War Horse (2011)

User Review

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  TheMovieDiorama

  7 / 10

  War Horse is classic Spielberg storytelling. The man is the best at creating film to tell a story that makes you feel every emotion. I smiled through the first act, was thrilled by the second act and slowly teared up towards the end. Set within the First World War, this film is slightly different in the fact that the perspective and narrative of the war is conveyed through the horse's experience. We follow our main horse, Joey, from being raised on a farm in Devon to being used in the British Calvary against the Germans. It's a slow progression but I thought it worked really well and surprisingly the horse was actually able to convey some emotion. I felt attached to him which is pretty difficult for a character that has no dialogue. Working with horses is no easy task, but Spielberg managed to make it look ridiculously easy. There are some talented horses that are clearly trained to perform tricks for films, I really admire the work that's gone into it. Joey experiences a lot I mean he gets sold at auction, sold again, captured, freed, captured, freed, trapped, freed...I guess it's a case of being at the wrong place at the wrong time. During his journey, we come across several characters and that is where the problem lies. As soon as I start to become invested in a character, something happens and we move along to the next character who owns Joey...it's all too fast and doesn't let the characters grow. I understand that the purpose of the journey is to show that Joey is learning, either by jumping over fences or galloping ridiculously fast. But when the story doesn't allow you to be captivated by the only characters who have dialogue, it becomes problematic. Some scenes were slightly unrealistic as well, like when a British and German troop venture out into No Man's Land to free Joey. The metaphor is not subtle at all and just felt slightly silly. It's all far too safe. There is no denying that Spielberg is one of the best directors, but he needs to take more risks.

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