| War Horse | |
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 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Steven Spielberg |
| Screenplay by | |
| Based on | |
| Produced by |
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| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Janusz Kamiński |
| Edited by | Michael Kahn |
| Music by | John Williams |
Production companies | |
| Distributed by |
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Release dates |
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Running time | 146 minutes[5] |
| Countries |
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| Language | English |
| Budget | $66–70 million[7][8] |
| Box office | $177.6 million[7] |
War Horse is a 2011war drama film directed and produced bySteven Spielberg, from a screenplay written byLee Hall andRichard Curtis. It is based onMichael Morpurgo's 1982 novelof the same name and its 2007stage adaptation. The film features anensemble cast that includesPeter Mullan,Emily Watson,Niels Arestrup,Jeremy Irvine (in his feature film debut),David Thewlis,Tom Hiddleston andBenedict Cumberbatch. Set before and duringWorld War I, its plot follows Joey, abayIrish Hunter horse raised by English teenager Albert as he is bought by the British Army, leading him to encounter various people throughout Europe, in the midst of the war and its tragedies.
DreamWorks Pictures acquired the film rights to the novel in December 2009, and Spielberg was announced to direct in May 2010. Having directed several films set duringWorld War II, it was his first to tackle the events of World War I. Shot in England over 63 days, the production used 5,800 extras and 300 horses. Several longtime Spielberg collaborators—including producerKathleen Kennedy, cinematographerJanusz Kamiński, editorMichael Kahn, production designerRick Carter and composerJohn Williams—worked on the film.
Produced by DreamWorks and distributed worldwide byWalt Disney Studios Motion Pictures through theTouchstone Pictures label,War Horse became a box-office success (earning $177 million on a $70 million budget) and was met with positive reviews. The film was named one of the ten best films of 2011 by theAmerican Film Institute and theNational Board of Review, and was nominated for sixAcademy Awards (includingBest Picture), twoGolden Globes and fiveBAFTAs.
In 1912, a bayIrish Hunter is born inDevon, England. At an auction, farmer Ted Narracott outbids his landlord Lyons for thecolt, to the dismay of his wife Rose, because the family needs a working horse that can plough the field, not an Irish Hunter. Their son Albert, accompanied by his best friend Andrew, names the colt Joey, and teaches him to come when he imitates an owl's call. The pair form a close bond. Against all odds, the horse and boy plough a rocky field, which lets them grow turnips and thus saving the family's farm.
Rose shows Albert his father's medals, including aDistinguished Conduct Medal, from theSecond Boer War, and gives him Ted'sregimental pennant, confiding in Albert that his father carries physical and mental scars from the war.
In 1914, aswar with Germany is declared, heavy rain ruins the family's crops, forcing Ted to sell Joey to thearmy. Albert is heartbroken but can do nothing to prevent the sale. Joey's new owner, Captain James Nicholls, sees Albert's attachment to the horse and promises to look after him. Albert tries to enlist but is too young, and before the company departs, he ties the pennant to Joey's bridle and promises that he will find him.
Joey bonds with Topthorn, a black stallion with whom he is trained for his military role. The horses are deployed toFlanders with aflying column under the command of Nicholls and Major Stewart. They lead acavalry charge through a German encampment only to be cut down by hiddenmachine gun nests. Nicholls is killed along with almost all his fellow cavalrymen and the Germans capture the horses.
Gunther, a young volunteer, grooms Joey and Topthorn for his commanders. When his younger brother Michael is sent to the front lines, Gunther takes the horses and the four of themrun away. The German army tracks down the boys, shoots them for desertion, and leaves without noticing the horses. They are found by Emilie, a French girl, the next morning. When German soldiers arrive at her grandfather's farm, she hides the horses in her bedroom. For her birthday, Emilie's grandfather allows her to ride Joey, but they run into the Germans who confiscate the horses. Emilie's grandfather keeps the pennant.
