What makes it different from others?

Excellent, a Must See

The film makes a home in your brain and the only cure is to see it again.

Although I seem to have had higher expectations than I thought, the movie is super entertaining.

Set in California during The Great Depression of the 1930's - "They Shoot Horses, Don't They?" is all about the wretchedness, and all the utter hopelessness of an era of impoverishment like none other in American history.Here the viewer is witness to every despairing detail of destitution. All so graphically depicted. All so clearly unfolded through the sad experiences of a pitiful collection of marathon dancers, each one at the utter brink of desperation.This is a dance marathon to beat all other dance marathons. To date it has been running now, non-stop, for 2 months, solid. It's guaranteed to be a real record-breaker.And, the one, final couple that remains on their feet to the bitter end, out-dancing all others, will be crowned the winners, receiving as their hard-earned reward a grand prize of $1,500. Not much money by today's standards, but, for the many who were absolutely poverty-stricken during The Depression, it represented a literal fortune.Yep. That's what "They Shoot Horses, Don't They?" is all about.

"They Shoot Horses, Don't They?" chronicles a dance marathon competition in Santa Monica in the post-Great Depression era. Among the contestants vying for the $1,500 victory are a depressive and damaged aspiring actress (Jane Fonda), a wannabe filmmaker-turned-criminal (Michael Sarrazin), another aspiring Hollywood starlet (Susannah York), and a pregnant wife and her husband (Bonnie Bedelia and Bruce Dern). The competition begins to wear on the already- downtrodden contestants, slowly transforming into a grand guignol of psychological and physical horrors.Based on the 1935 novel of the same name, "They Shoot Horses, Don't They?" is one of those rare films that are so solid across the board (acting, cinematography, writing) that it's something of a masterpiece. The premise is almost paper-thin and on the surface sounds somewhat dull: a dance marathon where contestants have to stay on their feet for hundreds upon hundreds of hours till they all fall down; but the emotional depth of the characters is the key ingredient that enriches the entire film.Each of the characters carry with them an array of baggage and psychological complexity that is subtly unraveled, and the writing is really the glue that keeps the show together, supplemented with career-defining performances from Fonda and York. It is an extremely attentive character study above all else, but simultaneously operates as a grim metaphor for American society that is as relevant today as it was in the wake of the Great Depression. Sydney Pollack is able to paint layer upon layer of tension and the audience sees a disaster coming from the first frame, but the writing and performances never cease to be completely engrossing. The fact that actual dance marathons were a reality (and an en vogue one at that) makes the film's bite even more vicious. While the film has certainly been praised by critics and cinephiles over the years, it is not exactly a well-known film, which is a bit of a shame. The filmmakers here managed to take a straightforward premise and present it as a psychologically complex and disturbing portrait of broken people in an increasingly dire situation. Phenomenal all across the board. 10/10.

In 1932, in the Great Depression, a group of hopeless people participates of a dance marathon contest on the Santa Monica Pier in California. Among them are the bitter and disillusioned Gloria (Jane Fonda); a sailor (Red Buttons) that fought in the war; the aspirant actress and actor Alice (Susannah York) and Joel (Robert Fields); the farmer James (Bruce Dern) and his pregnant wife Ruby (Bonnie Bedella); all of them expecting to win the award of US$ 1,500.00. Gloria's partner has a threatening cough and is disqualified before the contest. However, the Master of Ceremony Rocky (Gig Young) summons the stranger Robert (Michael Sarrazin) to replace her partner and dance with Gloria. Along more than forty days, the weakest couples are disqualified from the contest. When Rocky proposes that the exhausted Gloria and Robert get married during the dance marathon to raise money with the gifts, Rocky discloses that the winners will have their expenses deducted from the prize resting almost nothing from the US$ 1,500.00. Gloria leaves the contest with Robert and asks him for an ultimate solution for her suffering. "They Shoot Horses, Don't They?" is one of the most impressive and depressive movies I have ever seen. I read Horace McCoy's unforgettable novel when I was a fourteen year-old teenager and I recall how sad I was with this tragic story of human suffering and the comparison of people with cattle. Later I saw this movie twice on VHS (last time on 16 March 2000) and yesterday I saw it on DVD. The direction and performances are top-notch and in the end I was weirdly depressed despite knowing the story and the conclusion. My vote is nine. Title (Brazil): "A Noite dos Desesperados" ("The Night of the Desperate")

First of all, 'They shoot horses don't they' is not for the fainthearted or those looking for a feel good firm. It depicts a variety of characters who enter a grueling dance contest during the Great Depression. Only the last couple remaining will receive the prize money. Over time the contestants will go through various stages of exhaustion and some have psychological breakdowns. The film direction is great, the characters feel real and the time period feels appropriate. This firm can sometimes be physically exhausting to watch at times and can be slow moving at around two hours. Overall I would say that this was a great character study but not a movie that will appeal towards everyone's taste in movies, especially with the fast paced, quick cut action that people are used to seeing now. I recommend this movie for those who wish to see something different then what they're used to seeing.