The art of Mexican horse dancing becomes the setting for a formal family melodrama in “Centurion: The Dancing Stallion,” which stars a stable of horses and human performers who bravely stage a Nicholas Sparks-esque storyline complete with romance across social classes, a backstabbing antagonist and serious health crises.
The film opens as light-hearted Ellissia (Amber Midthunder), the daughter of a ranch owner (Billy Zane), is training to compete in a local horse dance competition. The event may sound like fun and games — the animals are clumping crowd pleasers — but there’s also a stake: Ellissia’s family insists a grand prize will put their ranch “on the map.” She finds a loyal supporter in Danny (Aramis Knight), a handsome groom charged with looking after Ellissia’s newest horse: the fastidious white beauty Centurion.
Director Dana Gonzales seems to embrace a camp atmosphere at times. An almost constant stream of slow-motion montages amplifies periods of action or histrionics, and shots of the homestead, barn, or remote fields seem to appear every few scenes, even when the characters have barely changed location.
During its climax, “Centurion: The Dancing Stallion” rather ambitiously aligns the fates of Ellissia and Centurion, cutting through their struggles while facing parallel medical emergencies. The sequence briefly references the intriguing idea of a psychic alliance between the pair, similar to the one in “ET the Extra-Terrestrial.” But then the moment passes and all the challenging questions are pushed aside in favor of mechanics in the third act.
Centurion: the dancing stallion
Rated PG. Running time: 1 hour 38 minutes. For rent or for sale on most major platforms.