By 1918, Albert has enlisted and is fighting alongside Andrew in theSecond Battle of the Somme. After a British charge intono man's land, Albert and Andrew make it across to the German trench, where agas bomb explodes. Andrew is killed while Albert survives, temporarily blinded.
The Germans use Joey and Topthorn to haul artillery, under the care of Private Friedrich Hengelmann. He cares for them as best as he can, but the severely worn Topthorn succumbs to exhaustion from overwork and dies. Devastated over this loss, Hengelmann rebels against his commanders and is detained, but not before freeing Joey from his reins. Joey gallops intono man's land and evades atank but is entangled in barbed wire. Colin, a British soldier, makes his way to Joey under a white flag and tries to free him. Peter, a German soldier, comes over with wire cutters, and together they rescue Joey. To decide who should take the horse, they flip a coin. Colin wins and guides the injured Joey to the British trench. Albert hears about Joey's rescue while recuperating. Just as Joey is about to be put down by a doctor who deems the horse too injured to recover, Joey hears Albert's owl call. Albert, his eyes still bandaged, is able to describe Joey in perfect detail, and the two are reunited. The doctor decides to nurse Joey back to health.
World War Iends, and Joey put up for auction because only the horses of officers will return home. Albert's comrades raise a collection to bid for the horse against a wealthy French butcher. The auction is won by Emilie's grandfather, who implies that she has died, and the horse is all he has left of her. However, after Albert pleads with him, the old man recognizes the strength of the soldier's bond, returning the pennant and Joey to Albert. Albert returns with Joey to his family's farm, embracing his mother and returning the pennant to his father, who extends his hand to him with pride as Joey watches.
Michael Morpurgo wrote the 1982 children's novelWar Horse after meeting World War I veterans in the Devon village ofIddesleigh where he lived.[9] One had been with theDevon Yeomanry and was involved with horses; Captain Budgett, another veteran in his village, was with theBritish cavalry and told Morpurgo how he had confided all his hopes and fears to his horse. Both told him of the horrific conditions and loss of life, human and animal, during the Great War.[10] Morpurgo researched the subject further and learned that a million horses died on the British side; he extrapolated an overall figure of 10 million horse deaths on all sides.[11] Of the million horses that were sent abroad from the UK, only 62,000 returned, the rest dying in the war or slaughtered in France for meat.[12]
The Great War had a massive and indelible impact on the UK's male population: 886,000 men died, one in eight of those who went to war, and 2% of the entire country's population.[13] After observing a young boy with astammer forming a fond relationship with and talking fluently to a horse at a farm run by Morpurgo's charityFarms for City Children, Morpurgo found a way to tell the story through the horse and its relations with the various people it meets before and during the course of the war: a youngDevon farmboy, a British cavalry officer, a German soldier, and an old Frenchman and his granddaughter.[13][14]
"I won't kid you, it was more money [for the film rights] than I've ever been paid for anything I've ever written. But that wasn't the temptation. The temptation was the chance for an iconic film about the First World War, perhaps as great asAll Quiet on the Western Front with its overpowering sense of waste."
