Flicka takes considerable pains to resurrect the girl-and-her-horse genre, tinkering with Mary O'Hara's 1941 children's novel, "My Friend Flicka," so that the book's main character, nine-year-old Ken McLaughlin (played by Roddy McDowell in the 1943 movie version) is magically transformed into a 16-year-old girl named Katy. But talk about flogging a dead horse. National Velvet, it ain't.

Alison Lohman stars as our headstrong, horse-loving gal who is flunking out of private boarding school because she just can't keep her mind off her old Wyoming home. She returns home for the summer wanting to do nothing more than frolic with the horses on the ranch operated by parents Rob and Nell (Tim McGraw and Maria Bello). But life is tough in the country. The couple is having headaches over finances, and it doesn't help matters any that Katy suddenly takes a shine to a wild mustang she happens across during a morning ride. The girl names the horse Flicka, which she is told is Swedish for "pretty girl."

Complications ensue. Katy wants to keep and tame Flicka, but dad is dead-set against the idea. He hates mustangs, especially since it takes just one crazy horse to upset his entire herd of quarterhorses. But that darn Katy won't listen to reason. After H-E-double-toothpicks breaks out when Katy tries to capture the animal, her father corrals Flicka and sells her off to a rodeo.

No one would suggest that a motion picture squarely aimed at adolescent girls needs to be particularly smart and insightful. But neither does it have to be so relentlessly lame. Flicka is hobbled by cliché, on-the-nose dialogue and an embarrassing absence of subtlety. Screenwriters Mark Rosenthal and Lawrence Konner leave nothing to chance. Only the most catatonic viewer will miss that the untamable spirit of Flicka mirrors the untamable spirit of Katy.

Except that the horse is more sympathetic. Lohman, a very good actress, does the best she can as our willful heroine, but it's a short hop from obstinate Katy to shrill, obnoxious Katy. It's difficult to muster up much rooting interest for the girl, who ignores her father's sensible directives (like staying off a wild horse), throws tantrums and lashes out at her parents' friends. Hmm. So that's why she'd been sent off to a boarding school.

Don't fault the actors for this by-the-numbers drama. The 27-year-old Lohman is a bit mature to play the 16-year-old Katy, but she brings a much-needed presence to the role. Country music superstar McGraw, who was so impressive in 2004's Friday Night Lights, makes the most of an underwritten part, and Maria Bello is typically excellent. But then there is Ryan Kwanten as Katy's older brother, Howard, whose chief responsibility is to walk around shirtless.

The film is not totally without charm. Director Michael Mayer does make the most of the attractive scenery, sprucing things up with shots of majestic horses barreling across equally majestic countrysides. It's beautiful imagery, all right ... for selling Ford pickups.

A flipper disc, Flicka lets viewers choose between 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen on one side and full-frame 1.33:1 on the other. Both are of excellent quality -- as befits a movie less than a year old -- although the widescreen version obviously better spotlights J. Michael Muro's (Crash) cinematography. Very minor grain is visible in a few darkly lit scenes.

While the Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround won't knock your proverbial socks off, it does provide reasonably immersive sound and creative use of rear speakers. Volume is consistent throughout to ensure that every bit of hackneyed dialogue is as clear as a mountain sunrise. Dolby Digital 2.0 is available for Spanish and French audio. Viewers have the option of English or Spanish subtitles.

Director Michael Mayer provides a likable, mildly amusing commentary available on both sides of the disc. The full-screen side also includes two deleted scenes and one extended scene, all of which have optional commentary by the director.

Rounding out the supplemental material is a music video for Tim McGraw's "My Little Girl" and trailers for Because of Winn-Dixie, Garfield 2: A Tale of Two Kitties and Aquamarine.

Not to beat a dead horse – especially since I've used that pun once already -- but Flicka is one mighty bland family flick. With apologies to Mick Jagger, wild horses couldn't drag me back to it.