

But there were other contributing factors that if heeded, could have prevented the accident. Perhaps Grace's dad and Judith's parents should have demanded that they follow certain safety practices if they were going to ride on a day like that (although Grace was a stinker, and a little rebellious, so she might have disregarded these kind of ground-rules). Or if they weren't comfortable, perhaps they should have out their feet down and told the girls, "No riding AT ALL on a day like this."

When it comes down to it, the girls didn't do anything wrong except not better manage the risks involved. But the same could be said about taking a bath—despite being as careful as possible, one could accidentally slip in the tub and crack their head on the nearby toilet. Life is not 100% safe. Helen Keller said it best, "Security is mostly a superstition. It does not exist in nature, nor do the children of men as a whole experience it. Avoiding danger is no safer in the long run than outright exposure. Life is either a daring adventure, or nothing."

And Grace didn't have a mental block. It was just so traumatic that she couldn't relate the details of what happened to anyone until her talk with Tom.

However, if riders who watch this movie realize that the girls were reckless, that's all well and good. But it really isn't the point of the movie and that conversation didn't take place for this reason.

And finally, Tom told Grace, "You did nothing wrong" only once. Your memory must be betraying you just a little here, and it may be right before Grace got back on Pilgrim later in the movie that you might be thinking that was the second time. But actually at that time, Tom really told Grace, "You never did anything to let Pilgrim down." And again, I think he meant more to reassure her that she's never stopped loving Pilgrim, and that's what counts.

[–] sognobello 12 years ago

While I have not read the book, the movie is one of my all-time favorites. It stars most of my favorite actors, and I almost unconditionally love anything directed by Redford, seeing him as one of the great true visionaries with integrity and and a great sensitivity to and understanding of the human condition. This and A River Runs Through It are positively lyrical, sublime, and provide trenchant studies in overcoming obstacles to self-awareness and struggles within core relationships. They make me feel wistful and yearn for the world in which the characters reside.

But I digress.

While I do think that Redford's character, Tom, handled the kitchen scene of Grace's story very well and with great sensitivity and characteristic economy of words, I held the truck driver and the Grace equally culpable for the tragedy. It is, after a movie, so certain creative licenses are taken here, but in the real world, trucks of the size in the movie are generally restricted to larger roads and so-called "truck routes". They are usually prohibited from using small rural roads and residential streets, etc. The driver was also going at excessive speed for the road's size and snowy conditions.

In addition, one would hear a vehicle's approach in enough advance time to move out of the way, especially on a quiet day in the country with no other traffic. So, it does seem unrealistic that Grace and Judith did not react until the truck was nearly upon them.

But most of all, just as young adolescents or teens are not permitted to drive vehicles without adult supervision, I firmly believe that they should not be permitted to ride horses alone, either. These girls were too young, too easily distracted by their own whims to take risks into account the way a responsible or seasoned adult rider would. Horses are sensitive and extraordinarily intelligent animals that take their direction from their rider. Since Grace was supposedly an excellent rider according to video footage, quite simply, she should have known better.

Many youth make fatal mistakes every day, so this is not uncommon, but in this case, I think it speaks to one of the movie's central themes: guilt. Grace was burdened with an immense amount of guilt at indirectly causing the death of Judith, Gulliver, and Pilgrim's injuries. This is not necessarily spelled out, but open to interpretation of the viewer, which I am doing.

As a mother, I view Annie's decision to drive Pilgrim over 2,000 miles as something I might be compelled to do because I would feel so guilty at not spending more time with my daughter, not going riding with her and her friend that day, or not even knowing where she was at that time in the morning. Also, the danger of two young lovely girls being out by themselves somewhere, far away from their parents, is inherently dangerous.

These are my own views and opinions, which I thank the previous posters for making me think more in depth about them.

[–] ruffian82 10 years ago

I don't know how to ride horses or handle them.

So I didn't think about what she could have done differently.

If I remember right, in the movie, Grace doesn't talk about how she should have dismounted, so I didn't think of it.

But once I read the book, I smacked my head.
Of course, the horses are both panicked by then, so maybe down on the ground, she would not have had the...gravitas is not the word...the commanding presence that a Tom Booker would have had to yank Judith, Gulliver, and Pilgrim out of harm's way.

Oddly, the getting down made me think of another film centering around horses (or where they featured prominently) She Wore A Yellow Rose by John Ford.

After watching a few of his movies, one learns that when in doubt OR worry for their horses, or just for care, the U.S. Calvary would dismount and walk.

So what I was thinking was that more experienced riders would have been on the side of caution, looked over the edge and said "uh, no" or "let's dismount and lead them to a better spot."

Then again, I know nothing. Perhaps English style riding doesn't go that way.

I agree that even if she could have done something different, he's not about to tell her. What's the difference?