Equus

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Equus

R,

1977,

2h 18m,

Drama

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Watchlist

70%

23 Reviews

Tomatometer

78%

2,500+ Ratings

Popcornmeter

70%

Tomatometer

23 Reviews

78%

Popcornmeter

2,500+ Ratings

Dr. Martin Dysart (Richard Burton), a psychiatrist who has grown unhappy with his life, takes on the peculiar case of Alan Strang (Peter Firth), a reserved teenager who has been accused of brutally blinding six horses. Dysart slowly unravels Alan's background, learning that he grew up in a strained household with a devoutly religious mother (Joan Plowright) and an atheist father (Colin Blakely). But as Dysart begins to trace the roots of Alan's problems, his own also begin to surface.

Roger Ebert

Chicago Sun-Times

Jul 2, 2018

2.5/4

The blinding of horses is something that works a great deal better as stage symbolism than as cinematic fact, and that's one of the several things wrong with the way Equus has been brought to the screen.

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Rene Jordan

El Nuevo Herald (Miami)

Jan 25, 2024

Equus has the strength of a ritual and in its calculated, crashing moments it achieves a notable impact. [Full review in Spanish]

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Matt Brunson

Film Frenzy

Feb 8, 2023

3/4

Sidney Lumet's handling of the material doesn't miss a beat; the only real trace of an encroaching staginess can be found in some of Dysart's lengthy monologues.

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Rob Gonsalves

Rob's Movie Vault

Aug 30, 2022

B

Still, an eminently worthwhile film, with two showboat performances by Burton and Firth.

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Eddie Harrison

film-authority.com

Feb 18, 2021

4/5

...something of a dark horse cinematically…Equus is a thoughtful, provocative film that won Burton his final Oscar nomination, and is well worth purchasing for anyone interested in the intellectual highs of cinema and theatre alike…’

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Daniel Barnes

Dare Daniel

Mar 25, 2020

3/5

Lumet was a director who rose or fell based on the quality of his source material and collaborators. He served the demands of the story, rather than demanding that the story serve his esoteric vision or personal style.

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Feb 1, 2019

The best movie score ever composed!

Harry S

Jun 25, 2018

Equus has dated badly. What on earth is Shaffer arguing at such self-indulgent length? That blinding horses is more admirable than living a 'normal' life with all its quiet compromises and secrets? What was memorable about the stage play was John Dexter's staging and John Napier's design - both of which disguised the banality of the themes. Here, flat direction by Sidney Lumet and a weary performance by Richard Burton only underline the vacuity at the centre. Good performances from Peter Firth, Colin Blakely, Jenny Agutter and Harry Andrews.

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Sidney Lumet

Director

Richard Burton

Martin Dysart

Peter Firth

Alan Strang

Colin Blakely

Frank Strang

Joan Plowright

Dora Strang

Harry Andrews

Harry Dalton

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Synopsis

Dr. Martin Dysart (Richard Burton), a psychiatrist who has grown unhappy with his life, takes on the peculiar case of Alan Strang (Peter Firth), a reserved teenager who has been accused of brutally blinding six horses. Dysart slowly unravels Alan's background, learning that he grew up in a strained household with a devoutly religious mother (Joan Plowright) and an atheist father (Colin Blakely). But as Dysart begins to trace the roots of Alan's problems, his own also begin to surface.

Director: Sidney Lumet
Producer: Elliott Kastner, Lester Persky
Screenwriter: Peter Shaffer
Production Co: Persky-Bright Productions
Rating: R
Genre: Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (DVD): Mar 4, 2003
Runtime: 2h 18m

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