Papa!
Papa!
What now, Hildy?
Look!
Gee whiz. Again.
What´s the matter, Gus?
Cigarette.
Ken riding her?
He was,
but not now.
Hildy.
Whoa, whoa.
Doggone that kid.
Look at this.
I hope
he´s all right.
Young´uns fall light.
He´s used to it.
He could get hurt.
Saddle Shorty.
I better go see.
Ja, Boss.
Never mind, Gus.
Ken.
Yes, sir?
Come here.
You all right?
Sure, I´m all right.
Cigarette
toss you again?
Yes, sir.
You ""digged"" your heels
in her.
I didn´t.
Did you, Son?
Yes, sir.
Ken, aren´t you ever
going to grow up?
I´ve told you not to
clap your heels into her.
Look at that bridle.
Second one you´ve
broken this week.
I´m sorry, Dad.
Oh, you found
the saddle blanket.
What saddle blanket?
I lost it
yesterday afternoon.
You forgot to cinch
the saddle properly.
Yes, sir.
Gee whiz,
it´s all ""tored.""
Will you keep quiet?
It got caught
on some barbed wire.
You´re the doggonest kid...
for losing, busting,
and forgetting.
Breakfast is all ready.
Where´s Ken?
He´s coming.
Cigarette
tossed him again.
I don´t know what
I´ll do with that boy.
Doesn´t pay any attention
to what I say.
Always losing equipment
or breaking it somehow.
He´s still a child.
He´s old enough
to have his wits about him.
He´s walking around
with his head in the clouds.
It´s a wonder
he doesn´t trip.
Morning, Mom.
Come on, darling.
Eat your oatmeal
while it´s hot.
Good heavens.
What is it?
Ken´s report card.
I suppose you´re not surprised
you haven´t been promoted.
No, sir.
Here, look at your marks.
Let him eat
his breakfast first.
Just as a matter
of curiosity...
how do you go about
getting a zero on an examination?
but a zero?
Just as one man to another,
what goes on in your head?
What have you got
to say for yourself?
Nothing, sir.
What were
the questions you missed...
in that English exam?
We were to write
a composition.
Couldn´t you
think of anything?
I was going to write...
about how you lost
your polo mare...
how the albino
stole her from Banner.
Well, why didn´t you?
I got to thinking.
I thought we had time.
I thought the hour
had just begun...
when the school bell rang.
You never even
got started.
Not a single word, Ken?
No.
Just daydreaming, huh?
No, I was
thinking about--
About what?
About my colt.
You haven´t got a colt.
Dad, give me a colt,
won´t you?
You´ll get one when you
learn how to treat one.
You´ll have to buck up.
Trouble is,
you don´t try.
I do try, Dad.
I´d like to see
some proof.
Meantime, you´ll study
an hour a day...
to make up your work.
[Knock On Door]
Come in.
Good morning,
Missus.
Good morning, Gus.
What´s today, Boss?
Good day
to move the horses.
It´s time they were
off the meadows.
A storm´s cooking up.
Can I help?
Four older horses have to be
in shape for the rodeo...
and those three-year-olds
have to be broke.
Can´t I help
move them?
Great g*ns, no.
It´s tough enough
to move 1 00 horses...
all fresh as blazes
after a winter out...
without a kid along
to make them nervous.
- I´ll be right out.
- Ja, Boss.
Want another
cup of coffee, dear?
No, I had enough.
Got to get started.
Kenny, you can ride
any horse on the ranch.
Why are you so set
on having a colt?
It isn´t just riding.
I want a colt
to be friends with me.
I want a colt of my own,
all my own.
You better
start your studying.
Get it over with.
Bye, Daddy.
Bye.
Ken, what
are you doing?
I´m doing
my arithmetic, Mom.
[Alarm Rings]
Where are we going?
To watch Dad
bring in the horses.
We can take the shortcut.
No, you better
stay here.
It´s tough enough
bringing in 1 00 horses...
all fresh
after a winter out...
without having a girl tagging along
making them nervous.
Those horses
ain´t scared of me.
Good morning.
Nice work, Banner.
Banner don´t let those mares
get away with nothing.
Banner´s got everything it takes
to make a great horse--
brains, heart, and courage.
If he´d just pass it on
to all the colts.
What horses
we´d have then.
Whoa now!
Whoa now!
Whoa there!
Look out, Gus.
They´re stampeding!
Gus, try to head them off.
Stop them, Banner!
They´re making straight
for the rock slide.