Morpurgo tried toadapt the book into a film screenplay, working for over five years withSimon Channing-Williams, which would ultimately go unproduced.[16] The book was successfullyadapted for a stage play byNick Stafford in 2007.[17] From 2006 to 2009, Morpurgo,Lee Hall andRevel Guest worked on a proposed film version ofWar Horse, which Morpurgo and Hall would write and Guest produce. Lack of finances meant that it was an informal arrangement, with the film rights not formally sold by Morpurgo to Guest's production company and no one being paid for the work they undertook.[18][19] In 2009, film producerKathleen Kennedy saw the critically acclaimedproduction ofWar Horse in London'sWest End with her husband, fellow producerFrank Marshall, and their two daughters. They were very impressed by the story, and Marshall recalled how he was amazed that no one had already bought the film rights to the book.[20][21]
Steven Spielberg was told aboutWar Horse by several people, including Kennedy, his colleague atAmblin Entertainment.[21][22][23] After discussions with Revel Guest, on 16 December 2009, it was announced thatDreamWorks Pictures had acquired the film rights to the book, with Spielberg stating: "From the moment I read Michael Morpurgo's novelWar Horse, I knew this was a film I wanted DreamWorks to make … Its heart and its message provide a story that can be felt in every country."[24][25] Spielberg saw the London production of the play on 1 February 2010, and met some of the cast afterwards.[26][27][28] He admitted to being moved to tears by the performance.[29]
DreamWorks executiveStacey Snider suggestedRichard Curtis to work on rewrites for the screenplay; she had worked with Curtis during her time atUniversal Pictures, and Curtis had previously written the World War I-set BBC comedy seriesBlackadder Goes Forth along withBen Elton.[30] Spielberg was a fan ofBlackadder but had never met Curtis,[31] who was initially reluctant to take part, but on meeting Spielberg, he rethought and committed to work on the script.[31] Curtis stated that the screenplay is closer to the book than the play, and that "the existence of the play itself helped [him] "be brave" about [his] own adaptation".[32] Curtis produced over a dozen drafts in three months,[33] and has spoken of the close collaboration he had with Spielberg while working on the script.[34][35]
Having previously only been slated to produce the film, Spielberg decided to direct "the second [he] read [Curtis's] first draft. It happened faster than anything else we've [Spielberg and Snider] done together."[36] On 3 May 2010, it was announced that Spielberg was to direct the film;[37] the cast was announced on 17 June.[38] Speaking at theTribeca Film Festival in April 2011, actorPeter Mullan said that he took the part not just because Spielberg was directing, but also because of the "beautiful, really nice script".[39]
Within weeks of hearing from Kennedy about the London theatre production, Spielberg had seen the play, and decided this would be his next film.[40] Spielberg was able to act so quickly because he was on a hiatus, waiting for the animation on his other 2011 filmThe Adventures of Tintin to be completed.[33]
Spielberg had previously worked on numerous projects withWorld War II themes. In contrast,War Horse is Spielberg's first foray into World War I storytelling,[41] as he admitted that, prior to learning about theWar Horse book and play, "I had never been that interested in World War I".[23] Kathleen Kennedy elaborated on the appeal of the story: "In cinema we've told very few stories about World War I and I think that's one of the things that attracted us to this … It's a forgotten war in the United States, and that had a very powerful effect on Steven and I."[42]David Kenyon andAndrew Robertshaw of Battlefield Partnerships were military advisors on the film.[43][44][45][46]
After some speculation, the cast forWar Horse was announced on 17 June 2010.[38][47] It had been rumored in the previous week thatEddie Redmayne had been cast in the lead role as Albert Narracott;[48] however, relatively unknown stage actorJeremy Irvine was chosen instead. Spielberg commented that after seeing hundreds of young boys reading for the role, Irvine had come in and done a cold reading and that "his performance was very natural, very authentic."[23] Irvine auditioned for two months, going in two or three times a week, and learned that he had the part when he was asked to read a piece of the script on camera in order to check hisWest Country accent, and the piece of mockup script that he read out was Albert telling Joey that Spielberg wanted him to play the part.[49]
