A film that embraces a more eclectic hobby over ridiculing its eccentricities, Horsegirls is a sweet natured drama that speaks to the importance of independence and inclusivity.
Written and directed by Lauren Meyering, Horsegirls embraces the defiance of its lead character, Margarita (so beautifully embodied by Lillian Carrier), and how her perceived fragility gives way to a nature to prove she’s anything but. 22-years-old, autistic, and living under the care of her mother, Sandy (Gretchen Mol), who is battling an uncertain health diagnosis, Margarita has to grow up faster than she would like in the wake of such news; Carrier herself is autistic, layering her performance with an unmatched authenticity.
Seemingly unwilling to face the reality of her mother’s ailing health and overcome with the demands of her new job at a Halloween-themed convenience store, Margarita, who already expresses an interest in horses, finds an unexpected calling in the sport of hobby horsing – in which young athletes mimic equestrian activities such as jumping and galloping by utilizing a stick horse.
Initially an outcast to the much younger girls on the team, Margarita refuses to let their misunderstanding of her neurodiversity deter her from embracing an activity that truly ignites a passion within her. And it’s such a mentality that’s sure to speak to a collective of audience who, through whichever originality they subscribe to, will see themselves in someone like Margarita.
The film hits a lot of the expected beats that come with the underdog-type narrative it adheres to, but it does so with warmth and truth that it’s difficult to fault such conjecture. Sandy stressing that she’s not always going to be around and that Margarita needs to learn how to take care of herself is quite a heartbreaking notion, and Mol plays it with harrowing sincerity that we feel both every impassioned word of her plea and the overwhelming feeling it has on Margarita.
There’s also the stern but loving coach (Jerrod Haynes), who understands Margarita’s individuality, but makes sure to treat her as an equal in order for her to have a sense of the harsh reality of the world she will be facing a little more alone as her mother’s health gradually declines; Tony Hale providing tender support later in the film as Sandy’s brother, who comes to stay as the inevitable looms.
With Carrier in the lead, Horsegirls has a layer of truth immediately built in that a more fictionalised take on autism could have stripped away. It imbues the film with a candour that assists the film in honouring the subculture at its core and in celebrating a mother-daughter relationship that avoids the overt saccharine nature so many of these genre entrants can rely on. Horsegirls is certainly sweet, without question, but it manages to be so without gloss.
THREE AND A HALF STARS (OUT OF FIVE)
Horsegirls is screening as part of this year’s Tribeca Film Festival, running between June 4th and 15th, 2025. For more information, head to the official site here.