Head them off, Banner.
[Whinny]
[Whinny]
[Whinny]
What are you doing here?
I--I came to see
the horses.
I didn´t mean to do it.
I didn´t mean
to scare them.
[Whinny]
Jeepers, if I could ever
have a colt like that.
Are we
on the downgrade?
I never had so many bills
and less money to pay them.
We can´t sell our horses
at a profit.
They´re good horses
with good blood.
Mm-hmm, all but
that albino strain.
They got a crazy streak
in them.
No use trying to sell them.
I wouldn´t even get back
the cost of raising them.
I´d rather sh**t them.
I would, too, if they weren´t
so doggone fast.
I hoped to get one decent colt
out of that bunch.
Rob...
give Ken a colt.
Huh?
I want you
to give Ken a colt.
After that stunt
he pulled this morning?
You know
he didn´t mean to.
He doesn´t deserve a colt.
Won´t you ever
give him one?
Sure. I´ve been
expecting to.
If he pays attention
to his studies--
Uh-uh.
No.
That´s another thing.
That isn´t going
to get anzwhere.
Didn´t he study today?
He exposed himself
to his books.
Good heavens. Nothing I say to him
makes any impression.
He wants his own colt.
He can´t think
of another thing.
But that´s all backwards.
You don´t bribe children
to do their duty.
It´s not a bribe.
What would you call it?
I just have a feeling...
Ken isn´t going to
pull anything off.
It´s time he did.
Maybe a little thing
like this...
would turn the trick.
That isn´t a little thing.
It isn´t easy
to break and school a colt.
I won´t have a good horse
spoiled by his carelessness.
Rob, it´s important.
He´s got to succeed
at something.
What he needs is--
Is to snap out of it.
If you want
to put it that way.
He needs to grow up.
How would having
his own colt help?
Oh, you know.
Something of his own...
responsibility.
He´d have something real
that he cared about...
more than those things
he goes mooning about.
Don´t go.
I´d like
to give Ken a colt.
I´d like to get closer
to the boy somehow...
but every time I get set
for a get-together session...
he hands me a facer
like what he pulled today.
Rob, didn´t you
ever want anything...
more than anything else
in the world?
Yes. You.
You do understand.
[Whinny]
[Whinny]
[Humming]
Where´s Ken?
Probably looking
at the ducks on the landing.
For Pete´s sake,
what ducks on what landing?
That old print of mine.
He likes
to look at them.
Gus says Rocket
broke away last night.
Thinks she´s got
a colt somewhere.
We´ll have to
look for her.
I´ll find her.
Good. I´ll go with you.
Son, I´m taking back
yesterday´s order.
You can forget
that hour of study.
Thanks, Dad.
And, Ken...
I´m going to
give you a colt.
A colt?
A colt of my own?
Mm-hmm.
I´ll give it to you
a week from today.
That´ll give you time
to make your own choice.
I can have any colt
on the ranch?
- Ayearling?
- That´s right.
Gosh.
Jeepers, maybe I can have
the one I saw yesterday.
Come on,
you old jughead.
Come on there.
Oh, come on. Come on.
Oh, step on my foot,
would you?
Come on.
Why don´t you take Highboy
for your colt?
That chump?
Don´t think I´m riding Cigarette
because I want to.
It´s because
I have to.
Then how about Lassie?
She´s as fast as anything
and black as ink.
Who said I wanted
a black horse?
How about College Boy?
He´s smart like a fox.
I´m going to pick
a filly.
I know the one
I want, too.
I hope I find her.
Hey, don´t do that
again, Hildy.
Cigarette´s
kind of nervous.
She might kick you.
She better don´t.
I´ll kick her back.
Thanks, Tim.
OK.
Ready, Ken?
Yes, sir.
Don´t see why
I can´t go, too.
You´re a girl.
That´s why.
Check your cinch?
Yes, sir.
Let´s go.
Ken, don´t you
want your hat?
Oh, thanks, Mom.
Don´t see why
I can´t be a boy.
Even you´re a boy...
I guess.
Maybe you think it´s funny,
giving you a colt...
when you deserve
a good hiding.
Flunking all your exams...
then pulling that stunt
yesterday.
Don´t think
I´m letting you off.
I´m not.
I haven´t gone soft.
Don´t get that
into your head.
I expect as much now
as I ever did.
This isn´t any reward...
because you haven´t
won any reward.
This is a partnership.
One of these days,
I´ll need your help.
