War Horse Disappoints

Seems like some folks just love it and the rest of us... not so much. Like, not at all.

Why is it such a love/hate movie, I wonder?

I haven't seen it, but to me it seemed like a movie put out to make people some quick cash. If this movie was released at another time besides Christmas, I don't think it would have gotten a nomination.

If you haven't seen it you can't really make that assumption.

Originally Posted by Ulysses S. Grant

If you haven't seen it you can't really make that assumption.

I think there's enough evidence in the trailers to make that assumption. They advertised the hell out of the movie and just threw out the name Spielberg and showed epic battle scenes to attract the casual movie goer around the holiday season.

People who went expecting a great movie were disappointed I think and people who went with no expections enjoyed it.

I don't see it as a very polarizing film

It's not like 300 where most people were either like A: "THIS MOVIE Fricken ROCKSSSSSSS!!!! *quotes line from film*" or B: WOW! This movie sucked! They threw historical out the window! Shallow action film... rabble rabble rabble..."

Or Avatar: "SOOOO EPIC!" or "OMG OVERRATED! It's just POCAHONTAS IN SPACE!"



But I guess it's just one of those movies, it's an over the top (WWI reference), dramatic, emotional-roller coaster kind of movie. Not everyone is going to like that.

Most movie reviews of it seem to give it a 75ish 100, I interpret that as:

75 percent of people went in, saw it, and thought it was a great film.

20 percent of people who saw it thought, "meh Spielberg lays it on a tad too thick for my liking..."

5 percent of people or less were like, "WTF this is GAY! I thought it was a war movie!"


Personally, I liked it a lot, at a few points I was like "*groan* COME ON...." but overall I thought it was a great film and it deserves its nominations.

Movie looks retarded from trailers and it was an shallow oscar pandering film in person.

Part of the yearly oscar pandering manufactured films.

Seeing how theres hardly any movies about the first world war I am looking forward to seeing this one actually at some point.

Shazbot may make an interesting point: I expected nothing great and thought it was a decent film, but I would've felt sorry for anyone expecting to see their film of the year, because it wasn't anything spectacular.

To be fair, my enjoyment of it was enhanced by a particularly amusing plot hole being pointed out to me mid-film, which I will spoiler.

Spoiler for Plot details within!: 

The scene in which the "best friend" black horse dies during the German redeployment, and then the main horse escapes when the Germans flee from the advancing British Tank.

The black horse dies right in the middle of that road, and the tank turns down said road and advances up the dead end towards the horse, who jumps the tank and runs away, ending up caught in the barbed wire in no-man's-land.

Surely, for the tank to actually make that turn and advance up that road, it would've had to run right over the top of the dead horse? I don't think that was Spielberg's intended fate for the best friend horse, crushed by a few tons of metal.

Originally Posted by Poach

Shazbot may make an interesting point: I expected nothing great and thought it was a decent film, but I would've felt sorry for anyone expecting to see their film of the year, because it wasn't anything spectacular.

To be fair, my enjoyment of it was enhanced by a particularly amusing plot hole being pointed out to me mid-film, which I will spoiler.

Spoiler for Plot details within!: 

The scene in which the "best friend" black horse dies during the German redeployment, and then the main horse escapes when the Germans flee from the advancing British Tank.

The black horse dies right in the middle of that road, and the tank turns down said road and advances up the dead end towards the horse, who jumps the tank and runs away, ending up caught in the barbed wire in no-man's-land.

Surely, for the tank to actually make that turn and advance up that road, it would've had to run right over the top of the dead horse? I don't think that was Spielberg's intended fate for the best friend horse, crushed by a few tons of metal.

It was a good film. It wasn't great in my opinion. I liked it but I felt it was a bit too long and dragged in certain places, especially at the start before the war.

The story is that he joins to war to find his horse but wouldn't he of been conscripted as soon as he came of age?

as to your spoiler

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

That is a brilliant plot hole.

Also the tank driver decides to ignore the fleeing Germans, which he would of seen when the tank came over the top, and instead chase after that Evil German horse for no particular reason.

It's not a plot hole but more a completely illogical scene

Originally Posted by Poach

S

Spoiler for Plot details within!: 

The scene in which the "best friend" black horse dies during the German redeployment, and then the main horse escapes when the Germans flee from the advancing British Tank.

The black horse dies right in the middle of that road, and the tank turns down said road and advances up the dead end towards the horse, who jumps the tank and runs away, ending up caught in the barbed wire in no-man's-land.

Surely, for the tank to actually make that turn and advance up that road, it would've had to run right over the top of the dead horse? I don't think that was Spielberg's intended fate for the best friend horse, crushed by a few tons of metal.

Perhaps it is a signal that shows the end of cavalry warfare with replacement by tank warfare?

Originally Posted by ivan_the_terrible

Well the Huns were known to eat horsemeat...

Consider the situation of Germany in 1918 I bet half of German soldiers were thinking "meat!!!!" when they saw a masterless horse.

Originally Posted by hellheaven1987

Perhaps it is a signal that shows the end of cavalry warfare with replacement by tank warfare?



Consider the situation of Germany in 1918 I bet half of German soldiers were thinking "meat!!!!" when they saw a masterless horse.

You mean if they ever saw one at that stage

Originally Posted by hellheaven1987

Perhaps it is a signal that shows the end of cavalry warfare with replacement by tank warfare?

Yeah thats a good theory but it could of been done better.

Consider the situation of Germany in 1918 I bet half of German soldiers were thinking "meat!!!!" when they saw a masterless horse.

I would be very surprised if this was a true story. In Rl these horses would of been after the first battle.

I thought it was dreadfully rubbish until the war started and the horse went to war... then it got interesting.

I could already tell by the trailers I wouldn't like it. I thought it looked sappy, predictable, and boring

http://www.hulu.com/watch/311556/sat...live-war-horse

The only thing I remember from the trailer was a guy crying: "It's my horse".

We all know the true ending is that horse ended up as the food of German soldiers - All Quiet on Western Front explains that well.

Originally Posted by hellheaven1987

We all know the true ending is that horse ended up as the food of German soldiers - All Quiet on Western Front explains that well.

Well the Huns were known to eat horsemeat...

Originally Posted by hellheaven1987

We all know the true ending is that horse ended up as the food of German soldiers - All Quiet on Western Front explains that well.

*sniff*"..but..it's wrong to kill horses!"

Originally Posted by the celt

*sniff*"..but..it's wrong to kill horses!"

surprisingly, it did kill more innocent animals and children than Hollywood stereotypically allows (windmill scene, anyone?), although it did emphasize those enormously.

All in all, a pretty good movie. A few sappy moments, but aside from that, I came in with low expectations and was thouroughly entertained.

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

WIRE CUTTERS! THEY WILL BLACK OUT THE SUN!

I thought it was pretty good. Not great, but they needed to tone down the violence in order to keep a PG-13 rating.