War Horse (2011)
Average Rating: 7/10
Reviews Counted: 209
Fresh: 161 | Rotten: 48
Technically superb, proudly sentimental, and unabashedly old-fashioned, War Horse is an emotional drama that tugs the heartstrings with Spielberg's customary flair.
Average Rating: 7.4/10
Critic Reviews: 42
Fresh: 33 | Rotten: 9
Technically superb, proudly sentimental, and unabashedly old-fashioned, War Horse is an emotional drama that tugs the heartstrings with Spielberg's customary flair.
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Average Rating: 3.8/5
User Ratings: 63,995
My Rating
Movie Info
Set against a sweeping canvas of rural England and Europe during the First World War, War Horse begins with the remarkable friendship between a horse named Joey and a young man called Albert, who tames and trains him. When they are forcefully parted, the film follows the extraordinary journey of the horse as he moves through the war, changing and inspiring the lives of all those he meets-British cavalry, German soldiers, and a French farmer and his granddaughter-before the story reaches its
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Cast
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Jeremy Irvine
Albert, Albert Narracot... -
Peter Mullan
Ted Narracott -
Emily Watson
Rosie Narracott -
Niels Arestrup
Grandfather -
David Thewlis
Lyons -
Tom Hiddleston
Captain Nicholls -
Benedict Cumberbatch
Major Jamie Stewart -
Celine Buckens
Emilie -
Toby Kebbell
Geordie Soldier -
Patrick Kennedy
Lt. Charlie Waverly -
David Kross
Gunther -
Matt Milne
Andrew Easton -
Robert Emms
David Lyons -
Eddie Marsan
Sgt. Fry -
Nicolas Bro
Friedrich -
Rainer Bock
Brandt -
Hinnerk Schonemann
German Soldier in No Ma... -
Gary Lydon
Si Easton -
Geoff Bell
Sgt. Sam Perkins -
Liam Cunningham
Army Doctor -
Sebastian Hülk
German Officer at Farm -
Gerard McSorley
Market Auctioneer -
Tony Pitts
Sgt. Martin -
Ifran Hussain
Sgt. Maj. Singh -
Philippe Nahon
French Auctioneer -
Jean-Claude Lecas
Butcher -
Justin Brett
Motorbike Rider -
Seamus O'Neill
Devon Farmer #1 -
Pat Laffan
Devon Farmer #2 -
Michael Ryan
British Trench Soldier ... -
Peter McNeil O'Connor
British Trench Soldier ... -
Gunnar Atli Cauthery
German Trench Soldier #... -
Julian Wadham
Trench Captain -
Anian Zollner
Senior German Officer -
Michael Kranz
Junior German Officer -
Hannes Wegener
German Officer -
David Dencik
Base Camp Officer -
Edward Bennett
Cavalry Recuiting Offic... -
Johnny Harris
Infantry Recruiting Off... -
Philip Hill-Pearson
Wounded Soldier -
Tam Dean Burn
Medic in Trench -
Alan Williams
Hospital Orderly -
Thomas Arnold
Shouting German Soldier -
Maximiilian Brueckner
German Artillery Office... -
Markus Tomczyk
German Artillery Soldie... -
Peter Benedict
German Officer on Bridg... -
Callum Armstrong
Bagpiper -
Roy Holder
Fred Goddard -
Paul Alexander
Dave Hill -
Maggie Ollerenshaw
Narracott's Neighbour -
Beth Ogden
David Lyons's Girlfrien... -
Martin D. Dew
Lyons' Cronie -
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War Horse Trailer & Photos
All Critics (211) | Top Critics (42) | Fresh (165) | Rotten (48) | DVD (11)
Spielberg still manages to surprise and impress.
Top CriticThe trouble here is not so much that Spielberg's film staunchly insists on finding a happy ending even in the calamity of the First World War, but that he slathers it on so thick and leaves so soft an impression.
The material sometimes feels oversugared, though it's also guaranteed to raise a lump in your throat.
Tthe images have what I can only describe as a wonderful texture. They also have intense color: deep gemlike greens and reds, with black shadows out of an old master painting.
We never ask why the production is devoted to an animal while ten million men are dying, but when Spielberg does the story realistically, it seems trivial, even a little daft.
Amid the incomprehensible slaughter, it's a horse that reminds these warriors of their humanity.
War Horse offers a number of memorable moments both tragic and profound.
Leave it to the great Steven Spielberg to be able to inject a great deal of heart into a story about a boy and his horse.
It's too bad that Steven Spielberg's latest film War Horse doesn't quite live up to the example set by its majestic titular character.
Its epic length is the one thing you're guaranteed to take from the experience.
A two-and-a-half hour sightseeing tour through David O. Selznick's junk drawer.
While made with great technical proficiency, War Horse is determinedly old-fashioned in how Spielberg tells the story, which is a fitting creative strategy considering that the film studies the convergence of the old and the modern.
God bless Steven Spielberg, who knows how to push my buttons.
