Synopsis
On the brink of the First World War, Albert's beloved horse Joey is sold to the Cavalry by his father. Against the backdrop of the Great War, Joey begins an odyssey full of danger, joy, and sorrow, and he transforms everyone he meets along the way. Meanwhile, Albert, unable to forget his equine friend, searches the battlefields of France to find Joey and bring him home.
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Cast
- Jeremy IrvineAlbert Narracott
- Peter MullanTed Narracott
- Emily WatsonRose Narracott
- Niels ArestrupGrandfather
- David ThewlisLyons
- Tom HiddlestonCapt. James Nicholls
- Benedict CumberbatchMaj. Jamie Stewart
- Celine BuckensEmilie
- Toby KebbellGeordie Soldier
- Patrick KennedyLt. Charlie Waverly
Recommendations
- 100
Time
In his most painterly film, Spielberg has appropriated the lavish visual palette of John Ford movies: "The Quiet Man" for the rural settings, "The Horse Soldiers" for the war scenes. Boldly emotional, nakedly heartfelt, War Horse will leave only the stoniest hearts untouched. - 100
Observer
War Horse is a don't-miss Spielberg classic that reaches true perfection. - 91
Entertainment Weekly
This is a beautifully built, classically framed movie, shot with the unshowy natural expressiveness of a John Ford Western by Spielberg's great cinematographer, Janusz Kaminski. - 80
Time Out
What's missing, then? There's no fiery central performance in the mix (the horse doesn't count), and once Emily Watson's hardscrabble mom is rotated out of the action, you yearn for an anchor. - 75
Charlotte Observer
For certain movies, the adjectives "formulaic" and "predictable" are complimentary. War Horse is one of them. - 70
The Hollywood Reporter
Whatever its missteps, this is a film that kids, middle-aged adults and grandparents can all see -- together or separately -- and get something out of in their own ways. There are precious few films that fit this description today and hats off to Spielberg for making one. - 60
Variety
This beautifully composed picture brings a robust physicality to tried-and-true source material, but falls short of the sustained narrative involvement and emotional drive its resolutely old-fashioned storytelling demands. - 50
Slant Magazine
What ultimately hobbles War Horse is a two-pronged attack, with Spielberg's soft-sell producing an unfortunately dramatic flatness in almost every scene, while an 11th-hour scramble for picture-book catharsis doesn't seem to work either.