The cast is European,[50] with British, French and German actors playing characters of their respective nationalities.[51]Robert Emms, who played the lead of Albert Narracott in the West End production of the play, was cast as David Lyons.[52]
Casting forextras took place in Devon in late July 2010.[53] In all, some 5,800 extras were used in the film.[33] The granddaughter of Captain Budgett, one of the World War I veterans who had inspired Morpurgo to write the story, acted as an extra in scenes filmed in Castle Combe,[54] and Morpurgo himself filmed a cameo role there, along with his wifeClare.[55][56][57]
Filming took place under the codenameDartmoor to maintain a level of secrecy during production,[53][58] and took about 64 days in total.[59] Scenes involving the cavalry were shot first atStratfield Saye House in northHampshire, the estate of theDuke of Wellington, where incidentally Wellington's war horseCopenhagen is buried; a cavalry charge involving 130 extras was filmed here.[60]
Filming on location inDartmoor,Devon, started in August 2010.[61][62] Initially, Spielberg was only going to have four or five days' worth ofsecond unit material shot in Devon, but after Kathleen Kennedy sent him photographs of the various locations she had scouted, he decided to cut other elements of the story to enable more filming to take place in countryside that Kennedy described as "so extraordinarily beautiful and absolutely perfect for the story".[63] Dartmoor locations included the small villages ofMeavy andSheepstor,Burrator Reservoir, Bonehill Rocks and the surrounding area nearWidecombe-in-the-Moor, Ringmoor Down, Combestone Tor and the surrounding area,Haytor, Hexworthy Bridge, and Cadover Bridge/Brisworthy.[64][65]Ditsworthy Warren House, an isolated Grade IIlisted building near Sheepstor on Dartmoor, served as the Narracott family's farmhouse, and many scenes were filmed in the surrounding area.[64][66][67]
On 11 September 2010, the annualDartmoor Yomp was rerouted to allow filming to continue undisturbed.[68] Spielberg praised the Dartmoor countryside's beauty: "I have never before, in my long and eclectic career, been gifted with such an abundance of natural beauty as I experienced filmingWar Horse on Dartmoor… And, with two-and-a-half weeks of extensive coverage of landscapes and skies, I hardly scratched the surface of the visual opportunities that were offered to me".[69] Spielberg felt that the landscape was very much a character in the film.[70] When actorPeter Mullan won theGolden Shell Award at theSan Sebastián International Film Festival in Spain for his filmNeds, Spielberg insisted that Mullan should attend the ceremony to accept his award in person on 26 September 2010, and rearranged theWar Horse shooting schedule accordingly.[71][72]
Although Devon rural locations were used, scenes in the main village in the story were filmed at theWiltshire village ofCastle Combe nearChippenham, despite thevernacular architecture of Devon (predominantlycob walls andthatched roofs) being very different from that of Wiltshire (stone walls and stone tiled roofs). Filming began there on 21 September 2010, and continued until 1 October.[73][74][75][76] Some residents of Castle Combe were angered by the imposition of tightened security within the village, claiming they could not enter without waiting at perimeter barriers until breaks in filming.[77]
Production moved on toWisley Airfield[78] inSurrey, whereno man's land battlefield scenes were filmed.[31][58][79][80] Shooting of wartime camp scenes also took place atBourne Wood nearFarnham in Surrey, a frequent location for filming, for about two weeks beginning on 4 October 2010.[58][81][82][83] Scenes were shot at thestately homeLuton Hoo between 13 and 14 October 2010.[84] Filming was also scheduled to be undertaken atCaerwent in Wales.[85] Studio filming was undertaken atLongcross Studios,Chertsey in Surrey,[82] and atTwickenham Film Studios.[86] The film shoot was completed in the last week of October 2010,[33] with the entire film, French scenes included, being shot in the UK, apart from somepick-up shots of a bay foal filmed inCalifornia in March 2011.[87] Spielberg commented on how he and cinematographer Janusz Kamiński developed the "look" of the film: "…it doesn't feel likeRyan at all … it has a much moredaguerrotype feel, much more brownish. We're not using any of the techniques we used onRyan. The only similarity is that it is war and it ishandheld."[31]
"The Michael Morpurgo book is ‘Black Beauty goes to war’. So if you’re English, two of the most emotive subjects you could touch on areBlack Beauty and the First World War. The crew were constantly in tears, as there werewar memorials and everybody had a story in their family ... for English people, everyone is touched by that war."
