For 11 stunning races in 1975 Ruffian ruled the sports world. Considered the greatest female racehorse in history, she won by huge margins. That set up the classic (and tragic) battle-of-the-sexes race with Foolish Pleasure.
ESPN made this movie, then loaned it to ABC, its sister network. Yves Simoneau the brilliant French-Canadian director who also did HBO's "Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee" directed; Sam Shepard plays Ruffian's trainer, with Frank Whaley as sportswriter Bill Nack. On Friday, viewers saw an expanded version of the "Ned's Declassified Guide" series.
Now the same people director Savage Steve Holland, star Devon Werkheiser offer this film. Werkheiser plays someone troubled by a bully. Then a class project gives him a Web site and a chance to expose the kid's evil schemes.
"Bindi: The Jungle Girl," debut, 4 and 4:30 p.m., both Discovery Kids and Animal Planet.
There's an offbeat charm to this odd show. Bindi Irwin, 8, hosts with the same frantic enthusiasm that made her late father (Steve Irwin) so popular. From a gorgeous treehouse, she talks and plays with snakes and sometimes even sings.
In between, we see lots of animal clips, many featuring her mom (Teri) or dad. It's all fast and frenetic and oddly watchable. Here's the sixth game of the best-of-seven finals between the Anaheim Ducks and the Ottawa Senators.
If that isn't needed, NBC will insert a couple "Outrageous Moments" reruns, followed at 9 p.m. by the comedy "Scary Movie" (2000).
This James Bond film takes some odd detours, including seeing Bond (Pierce Brosnan) as a tortured prisoner. It's a flawed film but Halle Berry makes a stunning colleague and the ice palace scenes are visually splendid. For 11 stunning races in 1975 Ruffian ruled the sports world.
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