War Horse Movie Review

Critic's Rating: 4/5
Cast: Jeremy Irvine, Emily Watson, David Thewlis, Niels Arestrup
Direction: Steven Spielberg
Genre: Drama
Duration: 2 hours 26 minutes
Avg Readers Rating: 4 ½ /5

Story: Albert Narracott and his horse are inseparable. So much so, the former is ready to take on the role of a war soldier when his horse is sold to the war soldiers. Will the two ever meet? And under what circumstances?

Movie Review: It's Circa 1914 -- a time when the Brits wore felt hats... a time when 30 guineas was all it took to buy a healthy horse at an auction... a time when landlords called the shots. But then the message Steven Spielberg's War Horse gives out could not have been more contemporary -- why wage war when it leads to nothing. However, this time he chooses an animal (horse, to be precise), amidst the backdrop of the gruesome World War, to bring out the futility of war.

Ted ( Peter Mullan) fetches an expensive purebred -- something that makes his wife Rose ( Emily Watson) hate him more and his teenage son Albert Narracott (Jeremy Irvine) love him more. No wonder Albert makes it a point to train Joey in a way that his family never regrets having the horse between them. So what follows next is human instinct taking over animal instinct: Watch Joey feed for the first time ever from human hand, respond to the human whistle and take up ploughing to ease things for his family. Cut to the war. Joey passes from one master to the other - British farmers, German soldiers, French farmers - till he is finally caught in the middle of WWI. And it's during this journey of Joey that you actually pass through a series of devastating, disturbing and depressing shots of what a war does -- human bodies smeared in mud and blood; horses lying flat with eyes wide open.

Not to say, it's all about blood and gore in there. The orange sky amidst the lush green English countryside perfectly matched with some soothing music makes for ample visual appeal. Of course, one cannot miss out on the destructing, thought provoking visuals of war. Typically Spielberg. Remember Saving Private Ryan? Next is Jeremy Irvine who does manage to bring out the restlessness (and determination) of a teen who is just not willing to give up on Joey. But then it is Joey ultimately who comes out the real (war) hero. Not because Spielberg made it a point to essay fourteen different horses to portray the progression of Joey from colt to adult. Not even because he is worth every penny when galloping all panic-stricken through barbed wires. It's for the ultimate humane message the animal gives out: We ought to be careful not to start a war.