Certain filmmakers have made such undeniable impact on the industry that no matter how far they stray in their careers, the audiences root for them to succeed again. Steven Spielberg certainly is one of those directors for me, and I went into the screening of his newest epic with nervous reserve. But in hindsight, for a film of this caliber, I don’t think there is a better talent to have in charge. War Horse is the type of sweeping character-driven cinema that Spielberg was born to make.
The story begins and ends in the southwestern England country of Devon with Albie Narracott and his remarkable horse Joey. When the family farm goes broke through lack of resources and an unlucky weather spell Albie’s father is forced to sell Joey to the British cavalry to keep his family’s house and land. This is where Joey’s odyssey begins as he ventures through four years of WWI, profoundly effecting everyone he meets on both sides of the war while trying to make his way back to Albie.
One thing I’d like to make clear to anyone looking for an uplifting family adventure to get the kids and in-laws out of the house during the holidays: This is not your movie. At times, War Horse almost seems to gleefully take pleasure in ripping your heart out and stomping on it. Although the violence is never gory or graphic, this is an emotionally brutal film. Plenty of movies go all the way to their end credits without the audience becoming invested in the characters, but this film does an exceptional job of rapidly introducing characters you will grow to like, but who are given a woefully short amount of screen time in which their story (or sometimes their life) ends unexpectedly (and quite often horribly). There are not many happy endings in War Horse.
The first such character we meet after Joey leaves the Narracott’s farm may be the best. Tom Hiddleston does a complete 180-turn from his disturbed villain role of Loki in Thor with his instantly empathetic and lovable performance as Captain Nicholls. I found myself wanting the rest of the movie to revolve around his character. Unfortunately, his story ends all too soon, and this sets the tone for how the rest of the stories will be told throughout the remainder of the movie. The entire Narracott family (Jeremy Irvine, Emily Watson, Peter Mullan) are also particularly great in their roles. I could honestly write an exhaustively longer review praising all the many performances and characters but I’m going to try to keep this mercifully shorter for the casual reader.
Another aspect of the movie worth the price of admission is the cinematography. From the gorgeous shots of the Devon countryside that could double as The Shire in Middle Earth to the WWI battles that are nothing short of stunning, Spielberg and company have a visual masterpiece on their hands. It’s really something to see all the different locations throughout England and Europe. Some of which are naturally breathtaking while others are desolate and deathly imposing as the war engulfs the surroundings. But it all adds to the overall richness and character of the film.
While the bulk of the movie deals with some pretty dark and heavy events its important that I note in my review that it is not all gloom and doom. There is a good amount of humor and adventure had by Joey and the revolving door of characters around him. Since the war is only the backdrop and not the focus of the film there isn’t much of a line of good or bad portrayed on either side. Both sides have characters that are shown in positive or negative lights in certain situations, giving the movie a humanity that many other films would have shied away from. But I wanted to be fair in saying War Horse isn’t some dark humorless David Fincher-style rampage of a film.
War Horse is a great piece of filmmaking and will no doubt be looked upon heavily for the 2012 award season. Spielberg adeptly weaves in and out of multiple storylines with a master’s ease. The largest negative to the film, especially true for animal lovers, is that there are so many gut-wrenching emotional beats throughout that you will become exhausted and begin to ask for mercy by the last half hour. But if you are a fan of finely crafted epic old school cinema you will not be disappointed with War Horse, just don’t be surprised if you need a tissue…or twenty.
FINAL SCORE: 8.5/10