A Horse for Klara

After the separation of her parents, Klara (Rebecca Plymoth) moves to the country with her mother Nita (Regina Lund). As picturesque as the surroundings may be, a real feeling of happiness doesn't want to set in for Klara. Not only does she suffer enormously from her parents' broken marriage, but she also can't quite fit in at her new school. In order not to be seen as an outsider, Klara claims to be extremely good at riding and signs up for a big gallop race. Too bad Klara has never been on a horse before, even though she wants to learn to ride. With the help of outsider Jonte (Joel Lützow), Klara could still make it, though, because the boy wants to teach her how to ride on the horse Star. But the enormous pressure and the rejection of any support from her father make the girl doubt again and again whether riding is really the right thing for her...

A Horse for Klara, based on the popular Lisa books by Pia Hagmar, is a charming little children's film in which girls in particular will have a blast. Dramaturgically, the whole thing may never be more than a film adaptation of a Wendy book. The characters are drawn quite one-dimensional (for instance, Klara's antagonist Lotte is the typical snooty blonde, almost like a female version of Malfoy from Harry Potter) and the story doesn't really bristle with originality. But the individual set pieces are exactly what young horse lovers want to see.

Beautiful imagery, a close relationship between the main character and her horse, understandable everyday problems, a bit of humor and a minimal touch of romance, this is the stuff that girls' dreams are made of. The fact that it is noticeable in the film that director Alexander Moberg has so far worked primarily for Swedish television is just as little of an annoyance for the intended target group as the fact that lead actress Rebecca Plymoth, who was chosen from 150 girls for the role of Klara, still has some acting weaknesses. The film has its heart in the right place and takes its young audience and their desires, dreams and fears seriously. And that in itself definitely makes up for some of the weak points. And when the montage in which Jonte teaches Klara how to ride a horse, with its musical background, almost seems like an homage to the Rocky films, then even if you are an overly critical film lover, you can't really escape the charm of it all.

A Horse for Klara, then, despite its flaws, is on balance an endearing children's film that serves its target audience well, with its beautiful shots of rural Sweden, lovely music, and simple yet nice story. Worth seeing!

An article by Frankfurt-Tipp