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Racing Stripes
Warner Bros.

Racing Stripes reviews
Critic Score
Metascore: 43 Metascore out of 100
User Score  
6.6 out of 10
based on 26 reviews
Read critic reviews
How did we calculate this?
based on 19 votes
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MPAA RATING: PG for mild crude humor and some language

Starring Bruce Greenwood, Hayden Panettiere, Frankie Muniz, Gary Bullock, Michael Clarke Duncan, Joshua Jackson, Jeff Foxworthy, Whoopi Goldberg, Dustin Hoffman, Joe Pantoliano, and Snoop Dogg

When a baby zebra is accidentally abandoned by a traveling circus, he is rescued by a local horse farmer and his young daughter. So begins his surprising journey into the world of elite athletes, intense competition and enormous stakes as he strives for a place in the ultra-prestigious Kentucky Open. (Warner Bros.)


GENRE(S): Adventure  |  Animation  |  Comedy  |  Family/Kids  
WRITTEN BY: David Schmidt (also story)
Steven P. Wegner (story)
Kirk De Micco (story)
Frederik Du Chau (story)
 
DIRECTED BY: Frederik Du Chau  
RELEASE DATE: DVD: May 10, 2005 
Video: May 10, 2005 
Theatrical: January 14, 2005 
RUNNING TIME: 94 minutes, Color 
ORIGIN: South Africa / USA 

What The Critics Said

All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...

70
Variety Joe Leydon
Frisky and funny enough to please pre-teens, but still witty enough to amuse even those parents who don't recognize Dustin Hoffman, Whoopi Goldberg and other notables among the unseen vocal talents.
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63
ReelViews James Berardinelli
You may end up being pleasantly surprised, especially if you have a ten-year old girl in tow.
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63
Chicago Tribune Allison Benedikt
Endearing but predictable.
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63
Boston Globe Ty Burr
Simultaneously overplotted and simplistic, the new barnyard/racecourse comedy from Warner Brothers is predictable every step of the way, and it contains at least three too many poop jokes.
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63
Charlotte Observer Lawrence Toppman
I groaned at cliches and grinned at jokes in roughly equal measure.
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63
New York Daily News Elizabeth Weitzman
The special effects here are surprisingly smooth, and everyone seems to be having fun.
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60
Los Angeles Times Kevin Thomas
No "Babe" but should delight youngsters, although parents likely will find it is sentimental in the extreme, with a plot that telegraphs every development.
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50
Entertainment Weekly Scott Brown
So what disturbed me? It was the Shetland pony, which sports both Dustin Hoffman's pipes and his "I Heart Huckabees" toupee, and will haunt my nightmares forever.
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50
Dallas Observer Jean Oppenheimer
The digital computer work is smooth and convincing; the animals look as if they are talking. But their voices are either devoid of personality or grating and annoying.
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50
LA Weekly Ella Taylor
Sweet, innocuous and about as fresh as yesterday's lettuce.
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50
Chicago Reader J.R. Jones
Dumb but harmless live-action comedy for kids.
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50
New York Post Russell Scott Smith
A predictable but pleasant kids movie that veers between old-fashioned girl-and-her-horse sentiment and "Ren & Stimpy"-style poo jokes.
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50
Christian Science Monitor David Sterritt
Like most movies aimed at the younger set, Racing Stripes has easily absorbable lessons to teach: Be yourself, never stop trying if your goal is worthwhile, and so forth.
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50
The New York Times Dana Stevens
Racing Stripes is unlikely to ascend to the pantheon of perennially watchable children's films, but like its hero, what it lacks in skill, it makes up for in heart.
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50
The Hollywood Reporter Kirk Honeycutt
At best, Racing Stripes should play nicely to youngsters with the cutoff for enjoyment extending no further than midteens.
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50
Chicago Sun-Times Roger Ebert
But when you think of the "Babe" pictures, and indeed even an animated cartoon like "Home on the Range," you realize Stripes is on autopilot with all of the usual elements: a heroine missing one parent, an animal missing both, an underdog (or underzebra), cute animals, the big race.
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50
San Francisco Chronicle Carla Meyer
Muniz, however, is hampered by Stripes' constant moping, which brings out the "Malcolm in the Middle'' star's whinier tendencies.
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50
The Globe and Mail (Toronto) Liam Lacey
The movie, which is roughly as predictable as the attraction of flies to dung, is a hackneyed mix of sentimentality and anarchic comedy.
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42
Seattle Post-Intelligencer Paula Nechak
Racing Stripes is oddly torn in tone: is it an old-fashioned family drama, a coming-of-age story or a crass comedy? Live action or animation? Unlike "Babe," it fails to integrate its conflicting personalities.
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40
The Onion (A.V. Club) Nathan Rabin
A film divided against itself. Granted, neither part is particularly distinguished or appealing but the old-timey sports-movie elements at least possess a quaint charm. Unfortunately, that's wholly negated by the film's stumbling attempts at comic relief.
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40
Village Voice Chris Tamarri
The film shares a problem with its hero: identity crisis.
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40
Washington Post Desson Thomson
Although this film about a zebra who aspires to win horse races has a marvelous premise, it slows to a mediocre canter right out of the starting gate.
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40
TV Guide Ethan Alter
Bland family comedy.
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40
Empire Anna Smith
It’s been done before, and better. With pigs.
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38
USA Today Mike Clark
Almost everyone in this has done better, and those who haven't, like young Ms. Panettiere, have plenty of time to do so.
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0
Austin Chronicle Marjorie Baumgarten
Simply put, no matter what this zebra thinks of himself, Stripes is no thoroughbred.
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What Our Users Said

