Each character in this movie — down to the smallest one — is an individual rather than a type, prone to spontaneous changes of mood and sometimes amusing outbursts of pettiness or ill humor.

Blistering performances.

A terrific literary drama and character piece that shows how the process of creating art can be seen differently by those doing it and those looking at it from the outside.

This film is so real. It treats its characters with so much care and sensitivity.

I don't know what lawyers say after watching a movie about lawyering. The same goes for cops and cop movies. Or doctors and doctor movies. Well I'm a lifelong horseman whose been in the racing game nearly my whole life and my take on "Lean on Pete" is somewhat mixed. The general goings on you see at the track and the people who own and handle the horses was pretty authentic. But the actual namesake of the whole production was lame as it could be possibly be. First of all running quarter horses don't look anything like LOP ...HAHA I mean this animal had a gut like Sumo wrestler and a butt like a house cat. Real running QH's look like bulldogs, (for lack of a better animal to fit the description) Then when the kid steals the horse and sets out alone on a mission to save him from the butcher shop, was REALLY STUPID. But then maybe it could happen at that. But the people who are both horse people and those who aren't was very much like any a*****e you'll see anywhere in the world.

Slow. Depressing. I don't even know where the story line was going. Not for anyone who is sensitive to animals dying or being harmed. I'm giving it three stars instead of one just because, Steve Buscemi.

I liked Charlie Plummer's performance in All the Money in the World as John Paul Getty III, and since then I became interested in his upcoming roles. In Lean On Pete, Charlie Plummer proved to me that he is not just a good young actor, but he is a very talented, and promising, actor. His character is fully-developed, and there are some very powerful lines that helped to flesh out this character, therefore, it became a very interesting one. But Charlie's performance made his character, Charley, even more relatable. His face expressions and reactions are enough to express the character's mind, and even to state what his character is thinking about at this particular moment. Travis Fimmel, as Charley's dad, gave an interesting performance. Also, Steve Buscemi and Steve Zahn were fantastic, and stole every scene they are in. There's only one character that hasn't much screen time, yet has a central role, that was really poorly written, and the actor who played it also wasn't good. So I was a bit disappointed to see that a character that seemed to have an important role in the story to end up to be nothing but stereotypical and thinly-written character.The Cinematography is mesmerizing in this movie, and really fits the movie's haunting atmosphere. Definitely one of the best-looking movies in 2018, so far. Just behind Paddington 2.The soundtrack also as functional as the cinematography, and the songs themselves are very touching and emotional.Although it's one of the movie's virtues that it avoids melodrama clichés, I think the movie neither as harrowing enough as Good Time, nor as realistic enough as Manchester By the Sea to be as poignant, or moving, as it wanted to be. Overall, Lean On Pete is a moving picaresque tale that avoids being very sentimental to evoke your feelings, instead, it relies on its three-dimensional protagonist that is anchored by Charlie Plummer's wonderful performance. Also, the plot unfolds in a way that you can never expect, you will really be shocked many times. Charley has no one to turn to. He's truly alone, hence, you will really care about him very much.(8.5/10)

What the hell kind of person thinks it is a good idea to make a movie like this? Must be friends with the idiot who made Manchester By the Sea because there is something called purposeful violence in film, but there are some things that are so far embedded in taboo that you should just not go there. Divine Dog Syndrome is a film term...same thing goes for horses. What the hell drives someone to write that horrific scene into a film is beyond me. Charlie lost and lost again...the horse getting spooked would have been the moment where he saved what couldn't be saved...like himself and there is the hope. I do not care if this gets posted, but I would like you to forward this to the dick who thought it was a pivotal moment that needed to be in the final cut. Coming of age is supposed to give hope and inspire. You did neither. I grabbed a Sharpie and wrote on the dvd, "do not watch horse dies" before returning it to redbox. If someone did that for me with Manchester, I would be better off today.