Michael Morpurgo, the author of the book on which the film is based, visited the set several times while filming was being undertaken: "Spielberg's a wonderful storyteller and a kid. He adores stories and that's what he's best at. It's extraordinary to meet someone with that kind of enthusiasm, utterly unspoiled … When I went to visit him on set, he was clearly enthralled by the countryside. He fell for Devon in a big way. He was warm, kind and open, and utterly without ego … Spielberg was like a conductor with a very light baton. He hardly had to wave it at all. I was in awe."[80]Emily Watson also praised Spielberg's approach: "It was intimate, passionate and about the acting. And every single priority that as an actor that you would want to be there was there. It felt very real and focused."[88] "On set, he'd come in, in the morning, and say, 'I couldn't sleep last night. I was worrying about this shot!' Which was great! He's human and he's still working in an impassioned way, like a 21-year-old, trying to make the best out of everything".[89]
"When I'm on anIndy movie, I'm watching Indiana Jones, not the horse he is riding ... Suddenly I'm faced with the challenge of making a movie where I not only had to watch the horse, I had to compel the audience to watch it along with me. I had to pay attention to what it was doing and understand its feelings. It was a whole new experience for me."
The pre-production period only allowed for three months to train the horses before shooting commenced.[90] The main horse trainer was Bobby Lovgren,[90] and other horse trainers included Dylan Jones, Bill Lawrence,[91][92] and Zelie Bullen.[93][94]
During filming, fourteen different horses were used as the main horse character Joey, eight of them portraying him as an adult animal, four as a colt and two as a foal;[91] four horses played the other main equine character, Topthorn.[90] Up to 280 horses were used in a single scene.[33] Afarrier was on set to replace horseshoes sucked off in the mud during filming, and the horses playing the main horse characters had a specialist equine make-up team, with their coats dyed and markings added to ensure continuity. Equine artist Ali Bannister was responsible for the "hair and makeup" of the horses, as well as drawing the sketches of horses that are featured in the film.[95] Extra filming involving a bay foal took place in California in March 2011.[96] Working with horses on this scale was a new experience for Spielberg, who commented: "The horses were an extraordinary experience for me, because several members of my family ride. I was really amazed at how expressive horses are and how much they can show what they're feeling."[97]
Representatives of theAmerican Humane Association were on set at all times, and the Association awarded the film an "outstanding" rating for the care that was taken of the animals during production.[98] Ananimatronic horse was used for some parts of the scenes where Joey is trapped in barbed wire;[99] the wire was rubber prop wire.[98] Unlike the play, which used puppet horses, the film uses a combination of real horses,animatronic horses andcomputer-generated imagery.[97][100][96]
EditorMichael Kahn spoke of his work on the film: "We have some shots inWar Horse that are just fantastic … We shot it in Devon, and you know it's gorgeous down there, and the horses are beautiful and the farms are beautiful, beautiful scenery and every shot is gorgeous, and eventually you get to the war part of it and it's really, really something." Kahn had a trailer on set and edited the film during filming.[101] Kahn and Spielberg cut the film digitally on anAvid rather than on film, a first with this technology for Spielberg; "He decided that he'd like to try it", Kahn commented.[102][103]
After filming, further editing was undertaken at the UK's Twickenham Film Studios, with the production moving back to the U.S. in November 2010.[86] Kahn also said of his work on the film: "We put together here in Hollywood. It worked well … Those English actors are awfully good and so were the horses. The horses were beautifully trained. For an editor there were a lot of match [frame] problems with the horses but the shooting was so good that I got everything I needed."[100]
Visual effects for the film were undertaken by London-based companyFramestore.[104] According to Spielberg, the film's only digital effects were three shots lasting three seconds, which were undertaken to ensure the safety of the horse involved: "That's the thing I'm most proud of. Everything you see on screen really happened."[29] Kathleen Kennedy elaborated, stating "We really did it very naturalistically. There isn't a lot of blood. Steven wasn't interested in bringingPrivate Ryan into it, but we did want to make aPG-13 movie."[22] ActorTom Hiddleston said that Spielberg had "seen the stage play and he wanted to retain the magic and heartbeat of that … It's a moving, powerful story you can take children to see, but it is still very upsetting … People die, and it is war."[105]
John Williams composed and conducted the film's musical score, the second score composed the same year by Williams for Spielberg afterThe Adventures of Tintin.[106] Williams took inspiration by visiting a horse farm in California and observing horses and their behavior, saying that "I got in the habit of watching the horses in the morning, and I began to see how they connect to each other and how they became curious about me. That's when I really began to get the sense that horses are very special creatures. They have been magnificent and trusted friends for such a long time and have done so much for us with such grace."[107]
The score was recorded by a 90-piece orchestra and Williams compared the recording sessions more to aconcert piece rather than a traditional film score, as it relied more on the individual performance of the musicians.[107] It was recorded in late March and early April 2011.[108] Tuba player Jim Self reported in May 2011: "For John Williams I recently finished recording for the filmWar Horse. It's a war movie so the score has a lot of brass—but it was gentle music often."[109] The score was released bySony Classical Records on 21 December 2011 to critical acclaim.
