Whenever this gorgeous 1979 movie is televised, I usually take care to credit director Carroll Ballard and cinematographer Caleb Deschanel. And with good reason, because the visuals are stunning – pure cinematic poetry. But there’s poetry in the story, as well, so here’s to Walter Farley’s original novel, and to the screenplay, whose writers include Melissa Mathison, who also worked on the script for E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial.