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On their farm in the French countryside, Emilie (Celine Buckens) and her Grandfather (Niels Arestrup) with Joey (right) and Topthorn (left) are featured in this scene from DreamWorks Pictures' WAR HORSE, a film directed by Steven Spielberg. Photo credit: David Appleby.

War Horse (2011)

Opened: 12/25/2011 Wide

Trailer: Click for trailer

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Genre: War Drama

Rated: PG-13 for intense sequences of war violence.

Synopsis

DreamWorks Pictures' "War Horse," director Steven Spielberg's epic adventure, is a tale of loyalty, hope and tenacity 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 emotional climax in the heart of No Man's Land.

The First World War is experienced through the journey of this horse--an odyssey of joy and sorrow, passionate friendship and high adventure. "War Horse" is one of the great stories of friendship and war-- a successful book, it was turned into a hugely successful international theatrical hit that is currently on Broadway. It now comes to screen in an epic adaptation by one of the great directors in film history.

The Journey Begins

From director Steven Spielberg comes an emotional epic on a classic scale. It is the story of a miraculous horse in wartime--a stirring journey that explores a bond of friendship, loyalty and courage. Within the tale of a boy and the feisty colt he never stops believing in, there are sweeping battles, desperate escapes and an evocative odyssey through a world at war. But no matter where they go or what they experience both boy and horse keep forging ahead, driven by devotion and the hope of returning home.

Adapted from one of the great modern stories of friendship and war, the film is drawn from the novel that sparked a rousing stage hit, garnering five Tony Awards®, including Best Play. Now, Spielberg unfolds this heartwarming tale for all ages with a return to the territory where big screen cinema and intimate storytelling meet.

Says Spielberg: "To me, 'War Horse' is a timeless story about the sacrifices of love-- about the sacrifices a boy makes in a time of war to find his horse and the sacrifices the horse makes just trying to survive this dark episode in history. Throughout it all, their destinies are entwined."

The journey begins on the cusp of WWI, as an English farming family buys a fiery hunter colt at auction despite not having the funds to pay for him. Named Joey, the horse seems to be nothing but a loss for struggling Ted and Rosie Narracott (Peter Mullan and two-time Oscar® nominee Emily Watson), but their son Albert (newcomer Jeremy Irvine) is determined to tame and train him, making the most of Joey's enthralling spirit, speed and affection. The two are inseparable, but when war breaks out, they are pulled apart as Joey is sold from under him and heads to the front as the mount of a dashing British cavalry officer.

Thus starts Joey's labyrinthine trek through joy and sorrow, hardship and wonder, as this simple horse becomes a remarkable hero, touching lives on all sides of the war with his innocence, purity of motive, and unconditional devotion to his human friends. He pulls battlefield ambulances, whisks away German soldiers on the run, fires the imagination of a French girl and hauls colossal cannons up mountains. As the film builds to its powerful climax, and Albert heads into the trenches on his own perilous mission, Joey finds himself ensnared in the haunting No Man's Land between British and German territory. But even when it seems there can be no return, he sets in motion a momentary chance for peace and holds fast to a dream of reunion and renewal.

To do justice to the story's broad scope, Spielberg assembled a distinctive mix for the cast, delighting in bringing several newcomers to the fore, including Jeremy Irvine as Albert, Tom Hiddleston, Benedict Cumberbatch, David Kross, Patrick Kennedy, Toby Kebbell, Celine Buckens and Robert Emms, along with a host of award-winning veterans including Emily Watson, Peter Mullan, Niels Arestrup and David Thewlis.

DreamWorks Pictures and Reliance Entertainment present an Amblin Entertainment/Kennedy/Marshall Company production of a Steven Spielberg film, "War Horse." Based on the novel by Michael Morpurgo, the screenplay is by Lee Hall and Richard Curtis. The film is produced by Steven Spielberg and Kathleen Kennedy, and the executive producers are Frank Marshall and Revel Guest. Spielberg's close-knit artistic crew, most of whom he has worked with through several decades, includes editor Michael Kahn, director of photography Janusz Kaminski, composer John Williams, production designer Rick Carter and costume designer Joanna Johnston.

