War Horse is based on a book by Michael Morpurgo about the journey and experience of an English country horse through the First World War, though it’s better known through its popular 2007 West End stage adaptation by Nick Stafford. It was in this context that first Kathleen Kennedy and then Spielberg encountered the story and became determined to make it into a movie. Working off a previously existing script by Lee Hall, none other than Richard Curtis was hired to rewrite it, owing to his experience writing in the time period of the story for Blackadder Goes Forth. Blackadder Goes Forth, as its fans well know, was a rather poignant portrayal of the First World War in spite of being a comedy. And that same poignancy shows through in War Horse, siphoned exceptionally through Spielberg’s guiding direction. This movie was in some ways, Spielberg’s most blatant Oscar bid since The Color Purple, but that doesn’t mean it wasn’t a really good movie nonetheless.
A Devonshire farmer Ted Narracott (Peter Mullan) unwisely buys a Thoroughbred colt at an auction rather than the plough horse he needs. His son Albert (Jeremy Irvine) takes a liking to the horse though, naming him Joey, and trains him to use the plough and be of use to the farm. But when war breaks out, an indebted Ted is forced to sell Joey to the army. And with traditional cavalry being swiftly rendered obsolete by the industrialization of war, Joey exchanges caretakers on multiple fronts over the course of the four year conflict.
It’s interesting that Spielberg acquired the rights for War Horse as a story he felt DreamWorks had to tell without realizing DreamWorks had told that story (or at least a quite similar one) back in 2002 with the highly underrated Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron. That film also was about the journey of a horse trading hands between multiple owners, serving multiple purposes, and in a rarity for an animated film, not talking at all, with only his thoughts being conveyed intermittently by Matt Damon voiceover. It’s one of the greats of DreamWorks Animation, and War Horse follows much of the same plot, only with the Frontier West replaced as the backdrop by the bitter, chaotic, and unstable scene of First World War Europe. That, in my opinion, is a much more interesting setting, especially for a horse. Among other things it meant one of the most interesting aspects of that war could be illustrated: the quick and brutal death of cavalry warfare. And it’s done exceptionally well in this film, conveying perfectly how ill-equipped everyone was for the First World War and how it was such a monumental change in the history of warfare.
This is made apparent in the subsequent depiction of the war. There’s a nice gap between Joey and the black stallion Topthorn being captured after that initial failed raid by deserting German soldiers and being taken from Emilie and her grandfather’s farm. So when they’re back in the war, the environment has now changed dramatically. Where before they had charged a field on a sunny day, now everything was dingy, muddy, pale, and the sky full of smog. It’s a great subtle visual indicator of how much time has passed and how degraded the front has become. And in this depiction the film is wonderfully evocative. There are elements of the great First World War movies at work in this film: All Quiet on the Western Front, The Grand Illusion, even Joyeux Noel in the scene where the British and German soldiers put aside their differences to help Joey out of the barbed wire he’s become entangled in. The film really frames Joey as the great unifier, as he passes between British, German, and French caretakers who are all equally drawn to this horse, and in this scene he’s directly the reason two men on opposite sides of the trench realize they’re not so different. Which is a sentiment that only holds sway with animal lovers, but it does work for the film. It’s no Christmas Truce, but amidst the misery of this war in particular, it is warming.
War Horse is an absolutely gorgeous movie too. It has a lot of faded colours for parts (mostly in England) like Spielbergs’ last war film, but it’s closer to sepia tone with its focus on browns and dark greens. Yet it’s lively too, really crisp when the tone needs it to be, murky and tangible when that’s more appropriate. And then there’s just some fantastically composed moments, incorporating the majestic essence of this horse, such as when he gallops into No Man’s Land, or even the final shot in silhouette, though it heavily hearkens to Gone with the Wind, is exceedingly pretty. Honestly, it’s Janusz Kaminski’s best looking movie for Spielberg since Schindler’s List. John Williams’ score as well is one of his more sensational of the past ten years.
There’s certainly a Richard Curtis touch on the characters, if they’re not being outright funny. Not all of them resonate, but they’re written with an unmistakable humanity that the skilled cast of actors are fully able to show. The elder Naracotts are especially indicative of this. Rose doesn’t have an especially large part, but damn if Emily Watson doesn’t take over the movie in her scenes with her quiet idealism; and Peter Mullan, so often the tough guy, works wonders as the miserable Boer War-traumatized patriarch. Albert is the least interesting member of that family, being the mostly basic ‘boy’ in this ‘boy and his pet’ story. He’s played by Jeremy Irvine, an actor who’s maintained almost as low a profile since War Horse as before it, and who at only twenty was method enough to wind up contracting trench foot due to his extensive dedication to playing a First World War tommy. He’s fine and relatable enough, the war scenes are his best moments. But the movie benefits from the narrative being away from him for long lengths of time.
Indeed the best performer in the movie is Niels Arestrup as the innocent compassionate grandfather to Celine Buckens’ frail Emilie. He’s got the world-weariness of Ulysses combined with the sad optimism of Bob Crachit, and he so poignantly plays the part and earns your sympathy that he ought to have kept Joey in the end. It would have meant more for Albert’s character too, learning to give up the horse he long hoped of being reunited with. David Thewlis is great as usual, playing the cruel Devon landlord, and David Kross makes for a good young deserter in over his head. Whether intentional or not, it’s neat that right around the time both Tom Hiddleston and Benedict Cumberbatch were just starting to take off in relatively similar fandoms, they appeared in this film together. Hiddleston especially does a fine job as the first new owner of Joey. The minor cast is filled out with the likes of Toby Kebbell, Patrick Kennedy, Eddie Marsan, Nicolas Bro,and Liam Cunningham, and it results in characters who thanks to the talents of their actors, feel fully formed despite their minimal appearance.
Really though, the story on its own, simple though it is, is a good and even powerful one. Spielberg, Curtis, and the cast recognize this. They also recognize the need to give it as much dramatic tension as possible to keep it from being merely a Lassie movie. Once again, Spielberg understands the reality and seriousness of war, even if it’s not the one he’s most fascinated by. The Battle of the Somme here is certainly no Omaha Beach, but it is done very well, especially the unpredictability factor. No sooner do the British take the enemy trench than a gas bomb explodes killing Albert’s best friend and temporarily blinding him. Likewise, the death of Topthorn is given weight; while you don’t expect him to make it as far as Joey, he has survived longer than anticipated, so his death is affecting. War Horse really showcases a great forgotten casualty of the First World War and other wars, and that’s the death of animals. Generally we really don’t think too much about the countless horses who have died in cavalry charges or from overwork as in this film, forced into a task they were never bred for. War Horse, whether in book, play, or film ought to be commended for reminding us of that.
War Horse may be Spielberg’s fourth best war movie, but it would be many other directors’ best. That’s just an indicator of how good Spielberg is, and especially at these kind of movies. It’s not one of his most interesting endeavours, but it is very well made and well told. And as far as his adaptations go, it’s clearly one where he merely wants to tell the story as best as possible without necessarily making it his own. That thinking would largely carry over into his next film where he would attempt to offer the first great movie on an American hero in eighty-three years.
Follow me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/Jordan_D_Bosch
Letterboxd: https://letterboxd.com/jbosch/
Comments
Post a Comment