You have to be trained
so you can give it.
Every man needs training.
Discipline.
I got mine at West Point.
And how.
You´re going to
train that colt.
I´ll help you
with the first breaking...
but you´ll train it,
and it´ll train you.
Yes, sir.
You and your mother
may have to care for this ranch...
without me pretty soon.
Where will you be?
I may have to go back
into the army.
You understand,
don´t you?
Yes, sir.
You make a good pony
out of that colt...
and let it make
a man out of you.
Yes, sir.
I rode all through here
yesterday.
I didn´t leave
any colts behind.
If Rocket had a colt,
she wouldn´t leave it.
I saw a colt yesterday...
that got separated from
the bunch in the stampede--
a sorrel filly
with a cream mane and tail.
Sounds like
Rocket´s yearling.
Rocket´s?
The filly sired by Banner
last spring.
That´s what was
wrong with Rocket--
she missed
that little filly.
She´d very likely console herself
with a yearling.
Should pick up a track
around here someplace.
Hey, Boss!
A cat.
That´s a mountain lion,
all right.
Ja. A big one.
Haven´t had one around here
for a long time.
Good thing we got
the brood mares out of here.
Maybe we better
look around that cave.
Well, it got
one of them.
It´s dark brown.
It´s Rocket´s, I guess.
Tim was right.
She had one.
Didn´t she know
it was dead?
Yes and no.
Mares are funny
about death.
They´ll leave
a dead foal...
then remember it
and hunt for it.
Will the mountain lion
get any other horses?
Not now, Kenny.
They´re all out on the range.
Can´t he get
the horse and colts there?
Not where there´s
no cover.
Their only chance
is surprise.
If a horse is off
by itself...
a lion will jump on it,
bite through the spine.
Quick k*ll.
[Whinny]
It´s Rocket.
And her filly.
What a pretty
little flicka she is.
Flicka[
What does that mean?
Swedish for ::little girl.´´
Flicka. That´s
what I´ll call her.
My colt.
Your colt?
Yes, sir.
That´s the one I want.
Rocket´s filly, Ken?
Yes, sir.
I hoped you´d make
a wiser choice.
You know how I feel...
about Rocket´s
line of horses.
But she´s fast.
Rocket´s fast, too.
They´re my worst horses.
There´s not one among them
with any real sense.
The mares are hellions,
the stallions outlaws.
They´re untamable.
I´ll tame her.
Nobody´s ever been able
to tame a one of them.
You want a horse
that´ll be a friend?
Yes, sir.
You´ll never make
a friend of her.
Look what they did
to get back together.
No fence in the world
will ever hold them.
You better
change your mind.
No.
OK, Ken. I promised you could
make your own choice.
But remember--
Rocket´s loco...
and 1 0-to-1
the colt is, too.
But she may not be.
Banner´s her father.
All right.
We´ll bring her in
tomorrow or the next day.
It´s silly
to write horses´ names on things.
Horses can´t read.
People can read.
But Pop can´t.
Besides, you ain´t even
got a horse yet.
What do you mean
I haven´t got a horse?
Well, it ain´t here.
Dad´s bringing her in
today.
[Honk Honk]
[Honk Honk Honk]
That´s Mr. Sergent.
He´s got lots of race horses.
He´s got
a fat belly, too.
Hey, Gus,
is Rob around?
Ja.
He´s in the house.
Hi, Rob.
Hi, Charley.
How you been doing?
Good. You?
Swell.
Glad to see you.
Sit down.
Rob, I´m shipping a carload of horses
to Los Angeles.
Maybe you´d like
to go in on the deal...
and share
the shipping expenses.
Might do that.
There´s room in the car
for four more horses.
Sounds pretty good.
You know, Pop says
Flicka´s loco...
like her mother.
Don´t say that, Hildy.
Well, ain´t her fault.
She can´t help it
if her mom´s crazy, can she?
Banner´s got sense.
She could be like her father,
couldn´t she?
I don´t know.
When I do
something dumb...
Mom says I take after
the old man...
and when I do
something smart...
Pop says I sure don´t
take after the old lady.
You haven´t got
anything like Rocket.
That she-devil
can outrun...
any animal
you´ve ever seen.
You´re crazy.
Like to make a bet?
Hello, Charley.
Well, hello there, Nell.
No. Don´t get up.
I only have a minute.
What are you two
talking about?
Rocket.
If I could get a mare
to do #5 miles an hour--
She´ll make you
a fortune...
if you could
break her.
