The Tattooed Police Horse

This movie tries to tell a story, written by director Lansburgh's wife, Janet. It concerns Jolly Rogers, a horse bred and trained for trotting competition. Jolly, however, has a habit of breaking into a gallop in moments of stress. Things go from bad to worse, in a story like that of BLACK BEAUTY, until the animal winds up on the Boston Police Force, patrolling Scolley Square.

The movie is certainly competent in the behind-the-screen departments, but what goes on the screen is not terribly interesting to me. Trotting races are such an artificially constrained activity that I can't work up any enthusiasm for them. Although the sport is in decline, however, there are many people who enjoy it, so maybe the visuals will please them.

What I cannot abide, however, is vast majority of the actors. They seem unprofessional and few of them speak their lines in any convincing fashion. Although this brief second feature has a competent narrator in Ken Andes, the overall effect is not among Disney's best animal pictures.

When I was a little girl my parents finally got a color television. I know that sounds strange now, but back in the 60's a color TV was really something. The entire neighborhood wanted to come to your house just to stare at...it, even if it wasn't on LOL. Well, we had the first one on our street and our folks only allowed us to stay up until 9:00 on Sunday night to watch the end of Walt Disney, because we had school the next day. Back then we did what our folks said because there was always the threat of a paddling and when your Dad is 6'4" and an Airborne Paratrooper that kinda carried a "special" meaning. Anyway, one night this movie came on, "The Tattooed Police Horse", we had never seen anything like it, this animal overcame so many hardships, so many scary things, things that even then were as scary s stuff we faced on the playground. He became strong inside and faced all that anyway and became something really special. It was so cool! Being a girl who was already horse crazy it was better than cool it was fantastic!. Well I grew up to be just like my Dad,(no not a paratrooper) a soldier and a Military Police officer and when I got injured on duty I retired and rescued 6 horses,to include 1 retired Police Horse. This was all because of a my Dad and great movie I saw when I was a kid, "The Tattooed Police Horse."