War Horse
Bottom Line: Perhaps the biggest letdown of all nine 2011 Best Picture nominees.
Directed by: Steven Spielberg
Starring: David Thewlis, Emily Watson, Jeremy Irvine
Gorgeous but sorrowfully ineffective war drama opens with a drunken man by the name of Narracott purchasing a Thoroughbred for thirty guineas, in early 20th century England. His wife is angry with him when he brings it back, not knowing what to do with it, but his son Albert (Jeremy Irvine) is eager to own and take care of the horse. Albert begins to care for the horse, whom he names Joey, but it isn’t long before the horse is needed when England becomes involved in World War I. In love with his horse, Albert makes every desperate effort to enlist in the war and stay close by his horse.
