War Horse

When an English farm horse is sold into military service in World War I, his young owner (Jeremy Irvine) promises to find him someday—once he’s old enough to enlist. The horse falls into German hands, where he ends up hauling artillery, a service few horses survive. Michael Morpurgo’s novel had the gimmick of a horse telling his own story; Nick Stafford’s play had the horses played by superb puppets. For the movie, no gimmicks, just horses, and they don’t talk; this throws the emphasis to the human characters, and they’re a pretty two-dimensional bunch, populating a plot with a wide streak of soap opera. The movie is extremely well-crafted—with some scenes as good as anything director Steven Spielberg has ever done—but derivative and unsubtle (like John Williams’ music, pompous and vulgar at once).