"To round out the year, Steven Spielberg'sWar Horse appears in time for the festive period. If you're thinking that nothing says Christmas like the bloody trench warfare carnage, you may be in luck. But while Spielberg isn't one to sugarcoat the horrors of war, he's just the director to fill this Great War-set story of a boy and his horse with saddlebags of heart and soul. We can't wait to see how he's brought the colossally popular stage play to the big screen."
War Horse was distributed in North America byWalt Disney Studios Motion Pictures through itsTouchstone Pictures label on 25 December 2011,[111][112] making it the first Spielberg-directed film to be distributed throughWalt Disney Studios. The film's North American release date was originally set for 10 August 2011, but after a meeting in London between DreamWorks and Disney executives in early October 2010, when some footage was screened, the decision was taken to move its release to 28 December in the holiday period,[113] and in the United Kingdom on 13 January 2012.[114] DreamWorks executive Stacey Snider said, "The reaction to the footage—which [Spielberg] usually never shows—was that it feels like a big, holiday movie … It just became inevitable that we would move it. [Spielberg] feels great about it."[113]
Only a very few unofficial on-set images and clips of video footage were published in the press and online during the filming period. Due to the usual embargo on photos and videos being taken and made public during Spielberg shoots, very few images emerged, with the majority being snatched paparazzi shots. In October 2010, cinematographer Kamiński posted an on-set image of himself on a battlefield set on hisFacebook page.[115] The first ten official photographs were made public by DreamWorks in several releases between 11 and 14 March 2011, inEmpire magazine and in an article inEntertainment Weekly.[116] On 16 March 2011, a British blogger published an account of her unofficial visit to theWar Horse set atDitsworthy Warren House, and was able to take pictures of the set's interior and of Steven Spielberg despite the security on set.[117] On 29 March, DreamWorks presented behind-the-scenes footage introduced on film by Spielberg to theatre owners at CinemaCon in Las Vegas. Spielberg was unable to attend in person as he was still working on post-production.[118]
On 29 June 2011, the film's first official teaser trailer was released, and the official website was launched.[119][120] On its launch, the website was rather sparse, with only the official trailer and synopsis, and two of the ten previously released official images. Further footage introduced on film by Spielberg was shown at theEmpire magazine "Big Screen" event in London in August 2011.[121] Jeremy Irvine talked about his experiences making the film at the same event.[49] The full theatrical trailer was released on 4 October 2011,[122][123] and more on-set pictures were released on 17 November.[124]
The publicity strategy forWar Horse unusually featured preview screenings for the public inU.S. heartland areas before either the critics were shown the film or it was screened to the public in major metropolitan areas. The first preview screenings ofWar Horse were held at various locations across the United States on 1, 2 and 10 November 2011.[125][126] More preview screenings in the U.S. took place on 27 November, with Spielberg attending a question and answer session at the New York screening that was beamed to the other screening cinemas and shown live on the internet.[127][128]
Press screenings for critics were first held in New York and Los Angeles on 24 November 2011, although there was an embargo on official reviews being published at that time.[129] On 27 November, there was a special screening in London for the crew and cast, the first time anyone involved with the film (apart from Spielberg and his close collaborators) had seen it.[130] Three television advertisements for the film were released in the U.S. on 24 November 2011,[131] shortly followed by others.[132][133]
