War Horse- 2011

War Horse- Movie Poster

The Squire and I just went to see War Horse last night. Absolutely worth seeing, I would say this one is an instant classic. It would be good to take pre-teens and teenagers to, but the second half of the film is too intense for young ones.

It is essentially a war movie (an anti-war movie to be specific), but it has a wonderful story about the journey of the horse Joey from the gorgeous countryside of Dartmoor, Devon in the west country of England to the horrors of the trenches in France in WWI.

Jeremy Irvine as Albert Narracott in War Horse

Young Jeremy Irvine is absolutely transfixing as Albert Narracott, the boy who trains and loves the gorgeous thoroughbred his father buys at auction instead of a good working plough horse (Oops-seemed like a good idea at the time).

Peter Mullan and Emily Watson as Albert's parents in War Horse

Emily Watson (one of my fave actors) is wonderful as the pissed off mother Rose Narracott who rightly takes a strip off her alcoholic husband Ned (played brilliantly by Peter Mullan), but stands by him and loves him through everything.  Awww!

Benedict Cumberbatch, Patrick Kennedy and Tom Hiddleston in War Horse

Joey the horse is unfortunately not able to be kept at the farm after war is declared and so is sold to a Cavalry officer Captain Nicholls (played by the ever wonderful Tom Hiddleston). Pull out your tissues at this point in the film.

Grandfather and Emilie with Joey and friend in War Horse

Not only does Joey make an equine friend (Topthorne, the black horse) but the two horses go from the Germans, to a French girl and her grandfather, back to the Germans and then a very dramatic scene at the front where Joey ends up in no man's land, between the English and German trenches. The no man's land scene is the best scene in the entire film, and you can see the hand of both Lee Hall (Billy Elliot) and Richard Curtis (Four Weddings, Love Actually) in the wonderful writing.

Joey and Albert in the beautiful Devon countryside in War Horse

I was sobbing at parts of this film, more because I was thinking of my two great-uncles who died in the Great War (they never thought there would be another), one of whom was born in Devonshire. So  you may not find it as much of a weeper as I did, but still I would not have missed it for anything.

So I give this one two hooves up!