My broncobuster
can break any horse.
He can do it
if she´s worth breaking.
Worth it?
Didn´t I tell you?
How much
do you want?
- 500.
- 500.
Dollars.
You got
a stopwatch?
No. I got
a speedometer.
Good enough.
Let´s go.
I´ll get lunch
ready for you.
[Honking]
There they are.
Isn´t Flicka beautiful?
[Honk Honk]
She´s heading
for the north range.
We´ll clock her there.
The ground´s flat.
[Honk Honk]
She´s like
a locomotive.
Does she always run
with her nose up?
Yeah. She´s a stargazer.
[Honk Honk]
[Honk Honk]
Look at the speedometer.
Faster, Boss.
She ain´t half trying.
[Honk Honk]
If she does #5,
I´ll buy her.
Jumping jeepers!
Well, what
do you say?
It´s a deal...
if she´s delivered
sound in wind and limb.
Just how you´ll do that
is anybody´s guess.
You leave that to me.
Look out for Rocket.
Get in there,
get in there!
Tim, throw
a rope on her.
[Whinny]
Won´t be easy
to get her in.
Stay with her, Tim.
Come on!
Get that noose
off her neck.
Be careful, Rob.
Think I´d deliver her
with string hanging on her?
I put it on.
I´m going to get it off.
Look out!
Open that chute gate
so she can see through.
Get in there.
Shut the gate.
Get the truck.
Whoa. That´s it.
Sergent expects her
in good shape.
Try not
to skin her up.
Get her out of here.
Well, that´s that.
You mean that´s $500.
It´ll come in mighty handy,
won´t it?
Dad, look!
Oh, Rob.
That finished her.
Well?
She´s dead.
Poor old Rocket.
It´s too bad,
but these things will happen.
Just takes little lick
to k*ll horse.
There´s one thing
I can still do.
Hello, Williams?
This is McLaughlin.
OK. Thanks.
Look, Williams, I got
a load of horses for you.
Yeah, those albinos.
Yep. Every one of them,
Rocket´s whole tribe.
There should be some good
horseflesh among them.
All right, your own price.
Good.
Yep.
There are nine of them.
Wait a minute.
There may be 1 0.
Ken, come here.
Here´s a chance to do
a sensible thing.
I want you to choose
another colt...
and let me sell Flicka
to Mr. Williams.
I´m asking for your sake
as well as mine.
What´s the use having
another Rocket?
You saw what happened.
I´m going to
tame Flicka.
That´s impossible.
Sometimes bad horses
get tamed.
You don´t want
a loco horse, do you?
I want Flicka.
Look at me.
Dad, please.
She´s mine.
Sorry to keep you
waiting, Williams.
I thought
there was one more.
No. There are only nine.
Right.
I´ll send them over.
So long.
Haw!
Haw!
Git!
Well, that´s that.
Sure is a wild one.
We´ll let her
think it over.
She´ll go right through
that wire.
She´ll never go over.
It turned her.
Dad, she has got sense.
Flicka!
I knew it,
that crazy--
Rob, hurry!
Whoa, whoa!
Whoa.
Whoa, whoa, whoa!
There now.
Don´t think she´ll
pull out of it.
Maybe it´s
just as well.
Hadn´t been this way,
it would´ve been another.
A loco horse
isn´t worth the b*llet...
it takes to sh**t it.
Now easy, girl.
Flicka.
Eat your dinner,
Kenny.
Do I have to, Mom?
You heard
what your mother said.
Flicka, she´s--
Let him go to her.
He can´t do her
any good.
Gus and Tim
dressed her cuts.
She snaps out of it,
she´s got water and oats.
Oh, Flicka, I didn´t
mean to hurt you.
Get well.
Please be all right.
Gee, she was pretty.
What do you mean ::was´´?
She is.
She´s beautiful.
I meant when she was
running back there.
Say, Ken.
Tomorrow, if you want
to take care of her...
I´ll do your work
for you.
Would you, Hildy?
Gee, that´d be keen.
Sure.
I´ll exercise Cigarette...
bring in the wood,
and dry the dishes.
You can stay with Flicka
all the time...
except when
you´re sleeping.
Thanks, Hildy.
[Rooster Crows]
[Ring]
Gus, she´s going
to be all right, isn´t she?
Pretty good chance...
if we could get her
to eat.
Maybe she
don´t like oats.
I´ll get her
some hay.
Whoa.
Don´t run away, Flicka.