On 4 December 2011, the film'sworld premiere was held at theAvery Fisher Hall of New York City'sLincoln Center, where the Tony award-winningBroadway production ofWar Horse was playing at the neighboringVivian Beaumont Theater. The UK premiere took place in London's Leicester Square on 8 January 2012, and was attended byPrince William, Duke of Cambridge and his wifeCatherine, Duchess of Cambridge.[134]
A tie-in book by Steven Spielberg was published byHarperCollins on 27 December 2011.[135]
War Horse was released onBlu-ray Disc,DVD, and digital download byTouchstone Home Entertainment on 3 April 2012. The release was produced in three different physical packages: a four-disc combo pack (two-disc Blu-ray, DVD, and Digital Copy); a two-disc combo pack (Blu-ray and DVD); and a single-disc DVD. The film was released digitally through on-demand services such as theITunes Store in high and standard definitions.[136] The single-disc DVD includes the bonus featureWar Horse: The Look, and the digital versions include "An Extra's Point of View"; the two-disc combo pack includes both bonus features. The four-disc combo pack comes with the same extras as the two-disc combo pack, as well as "A Filmmaking Journey", "Editing & Scoring", "The Sounds ofWar Horse", and "Through the Producer's Lens" bonus features.[137]
War Horse grossed $79,859,441 domestically and $97,200,000 internationally for a worldwide total of $177,584,879. Although it was not one of Spielberg's biggest box office successes, it was the highest-grossing World War I film of all time untilWonder Woman overtook it six years later.[7]
OnRotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 74% based on 241 reviews, with an average score of 7/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "Technically superb, proudly sentimental, and unabashedly old-fashioned,War Horse is an emotional drama that tugs the heartstrings with Spielberg's customary flair."[138]Metacritic reports a score of 72/100 based on 40 critics, indicating "Generally favorable reviews".[139] Audiences surveyed byCinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A−" on an A+ to F scale.[140]
Although there was an embargo on official reviews of the film being published before 21 December 2011,[141] reviews started appearing on 26 November in mainstream press such asThe Daily Telegraph, which gave it 41⁄2 out of 5 stars.[142]
Giving the film an A− grade,Lisa Schwarzbaum ofEntertainment Weekly wrote, "The project is tailor-made forSaving Private Ryan Spielberg, the war-story specialist, as well as forE.T. Spielberg, the chronicler of boyhood desires and yearnings for family."[143]Rex Reed ofThe New York Observer gave the film 4 out of 4 stars and said, "War Horse is a don't-miss Spielberg classic that reaches true perfection. It's as good as movies can get, and one of the greatest triumphs of this or any other year."[144]Roger Ebert gave the film 3.5 out of 4 stars, saying it contained "surely some of the best footage Spielberg has ever directed ... The film is made with superb artistry. Spielberg is the master of an awesome canvas. Most people will enjoy it, as I did."[145]Richard Roeper praisedWar Horse by saying, "What a gorgeous, breathtaking, epic adventure this is," and gave the film 4.5 out of 5 stars.[146]Ty Burr ofThe Boston Globe said that the film was a work of "full-throated Hollywood classicism" that looks back to the craftsmanship and sentimentality ofJohn Ford and other legends of the studio era, and gave it 3 out of 4 stars.[147]
Conversely,Simon Winder ofThe Guardian wrote that the film, "despite twisting and turning to be even-handed, simply could not help itself and, like some faux-reformed alcoholic, gorged itself on an entire miniature liqueur selection of Anglo-German clichés".[148]David Denby ofThe New Yorker wrote that "The horses themselves are magnificent, and maybe that's reason enough to see the movie. ButWar Horse is a bland, bizarrely unimaginative piece of work".[149]