Joining them on "War Horse" was an extraordinary team of horse trainers and riders, all overseen by American Humane Society representative Barbara Carr, as they forged safe, respectful but unprecedented drama and action with equine actors as expressive as their human counterparts. Says Carr: "Everything was done in the safest, kindest ways for the animals. You could see in Steven that he truly cared deeply about the animals, and that was reflected in the entire production."

A Horse's Odyssey Home

How do you unfold a world-wandering tale of love, war, fortitude and hope when your main character is an innocent village colt in search of kindness, friendship and a way home?

That challenge instantly compelled Steven Spielberg when he encountered Michael Morpurgo's novel "War Horse." The book presented an inspiring legend, but it was cut from a different cloth than most. All manner of stories have emerged from war--stories of romance, of heroism, of moral dilemmas, of divided families transcending hardship. But here was a story of wartime as it had never been experienced: through the journey of an animal propelled into battle with no malice or side to take, fueled only by the burning desire to live and return to the ones he loves.

To do the story justice would be a creative and technical feat, one that hooked into Spielberg's penchant for chronicling the human condition. It was one that, for all its scope, would have little to do with special effects and everything to do with a more hand-crafted cinematic style, working humanely and intelligently with remarkable animals and engaging human performances, and guiding a devoted crew to overlay a triumph of the spirit atop an unforgettably rugged landscape of conflict. "War Horse" is about classical movie storytelling, weaving a chain of individual stories into an intricate canvas portraying the power of hope in the toughest of times.

The novel had been told with the simple power of allegory. The play, which Spielberg first saw in London at the urging of his long-time producer Kathleen Kennedy (who has produced four decades worth of Spielberg's seminal films), was emotionally transporting with its whimsical use of towering yet bare-boned horse puppets. But Spielberg immediately understood he would have to find his own visual path to bring the story fully alive on the screen. He took off at a galloping pace.

"The puppets were magnificent on stage, but I knew that if we were going to tell the story, it had to be with real horses," Spielberg says. "I loved the book also, but it is told from Joey's point of view and you even hear Joey's thoughts. I knew that was not an avenue that would work for the film, though it allowed me to understand the importance of telling the story from different viewpoints."

Following a different track, Spielberg envisioned the film emerging from the tradition of the odyssey--the mythic journey that propels a youthful hero into the dangerous world only to return with hard-won wisdom and a fresh view of life. Only this time, the traveler would have the perspective of a different species silently, yet soulfully, witnessing humanity at its most troubled yet inspirational.

Structurally, the film became a study in shifting moods that lead into one another--the rough-hewn, almost storybook village of Joey's youth gives way to the shock and adrenaline rush of a brave new mechanized battlefield, which gives way to an idyllic French farm full of pastoral pleasures, which unravels into the pandemonium of the trenches and the desolate mists of No Man's Land, all of which only reinforces the driving memory of the village where Joey's journey began, and to which he strives to return.

Courage is what keeps Joey and Albert going through four danger-filled years apart, and it is courage that becomes a theme woven through the entire texture and fabric of the film. "I think 'War Horse' has a lot to say about courage--and about doing things not just for yourself but for the sake of those you love. That theme comes through in many different ways," Spielberg notes.

He continues: "Albert and Joey have a tenacious belief in one another. It all begins when they attempt together to plow this impossibly stony, infertile field in Devon, before the war. That creates such a synergy and empathic collaboration between horse and boy that when they are separated by the war, I think the audience senses that at some point there is going to be a date with destiny. And when that date occurs, you see that out, of the chaos, something wonderful happens."

Indeed, everywhere that Joey winds up in his journey, he finds people and animals giving everything they've got to the possibility of survival. From the start the idea of moving seamlessly from one compelling story to the next, all through Joey's experiences, was intriguing to Spielberg. "I don't think I've ever worked before in this kind of episodic format, with miniature stories all coming together into a larger tale," he observes. "Characters come and go as Joey passes through all these lives, and we get to see how each of the characters imprint themselves on Joey--and how Joey affected them."