Vote Now!The average user rating for this movie is 6.6 (out of 10) based on 19 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

Mark K. gave it a7:
A good movie for first - second graders. While it is not four-star Disney stuff, it doesn't try to be -- it is happy to be about a zebra who wants to be a racing horse. My wife and I both remained seated throughout the movie -- which is unusual with kid movies of late. Pop some corn and enjoy!

Sherri R. gave it a10:
This is a feel good movie. The kids loved it. We talked about the movie and laughed all the way home. Zebra was cute.

Vince Y. gave it a9:
Better than I expected. The kids loved it, and I noted that more often than not it was the adults laughing at the "in" jokes than the kids. An enjoyable afternoon.

Jeff L. gave it a5:
Relatively painless kid flick about a frisky little zebra who has been raised on a farm adjacent to a race track and who wants to be a race horse. Much of what ensues is entirely predictable, but the zebra is undeniably cute, Hayden Panettiere (Raising Helen) is plucky and appealing as the teenage farm girl who wants to ride Stripes, and I enjoyed some of the celebrites who gave Babe-type voices to Stripes and his animal friends (Dustin Hoffman as a shetland pony named Tucker is nearly as loveable as Bernie Focker.) David Spade and Steve Harvey as a pair of flatulent, poop-loving flies were a bit much for my taste, but hey, judging by the reactions of my four-year-old, the filmmakers know their audience. Worst character: an out-of-place pelican voiced by Joe Pantoliano as a mob hitman (or is it hitbird?) on the lam. Judging from this film and Shark Tale, Hollywood seems to think preschoolers love nothing more than riffing on The Godfather, The Sopranos, and Scarface.

Andy S. gave it a9:
My son really enjoyed this, and I must say it mainly worked. Sometimes the animals were a bit much, but the story had a big heart.

James M. gave it a10:
A likable family film that has excellent voice work, and superb execution of formulaic events. Well-mounted and acted, this is a winner with the kids.

Janet M. gave it a10:
What a pleasant surprise! This was an endearly, utterly winning "race" film that presented strong relationships, and terrific talking animals. A nice blend of real and fantasy elements.

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