War Horse made several critics' lists of the best films of 2011.Richard Corliss ofTime named it the fifth best film of 2011, saying. "Boldly emotional, nakedly heartfelt,War Horse will leave only the stoniest hearts untouched".[150] David Chen of/Film selectedWar Horse as 2011's best film.[151]
| Awards | Category | Name | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Academy Awards | Best Picture | Steven Spielberg Kathleen Kennedy | Nominated | [152] |
| Best Art Direction | Rick Carter Lee Sandales | Nominated | ||
| Best Cinematography | Janusz Kamiński | Nominated | ||
| Best Original Score | John Williams | Nominated | ||
| Best Sound Editing | Richard Hymns Gary Rydstrom | Nominated | ||
| Best Sound Mixing | Gary Rydstrom Andy Nelson Tom Johnson Stuart Wilson | Nominated | ||
| American Cinema Editors Awards | Best Edited Feature Film – Dramatic | Michael Kahn | Nominated | [153] |
| American Film Institute Awards | Film of the Year 2011 | War Horse | Won | [154] |
| British Academy Film Awards | Best Film Music | John Williams | Nominated | [155] |
| Best Cinematography | Janusz Kamiński | Nominated | ||
| Best Production Design | Rick Carter Lee Sandales | Nominated | ||
| Best Sound | Stuart Wilson Gary Rydstrom Andy Nelson Tom Johnson Richard Hymns | Nominated | ||
| Best Special Visual Effects | Ben Morris Neil Corbould | Nominated | ||
| BMI Film & TV Awards | Film Music Award | John Williams | Won | [156] |
| Broadcast Film Critics Association Awards | Best Picture | War Horse | Nominated | [157] |
| Best Director | Steven Spielberg | Nominated | ||
| Best Cinematography | Janusz Kamiński | Won | ||
| Best Art Direction | Rick Carter Lee Sandales | Nominated | ||
| Best Editing | Michael Kahn | Nominated | ||
| Best Sound | War Horse | Nominated | ||
| Best Score | John Williams | Nominated | ||
| Chicago Film Critics Association Awards | Best Cinematography | Janusz Kamiński | Nominated | [158] |
| Golden Globe Awards | Best Motion Picture – Drama | War Horse | Nominated | [159] |
| Best Original Score | John Williams | Nominated | ||
| Houston Film Critics Society Awards | Best Film | War Horse | Nominated | [160][161] |
| Best Cinematography | Janusz Kamiński | Nominated | ||
| Best Score | John Williams | Nominated | ||
| London Film Critics' Circle Awards | British Actor of the Year | Peter Mullan | Nominated | [162] |
| Young British Performer of the Year | Jeremy Irvine | Nominated | ||
| Motion Picture Sound Editors Golden Reel Awards | Best Sound Editing: Sound Effects and Foley in a Feature Film | War Horse | Won | [163] |
| Best Sound Editing: Dialogue and ADR in a Feature Film | War Horse | Nominated | ||
| National Board of Review Awards | Best Film | War Horse | Nominated | [164] |
| Top Ten Films | War Horse | Won | ||
| Producers Guild of America Awards | Best Theatrical Motion Picture | Kathleen Kennedy Steven Spielberg | Nominated | [165] |
| Satellite Awards | Best Motion Picture | War Horse | Nominated | [166] |
| Best Director | Steven Spielberg | Nominated | ||
| Best Adapted Screenplay | Lee Hall Richard Curtis | Nominated | ||
| Best Original Score | John Williams | Nominated | ||
| Best Cinematography | Janusz Kamiński | Won | ||
| Best Visual Effects | Ben Morris | Nominated | ||
| Best Film Editing | Michael Kahn | Nominated | ||
| Best Sound (Editing & Mixing) | Andy Nelson Gary Rydstrom Richard Hymns Stuart Wilson Tom Johnson | Nominated | ||
| Visual Effects Society Awards | Outstanding Supporting Visual Effects in a Feature Motion Picture | Annie Godin Louis Morin | Nominated | [167] |
| Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association | Best Art Direction | Rick Carter Lee Sandales | Nominated | [168] |
| Best Cinematography | Janusz Kamiński | Nominated | ||
| Best Score | John Williams | Nominated |
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