War Horse is a fine film, helmed by a fine filmmaker all too aware of how to pull the audience's strings.
This movie holds up remarkably well and gets better with each successive viewing and works even better on a home theater system. The Blu-ray transfer is beautiful and it has enough extras to hold your interest.
"How Green Was My Valley, How Smart Was My Horse." [Blu-ray]
A gorgeous transfer of another bracing Steven Spielberg oddity.
What is a simple, World War I-era tale of a boy and his horse on the page and stage becomes bloated in Spielberg & Co.'s hands. Benefits from stunning cinematography and an excellent supporting cast.
It is a vividly detailed depiction of a time, a place and a conflict.
In tone and in the way that the narrative unfolds, it's a throwback to a more romantic era of filmmaking-when making feel-good movies wasn't anything to apologize for.
If it doesn't quite manage to tap the well of emotion that this type of film aims to access, it's because of problems inherent to the basic pitch, rather than the execution.
After the recent disappointment of a few donkey movies, director Steven Spielberg gallops back onto the big screen with a cinematic stallion in War Horse.
Audience Reviews for War Horse
Like the aforementioned Kubrick film, this is an absolutely gorgeous piece of work, with each shot looking like something straight out of a painting. This is easily some of the best cinematography from any of Spielberg's films. However, like BL, it's very long, slow, and sometimes rather tedious to get through...but unlike that on e, this is not a masterpiece.
Nope, this is basically just Spielberg doing more of what he does best: serving up some very far from subtle sentimental story that is designed to really tug at your heart and shake you up emotionally as much as possible. There's nothing inherently wrong with this, but he does do it so often that yeah, it gets quite tiring. He needs to make another film like Munich, which is easily his most serious, least sappy film.
I do think it's interesting that we get a sprawling story that goes all over rural England and various parts of Europe at large during World War I, and that it's all told primarily from the perspective of a horse named Joey (and sometimes his young trainer Albert), but then again, there's no real surprises about this either with how it plays out because of who is directing.
It is a good story, and I'd being lying if I said that the manipulative tactics didn't work on me as planned, but I won't let my respect for what Spielberg has done for the film industry keep me from saying that the film really isn't all that remarkable.
It is kinda boring, even underwhelming at times. Had it not been so beautiful, and had John Williams providing the music (even if this is just so-so Williams), and had we not had some serviceable performances from the cast (including the animals) then I'd have no problem giving this a lower rating. Plus, it doesn't help that this is, admittedly a rather watered down and fairy tale take on events.
In the end, this does get enough right that I'll be kind and give it a passing grade, because let's be honest, who else does this sort of thing better than Spielberg?
Super Reviewer
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- British Trench Soldier #1: Woah, look at those legs he's got, those muscles! And look at those long legs, made for running away from danger.
- German Soldier in No Man's Land: Running away is all the have.
- British Trench Soldier #1: And yet we've tell 'em different.
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- British Trench Soldier #2: How about boxing?
- German Trench Soldier #1: Not thanks, pet. Don't want to start a war.
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- British Trench Soldier #1: Gas! Gas! Gas!
- Andrew Easton: ...Albie...
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- Major Jamie Stewart: Be brave! Be brave!
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- Grandfather: Maybe there are different ways to be brave. Did you know the French have the best carrier pigeons? And this could be the difference in the war - our messages getting through.
- Emilie: I don't want to hear about the birds.
- Grandfather: They are released at the front and told to go home - this is all they know. But to get there they must fly over war. Can you imagine such a thing? Here you are flying over so much pain and terror - and you know you can never look down. You have to look forward or you'll never get home. I ask you - what could be braver than that?
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- Ted Narracott: There are big days and there are small daysâ?¦ which will it be?
Discussion Forum
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Latest News on War Horse
April 3, 2012:
RT on DVD & Blu-Ray: War Horse and Being ElmoThere wasn't a whole lot going on in the world of home video this week, so we've got a shorter list...
February 7, 2012:
War Horse, Planet of the Apes Earn Humane Society NominationsThey join "Dolphin Tale" and "Rio" as films being recognized for animal-friendly themes.
December 22, 2011:
Critics Consensus: Tintin, Dragon Tattoo Are Certified FreshHappy Holidays! This week at the movies, we've got a junior adventurer (The Adventures of Tintin,...
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Foreign Titles
- Gefährten (DE)
- Cheval de guerre (FR)
I enjoyed the deep colours and studio settings which Spielberg uses here and some of the images are very beautiful to look at. Janusz Kaminski does once again wonders behind the camera. John Williams instead does not impress this time. His score is without any certain themes and feels just too lazy and forgettable compared to his better works.
While i was watching War Horse i often felt that it is too fragmented to be emotionally touching. It has a quite strong beginning but it goes downhill from there until the frustratingly flat ending. It feels that Spielberg is avoiding any risks here and is aiming for pure entertainment. Unfortunately this is not that entertaining either.
In Spielberg's filmography this is below average and a companion piece to his equally flawed Empire of the Sun.