Don´t be afraid of me.
I´m Ken.
This is hay.
You´ll like it.
Have some.
Take it easy.
She´s been scared pretty bad.
She´s eating.
She´s going to get well.
Ja.
It´s good sign.
Move her
to the calf pasture.
There´s shade there
and a running stream.
And she´ll be alone.
I thought horses
like company.
Not her.
She´s a lone wolf.
She might jump out
of the calf pasture and get away.
She won´t jump out.
She won´t jump anything
for a long time.
[Whistling]
Ken. Breakfast.
Coming, Dad.
What´s he so chipper about
this morning?
Flicka. She´s better.
Coming along, huh?
Mm-hmm.
She´s almost well.
The cuts are
all healed up...
and she´s eating
like a horse.
Ooh.
Maybe we´re going to have
a pleasant summer after all...
if she doesn´t turn out
to be another Rocket.
Oh, I hope not.
Ken, what kind
of manners is that?
Sorry, Mom.
Morning, Dad.
Morning, Ken.
How were the ducks
on the landing this morning?
What ducks
on what landing?
Oh. Those.
Hardly noticed them.
Been so busy
with Flicka.
Now that Flicka´s
getting better...
don´t forget you´ve
got other duties.
Oh, yes, sir.
Give some time
to your colt...
but not
all your time.
I won´t.
Will you come down...
and look at Flicka
this morning...
see how she is?
Will Her Highness
let you get near her?
Well, not too close.
She´s still a little scared.
But she´ll let you
look at her...
from the other side
of the fence.
That´s big of her.
After breakfast, I´ll take a look.
Oh, swell.
Ooh!
Kenny.
Good morning, Flicka.
Flicka, Dad´s coming
to look at you.
Be a good girl
and don´t run away.
Well, she does
look good.
Her cuts are
all healed up...
except for the one
on the right front leg.
It´s almost well.
She´s beautiful.
Dad?
Do you think she´s...
loco?
I´d have sworn it
by the way she´s behaved...
ever since
she was born.
In fact,
we´ve never seen her...
except when she´s
looked terrified.
Every horse looks
wild in the eye...
when it´s terrified.
She tried jumping
that fence.
Anyone can try
the impossible once.
There´s the old saying--
::It couldn´t be done...
but the darn fool
did it anzway.´´
Horses have jumped
over 6 feet.
Maybe Flicka thought
she could do it.
We´ll forgive her
that one.
Point is,
will she learn?
Can she learn?
Rocket couldn´t.
Or wouldn´t.
Dad, maybe I´ll never
get her trained.
Heavens, Son,
what have I been telling you...
all these weeks?
Didn´t you understand?
What did you think
loco meant?
Sort of goofy or wild--
hard to handle.
Oh, no, Son.
Much more serious than that.
There´s inherited insanity
among animals...
just as there is
among humans.
Bad blood carries on...
and albino blood isn´t safe
for any filly to have.
But you said...
maybe it´s just because
she´s been scared.
She´s got
a very intelligent face.
Much better
than Rocket´s.
Fine, delicate mouth.
And such lovely eyes.
Mm-hmm.
Set far apart.
We´ll have to see
how she responds to training.
How can I train her?
All you can do
is try and win her confidence.
You know, Son,
if you take everything away...
from a living creature--
freedom, friends,
its home, habits...
happiness--
it´ll turn in sheer need
and desperation...
to the one thing
that´s left.
In this case,
that´s you.
Me?
Yes. You´re
her whole life now.
Make her to like it.
Oh, I will, Dad.
I will.
Give her love and companionship.
Talk to her.
Will she understand me?
Of course.
A horse can tell you
a lot of things, too...
if you watch and expect it
to be sensible and intelligent.
Pay attention
to all the little signs.
The way
it moves its body.
The ears. The eyes.
The whinnies.
That´s its way
of talking, Ken.
That´s right.
There´s a neigh
of terror.
A scream of rage.
A whinny of nervous
impatience.
[Flicka Snorts]
The nicker of longing
or hunger...
or friendliness.
You learn its language,
and it´ll learn yours.
And never forget--
horses understand
everything you say to them.
Everything, Dad?
Everything.
[Flicka Snorts]
You mean...
if they´re not loco.
[Whinny]
[Whinny]
[Whinny]
All right, all right...
you´re hungry
for your oats...
but I´m hurrying
as fast as I can.
There.
There you are.
Come and get it.
Good, isn´t it?
You do understand me,
don´t you, Flicka?