Whether those characters are British, French or German, Spielberg was interested in the basic humanity at the root of their actions. "War Horse" never concerns itself with identifying an enemy as people from every side find solace and connection with Joey. "The film doesn't take sides as to who is right or who is wrong," says Spielberg. "It's really about how the characters relate to this horse. Horses have no politics; their main concern is for the care of their charges. And that is a very important thing that gives the story its humanity amidst the war."

Another source of fascination for Spielberg in the story are the mysteries of the powerful human bond with nature. He himself lives with horses and has seen firsthand how close they can get to their human companions. Now, he wanted to expose the hearts of horses as they had not been seen on screen before--in all their pure, primal feeling and nobility.

"I have lived with horses for 15 years, and I've gotten to know how expressive they are," the director says. "But movies don't often spend time on what horses are feeling. In the 'Indiana Jones' movies, for example, my job was to focus on Indiana Jones, not his trusted steed. But in the course of making 'War Horse,' I was amazed at how the horses were able to emote so tremendously. In the play the puppets were really able to bring the emotion of the horses to the audience because they were puppets, but I wanted to do that with real horses in the motion picture."

A long-time history buff, Spielberg was well aware that the tests faced by both horses and soldiers in WWI were some of the most harrowing in history. Known as "the war to end all wars" because no one could imagine going through it again, it marked a seismic shift from the chivalry and honor of warfare past to the dehumanization and mass casualties of modern weaponry. But Spielberg determined from the beginning that he would use a truthful restraint that would keep the film anchored in history without ever becoming graphic. "What was on my mind was to make a very honest story," the director comments. "But I was careful to pull back in ways I would not have on 'Saving Private Ryan' or on our miniseries 'Band of Brothers' and 'The Pacific.' I wanted the journey of Albert and his horse to be an authentic, shared experience for families."

Creating that shared experience would also become a reunion for Spielberg with a community of collaborators who have helped to make his wide-ranging productions so culturally influential. "All my stalwart family members, across so many years and covering so many movies, came together to make 'War Horse' with me," he says. "It was a great part of this experience."

For cast and crew it was the perfect marriage of artist to story. Sums up co-screenwriter Lee Hall: "This is a story where the main character has no words, and Steven has the amazing gift of being able to tell the grandest story through the simplest means and make you care. Throughout all his work there are characters who are larger than life, who are different from us, but who we pour our hearts and identification into."

There was also a strong sense of history--and its forward trajectory--that permeated the production. "There was a real sense of respect for the fact that people lived through these events," says Richard Curtis. "There was so much integrity to the design and I think Steven wanted to be as honest and emotionally true as possible, not romanticizing it, but trying to create an authentic experience, yet always with the possibility for Joey and Albert to make it back home."

Adds five-time Oscar®-winning composer John Williams, whose music has been inseparable from Spielberg's movies since 1974: "My reaction to 'War Horse' was how could anyone other than Steven direct, stage, photograph and edit a story like this with such precision and power?"

From Page To Stage To Screen

From modest beginnings "War Horse" has become a part of contemporary culture, a story from a century past that speaks to that which matters to the world right now. It first became a well-loved family book, then an innovative stage play that took audiences by storm and now it sees another incarnation in its most visceral medium yet.

It all started with novelist and children's author Michael Morpurgo, who always wanted to write a tale set against the Great War. World War I is perhaps the least talked-about conflict of the 20th century, leaving in its wake a world forever changed and a generation tasked to rebuild from ashes. For a long time Morpurgo had looked for an original way to write about the war. But it wasn't until he met an aged veteran in a bar that he found his way in--inspiration sparked when he heard the man talk with passion not about his fellow soldiers but about the incredibly heroic horses with whom he served.

Like most people, Morpurgo had never given much thought to horses in wartime, but this old soldier opened his eyes to a vast, unexplored world: the bonds between humans and animals that even battle could not tear asunder, and that kept so many going when they might have given up. "Here I was listening to this old man who had tears in his eyes talking about a relationship he had with a horse on the Western Front decades ago," the novelist recalls. "I learned that these horses were doing so much more than simply carrying soldiers or gun carriages. They deeply mattered to people."

