AllMovie

Acclaimed filmmaker Sean Hepburn Ferrer (the son of iconic Hollywood actors Audrey Hepburn and Miguel Ferrer) presents the life story of former convict turned do-gooder Albert Race Sample in the 2003 biographical documentary Racehoss. Sharing the name of Sample's enormously popular book, Racehoss begins as Sample relates to an audience his frightening and troubled upbringing, which started in the neglectful and abusive care of his prostitute mother, whom he identifies as "Big Emma." As an passive participant in his mother's dangerous lifestyle, Sample quickly developed into a social deviant in his own right, with one of his early formative experiences including his assault and stabbing of one his elementary school teachers. Shortly thereafter, Sample dropped out of school and was abandoned by age 12, leaving the young man homeless and a frequent traveler of the nation's railway system -- via boxcar. After a brief, yet tumultuous, stint in the army, Sample was sentenced to a 30-year prison term for an unidentified violent crime. After serving 17 years, he was paroled and found work in the Texas state prison system, and eventually turned his life around to become a high ranking official within the Texas Criminal Division. Racehoss was included in the program for the 2003 New York Independent Film and Video Festival.