Eat it all so you´ll be
big and strong like Banner.
You´ve got
a very smart father, Flicka.
You´ve got to forget
all your wild ways...
and be just like him.
Who are you
talking to?
Flicka.
Aw, horses can´t
understand people´s talk.
That´s all you know.
Flicka understands
everything I say.
What´s more,
she talks back to me.
Aw, poo.
Maybe you don´t
know it...
but horses got a language
all their own.
There´s a neigh
of terror...
a scream of rage...
a whinny of nervous
impatience...
a nicker of longing--
Eee-h-h-h!
There´s a nicker
of hunger.
R-r-r-r.
Can you wiggle
your ears?
Oh...
[Whinny]
What´s she saying now?
Oh, she´s telling me
she´s finished her oats.
Oh.
Maybe she´s saying
thank you, too.
Maybe she wants
more oats.
[Whinny]
Maybe she´s had
too many.
Maybe she´s got
a pain in her stomach.
Maybe she needs
some castor oil.
Only gluttons
need castor oil.
[Whinny]
[Whinny]
She wants something.
Oh, I know.
She´s thirsty.
Why don´t you go
and get a drink?
There´s a whole lake
full of water.
Oh, all right.
Boy, you sure are
getting spoiled.
Oh, gosh. I forgot.
Your Pop´s back.
For Pete´s sake.
Why didn´t you tell me?
I´ve got to see him
right away!
[Whinny]
You hear that?
That means she doesn´t
want me to go.
Aw, I betcha
it just means...
she´s got gas
on her stomach.
[Whinny]
Bet you I didn´t forget
anything this time.
Flour, salt, ham--
What about my hairpins?
How could I forget anything
as important as hairpins?
They´re in there.
Dad!
Dad, did you get it?
Get what?
You know.
Sorry. I forgot
all about it.
You did get it,
didn´t you?
Sure, I did.
It´s a beauty.
Where is it?
Well,just a minute, Son.
Your work done?
Yes, sir.
Did you exercise
Cigarette?
Yes, sir.
She´s in her own pasture...
and I tied the gate.
Good. Is she hot?
No, sir. I cooled her off
on the way home.
Give her
a good workout?
Yes, sir, and I didn´t
lose or break anything.
Good work, Son.
You´re really coming along.
Can I have it now?
It´s in the front seat.
You were right, Nell.
The filly
sure did the trick.
He´s a changed boy.
Flicka!
Flicka, I´ve got
something for you!
Look. Brand-new
saddle blanket.
Tailor-made
especially for you.
Isn´t it keen?
When you grow up,
we´ll put it on you.
Won´t even know you´ve
got a saddle on your back.
We´ll go riding
on the range...
fly like the wind.
Look.
Got your name on it.
Oh, Flicka, I didn´t
mean to scare you.
Honest, I didn´t.
Come back, Flicka.
Oh, please come back.
You don´t have
to have it.
I won´t ever ride you...
or put a saddle on you...
if you don´t
want me to.
You´ll just be
my friend.
[Whinny]
Mom...
did you ever want
anything terribly?
Most everyone
wants something, dear.
But you´ve grown up.
You´re married.
You´ve got Dad and me.
Why, you´re finished.
Then I shouldn´t
still be wanting, should I...
if I´m finished?
But people do, Ken.
Everyone?
Always, Mom?
Don´t you ever
really get finished?
Yeah, I wonder.
Maybe sometimes,
for a minute or two.
What is it
you want now, Ken?
I do so want Flicka
to be all right and not loco.
Oh, perhaps she
isn´t loco, dear.
We don´t know yet
for sure...
but if she is, Ken...
wanting won´t change it.
If she is, it´ll look bad
for her, won´t it?
Let´s see what happens
when we try to halter-break her.
Does she have to be?
We´ve got to find out,
don´t we?
I suppose so.
As soon as she´ll
let you touch her...
we´ll have a try at it.
What if she
won´t let us?
She loves you,
doesn´t she?
Oh, yes.
I´m sure she does.
Well, that shows
she´s intelligent.
How does it, Mom?
It´s just a way
of putting away fear.
Don´t you understand,
Ken...
that if you find love...
if a person or an animal
finds love...
it´s the same
as finding safety.
It´s comfort and
friendliness and help.
Everyone longs for it.
And if Flicka´s
found it...
and yet doesn´t have
sense enough...
to know she´s found it...
and goes around being crazy
and silly with fear, then--
Then she´d be loco.
[Humming]
Good morning.
Where´d you catch them?
At that deep hole
under the falls.
Put them in here.
Thank you.
Well, Boss,
what today?
Look over
the mowing machines.
We have to get at
the haying soon.
Those stackers
need repairs.
Oh, Gus.
Before we begin...
I want to help Ken
halter-break his filly.
I want you and Tim
to be on hand.
Where, Boss?
The calf pasture,
and we´ll do it right now.
But, Dad, maybe...
maybe we better wait
a little while.
She´ll let you close
to her now, won´t she?
Oh, yes.
Flicka´s my friend now.
She likes me, but--
Good. I´m glad
to hear that.
It´s a fine thing
to have a horse for a friend.
Flicka´s never had a rope
around her neck.
She may fight us
putting one on her now.
Maybe she´ll act like she did
when she arrived.
Maybe she´ll act
like Rocket.
She has to be
halter-broken sometime.
Might as well
get it over with.
Get ready.
I´ll be right down.
Didn´t you find
a broken mule shoe last night?
Yes.
That´s good luck,
ain´t it?
Yes, but if I
make a mistake...
Dad may blame it
on Flicka.
And then he wouldn´t--
Call her, Ken.
Flicka!
Have your loop
ready, Tim.
[Whistles]
Put your bandanna
around her neck.
Tie it in
a loose knot.
Easy, Flicka. Easy.
Now take your belt off.
Slip it through
the bandanna.
Now take ahold of the belt
and lead her around.
All right.
Now bring her back.
Let go of the loop.
Hold your hand
under her chin.
That´s it.
I´d call that
halter-broken.
But it isn´t a halter, Dad.
You really take
some convincing, young man.
All right. Give us
the halter, Gus.
There you are.
Put it on her.
Go ahead, Son.
But how, Dad?
Just the way you
put it on Cigarette.
All right,
now lead her around again.
How did she get
halter-broke, Dad?
That´s the way
we break horses...
on the Goose Bar ranch.
You figure it out, Ken.
Come on, boys.
Let´s get at those machines.
Then she´s not loco.
She´s not loco.
You could have
knocked me down with a feather.
I knew she liked me
pretty well, but gosh...
she let me
halter-break her...
without even
an argument.
Flicka´s a smart filly,
just like her father.
All girls are smart
like their pops.
[Whinny]
She´s calling me.
She sure is, Kenny.
That´s the nicker
of friendliness.
Bet you
she´s just hungry.
Gus, something´s happened to her!
She´s limping.
Something´s wrong
with her front leg.
Flicka, what´s the matter?
What´s happened
to you?
It´s that barbed-wire cut.
But that was
all healed up.
But it didn´t heal right.
The leg´s swollen.
Is that bad?
Means infection.
Infection? That´s
dangerous, isn´t it?
You betcha.
Hildy, you
talk too much.
I think it hurts her.
She ain´t bearing
any weight on it.
What do you do
for a horse infection?
Just the same
like for people--
put on poultice
so it´ll drain.
I´ll get Mom
to make a poultice.
Ja, I think
you better.
She has got sense,
hasn´t she, Mom?
She knows we´re helping her,
doesn´t she?
Of course she does.
She´s a good little girl...
and we´ll get her out of this
in no time.
Slack off!.
Rip it!
Dad, I´d like
to talk to you.
What about?
About Flicka.
For the love of Mike,
can´t you see I´m busy?
Can´t be worrying
about that filly.
I´m sorry, Dad.
Just a minute, Ken.
What is it, Son?
Flicka worse?
Dad, she´s so sick.
Will you come down
and see her?
Maybe you can
do something to help her.
All right. I´ll come
have a look at her.
She´s lying down again.
Good heavens.
What´s happened to her?
She´s been getting
awfully thin.
Thin!
I´m afraid she ain´t
going to pull out of it.
Pull out of it?
She´s dead already.
How long´s she been
like this?
She´s been real sick
the last few days.
It´s the fever.
It´s burning her up.
She´s going to die.
We´ll have to put her
out of her misery.
Oh, no, Dad.
I´m sorry, Ken.
It isn´t fair
to an animal...
to let it suffer
like this.
Pick a time when
Ken isn´t around.
Gus!
Gus, when are you
going to do it?
I was--I was going
down soon now, Kenny.
Don´t do it tonight.
Wait till morning.
Just one more night.
Gus.
Well, in the morning,
then.
It´s got to be done.