That initial conversation led Morpurgo into his own personal hunt for research, in which he discovered that a remarkable 1 million horses valiantly went into battle with the British during WWI and only 62,000 animals returned. He learned how vital horses were on all sides of the war, giving soldiers from every country an invisible but common thread. He explored poignant paintings and read historical accounts of how horses sacrificed, suffered and committed acts of bravery--just like their human companions. Through it all, he felt this was a story that needed to be told.

Published in 1982 as a story for young adults, the book was quickly embraced by readers around the world and was a runner-up for the prestigious Whitbread Award. In 2007, when the novel was adapted into a mesmerizing stage play at London's National Theatre, audiences went mad for it and for its themes of human-animal friendship, the power of endurance and the way hope for the future stays with us when all appears lost.

The play also spoke to producer Kathleen Kennedy, who upon seeing it, fell in love with Joey and his unwavering determination to find his way home. "I couldn't get the story and the emotions it evoked out of my head," she recalls.

She instantly thought of Spielberg. She knew he had all the creative resources to find the way to bring this astonishing story to moviegoers in a universal and contemporary way. "Steven wasn't interested in making a war movie," explains Kennedy. "Rather, what he loved about 'War Horse' was the relationship between the boy and this horse and their journey. Everybody can identify with Joey's primal emotions and, as a result, cannot help but care deeply for what happens to him, and by following Joey's experience, Steven could show the goodness to be found in people fighting on either side in the war."

Even before production started, Kennedy anticipated that the power of Spielberg's approach would be his ability to key into the ordinary relationships that allow people to do extraordinary things.

When Spielberg took on the project, Morpurgo could hardly believe it. He was thrilled with the direction, which was as unique to the screen as the theater version was to its form. "There was an incredible meeting of minds with Steven. We're both storytellers who are fascinated by how stories can expand and grow. Steven told the story in his own way, with more depth and breadth," says the author.

London-based executive producer Revel Guest, who had endeavored to make a film of "War Horse" since its theatrical opening, was also exhilarated by the match-up. "There is no one I can think of that we would prefer to have direct this film than Steven Spielberg," she says, "He is a lover of horses and also the best war director of our times, so the two combined is exactly right."

The filmmakers next turned their attention to adapting the novel. First they brought in British screenwriter Lee Hall, who wrote the triumphant "Billy Elliot," and then, to add more layers, they brought in another Brit, Richard Curtis, whose films include "Four Weddings and a Funeral" and "Notting Hill" as well as the TV series "Blackadder," a comedy set in the trenches of World War I.

Curtis notes that the story has a strong connection to the world right now. "With the financial recession, and the threat of terrorism, that question of how individuals survive in a big dangerous world is something that we are all more aware of right now," he notes.

But to bring those links out, he had to find answers to two complicated questions: How could Joey be the very center of the story even though he has no voice; and how could the narrative stay with Joey's quest for reunion and not get mired in the muck and chaos of the war? "The war had to be a presence which you always know is there, a threat, but not the central subject," says Curtis. "The challenge was achieving a balance-- not diminishing the horror of the war but not eclipsing what is a very moving story about people bound together by a horse."

As he discussed the nuances of the screenplay with Spielberg, Curtis also was put in mind of another subtle influence. "I think somewhere in Steven's mind was the cinematic tradition of the Western. You start out in a lovely homestead where they're pulling the water and there's a friendly goose, and then suddenly there's the foreboding sense that something bad is coming just over the horizon," he observes.

When the darkness of war arrives in Devon, the resulting chaos cleaves Albert and Joey apart, but Spielberg and Curtis discussed coming up with a narrative device to tie the two friends together even as they each go off on disparate adventures. This became the pennant Albert ties to Joey's reins the day he leaves his side.

For Spielberg, that simple object became a visual through-line. "I wanted to find a way to tie up all of the film's stories with one thing that becomes a kind of unifying force and that is the father's war pennant," he says. "Joey takes with him this memento of their relationship and it goes from story to story until the very end. It was very important to me that there be that kind of visual talisman. The campaign pennant connects Joey not only to all these other stories but it also connects the boy to his father and home."