THE MUSTANG: A Prison Drama That Breaks Even The Coldest Heart

When we first meet Roman Coleman (Matthias Schoenaerts) in Laure de Clermont-Tonnerre‘s directorial debut The Mustang, he doesn’t have much to say. In fact, the prison psychologist (played by Connie Britton) needs to pry the words out of him. She’s trying to figure out exactly what kind of vocational duty he can have in his new prison. His lone reply ends up being “I’m not good with people.”

We soon learn that’s no exaggeration. Coleman has little to nothing to say to his daughter. He doesn’t have much to say to his new cellmate. It’s not until Coleman gets assigned to shovel mustang poop and ends up getting a shot to join the crew breaking wild mustangs for sale that we see the humanity within him.

It’s a stunning and heartwarming look at a real program in several states. The government rounds up wild broncos and a small percentage go to prisons. Prisoners learn to break the horses and then they’re  sold at auction. Some go to police departments, some serve on the border and others go to private buyers.

At its best, The Mustang feels like a beautiful and touching crossover between a prison drama and The Rider. Even if the ending isn’t the happy one we crave, it shows the importance of rehabilitation programs and the power of our relationship with animals, especially ones as majestic at horses. The film is a stunning portrait of humanity and compassion in the hardest of places to find it.

Warning: The following contains spoilers.

Coleman isn’t just breaking a horse – he’s breaking himself

The Mustang’s greatest strength lies in the initial struggle and eventual bonding between Coleman and his horse Marquis. The parallels between the two are hard to miss. In fact, at one point Coleman is told, “Some horses can be broken. Some just can’t.” The line feels like it’s more about Coleman than the horses.

In the first interaction between the two, Coleman discovers the horse locked up in a dark enclosure as he bucks and kicks, trying to get out. Coleman himself has a history of finding himself in solitary confinement. Coleman, captivated by the mustang’s anger, is pretty much forced to be part of the program by the man (a captivating Bruce Dern) who runs it.

At first, it goes about as well as you’d expect. The horse wants nothing but to be wild and Coleman doesn’t really know what to do with a wild horse. At one point, the anger boils over and Coleman ends up punching the horse repeatedly. It’s as difficult to watch him struggle as a character as it is to watch the abuse. It’s only upon a second chance in the program when Coleman emotionally gives up that Marquis opens up and the two bond.

Just when we think they’ve both been tamed, we’re proven wrong

Right when we think Marquis is tamed and Coleman has changed, a helicopter appears and spooks the horse. He bucks and goes wild, stomping on Coleman. It’s a heartbreaking moment when you’re rooting for the beautiful horse and Coleman to rehabilitate himself. But some horses and people are just meant to be wild and can’t be tamed.

As we learn from Coleman’s daughter, she used to write a ton of letters trying to help her dad get parole. But in the end, he didn’t want to be free. And so, in the end, he sacrifices any chance at his freedom, and living with his daughter and grandchild, to free Marquis.

While it’s not the storybook ending we crave, it’s beauty is in showing just how far Coleman has come. He’s sacrificed his wellbeing and future for this horse – the first real relationship he’s had since he’s entered the system.

Britton’s role is small, but crucial

Going in, I expected Britton‘s unnamed character to have a larger role given the weight her name carries. While she doesn’t get the screen time I thought she would, one of her scenes felt particularly poignant. Coleman is in an anger management group session led by the psychologist. Each prisoner goes around saying what they did and Britton replies by asking them how long there was between the thought of the crime and the act itself.

Each character replies that there was a matter of seconds or minutes between the two. It’s a show that just maybe these prisoners aren’t that different from you and I. We’ve all acted out on impulse, even if it wasn’t to the same violent degree. But it really drives home that just a few seconds of weakness can have a lasting impact on a life. It can be the difference between freedom and isolation.

A drug subplot detracts from the meat of the story

Just as we’re fully invested in Coleman’s redemption story and his improved relationship with his daughter, a drug smuggling subplot comes out of almost nowhere. Coleman’s cellmate hears that the bronco program has ketamine and threatens his daughters life unless Coleman gets him some. The drama rises between the two until Coleman’s mentor in the program loses his life in an attack.

While it adds drama to the plot, it felt unnecessary. The drama between Coleman and Marquis is enough to get us invested. The ketamine side plot and subsequent racial tensions feels like a cliche prison drama element that was added to meet certain expectations. While it doesn’t even come close to ruining the film, it stuck out awkwardly.

The Mustang: A very strong debut from Clermont-Tonnerre 

The Mustang is hard to look away from and worthy of praise. It’s a gorgeous look at a man who finds the best version of himself in his relationship with a wild horse. When you think you know exactly where it’s going, the story zags and shows the harsh reality of what prison life is like and the sacrifices you have to make. For a first feature, it’s an especially strong showing despite veering off course a little bit. Clermont-Tonnerre finds her stride among the wild horses in The Mustang.

Have you seen The Mustang? What did you think? Let us know in the comments.

The Mustang was released in U.S. cinemas on March 29th.