Your father gave the orders.
I know. I won´t say
anything more.
[Dog Barks]
Shhh.
I´m coming, Flicka.
I´m coming.
Flicka?
Flicka, where are you?
Oh, my little Flicka.
Give him one of these
every hour.
I´ll call to see him
tomorrow morning.
He´s a very sick boy.
It isn´t only
the cold and fever--
He had a shock,
Dr. Scott.
Something happened--
He´s been sad about
a horse I gave him.
It´s been sick.
Oh, I see.
Well, you´d better have this
prescription filled right away.
I´ll follow you
into town...
and bring it
right back.
Don´t worry.
How is the little boy,
Missus?
Gus, he´s so sick.
Poor little boy.
[Thunder]
Gus, is Flicka dead?
No. Tim and me fixed her up
in a blanket sling.
She can´t stand alone...
but she drank
a bucket of water.
Did Rob say you didn´t
have to sh**t her?
No, but I
couldn´t do it.
When I found them
like that this morning, I--
I know what you mean.
She´s got plenty
of strength.
Sometimes I think, Gus,
miracles can still happen.
It was the water
washing the fever out of her...
but it was Ken
giving her courage.
All night that little fella
sitting by her...
saying, ::Hold on, Flicka.
::I´m here with you.
The two of us together.´´
I´ll tell Ken.
Maybe it will
help him get well...
knowing she´s still alive.
There´s a storm
coming up, Missus.
I´ll stay here
if you need me.
Thank you, Gus.
[Thunder]
I thought you´d
never get here.
How is he?
Better. He´s been resting.
Good. We need
some hot water.
Did you do
as I told you?
Boss, I couldn´t.
I gave the order,
and you´ve had plenty of time.
I just couldn´t do it.
Where´s the r*fle?
In the bunkhouse.
Go get it.
Oh, Rob, please don´t.
He knows she´s alive.
He thinks she´ll get well.
Give him something
to hope for.
[Thunder]
Would have been better
if she were shot weeks ago.
It´s been nothing
but misery for everyone.
Look what it´s done
to Ken.
I wish you wouldn´t, Rob.
He needn´t know.
He´ll hear the shot.
He´ll think it´s thunder.
He´ll know
it´s the r*fle.
I´m sorry, but...
it´s just no good
letting sick animals live.
It´s raining.
The rain won´t
hurt her, darling.
Flicka´s been out
in thunderstorms all her life.
That was Dad´s car,
wasn´t it, Mom?
Yes, dear.
[Whinny]
[Growl]
Please, darling.
It was only the thunder.
[Whinny]
Don´t worry
about the cat.
I´m staying with you
for the night.
Feel a lot better
if I had a drink...
and some dry clothes.
I´m a drowned rat...
but so are you.
Rob!
Oh, Rob.
Yeah?
You all right?
Sure.
Ken´s asleep.
Gus is with him.
I got worried
about you.
[Whinny]
But I thought--
I heard a shot.
It was a mountain lion.
Did you get him?
I will before morning.
I couldn´t do it.
She wants to die,
she´ll have to do it by herself.
Ken heard the shot.
How´d he take it?
Well, he took it.
He didn´t question it,
he didn´t seem to rebel.
If he wakes up and asks...
don´t tell him
she´s still alive.
But, Rob--
She may be dead
by morning.
Wouldn´t surprise me.
He´s accepted her death.
If he knows she´s still alive,
he´ll be all upset again.
I won´t tell him.
[Nickers]
[Whinny]
Thanks, Flicka.
[Whinny]
Morning, Dad.
How do you feel
this morning?
Much better, thanks.
Enough better to go out
in the warm sunshine?
I guess so.
It´s doctor´s orders.
Come on. I´ll help you
get dressed.
Dad...where are we going?
The calf pasture.
That´s right, Son.
[Whinny]
Flicka.
It is Flicka.
But I thought--
I didn´t sh**t her.
I couldn´t.
That shot you heard?
That was
the mountain lion.
I k*lled him.
Ohh.
Ohh.
Easy, Ken.
[Whinny]
Flicka.
[Whinny]
Oh, Flicka.
She did get gentle,
didn´t she, Dad?
Gentle as a kitten.
She´s given us
a lot of trouble, Son...
but she´s taught us some
important things, too.
You, responsibility.
Me, there is such a thing
as hope beyond hope.
That sometimes, when things
are at their lowest ebb...
all we need do is have
a little more love...
a little more patience,
and a little more faith.
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