War Horse
Steven Spielberg is proposing to spend Christmas with the family. After his hectic “Tintin”, he’s already back with “War Horse” tells the extraordinary friendship between a horse and his master. It is a bombastic spectacle and a beautiful naivety that will strike a chord with all its conventions.
The father of “Indiana Jones” is fallen into the fountain of youth. A bit like Martin Scorsese with “Hugo” the creator of “ET” back to childhood by adapting a book – which later became a play – which is aimed first and foremost to a young audience. He loves animals and especially horses. In particular an equine named Joey who is separated from his young master Albert (Jeremy Irvine) shortly before the First World War and who will do anything to find him, turning suddenly the fate of people in its path.
It an old-fashioned charm of this luxurious flat production impeccable art direction and beautiful photography. The feeling of being in front of an old feature of the 1930 or 1940 is faster. Without necessarily paying the excessive nostalgia, the director proposes to work with the old one, without too many special effects, the first part looks like the old TV movies from Walt Disney. It is the friendship between a boy and his friend the horse that takes all the space was acquired in his training until his tragic separation.
The story then branches off from Great Britain to the French territory, against the German invasion. Whatever people up, everyone speaks English, which could mix a young spectator, who are the good and the bad. Our hero finds himself on all fours, more often than on the battlefield and how it changed owners, among allies and enemies (in any case, the horses do not know evil), said “The Red Violin” of Francois Girard, and ultimately “Merry Christmas” by Christian Carion.
The trailer announces the colors perfectly. The effort is sometimes pompous, much too long and supported, often being buried by the beautiful music of John Williams. This is a melodrama in good standing, no transcendent but always honest. Spielberg embraces the theme of freedom and non-violence without his cynicism in recent years, showing the possibilities of the human being by his subject, which grows and fights with their heads held high, hoping all the time. An instructive lesson in courage and inspired, that ultimately makes the sad eyes that could appeal to a younger audience. Yes, of course, violence is no exception, except that it is not nearly as graphic as in “Saving Private Ryan.”
In which actors perform their duties honorably (it’s always funny to see the great Niels Arestrup in the language of Shakespeare) is of course the horse that steals the show. It was even more desirable to see because it is the main vehicle of emotion, leaving everyone in the dry land. There is one who will have no trouble eclipsing the Flicka and Black Beauty in the hearts of children.
Closer to an “Amistad” than a “Munich,” “War Horse” is an attempt to hang up as another child to history. It is certainly not a big Spielberg (who is still exploring its traditional father-son relationship) and a cynical public risk of dropping out before the end, but the test conceals several scenes strong and significant.
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