

As the war progresses, Joey passes through a series of owners, including a German ambulance driver, a French farmer, and a horse wrangler for the German artillery, before he is finally reunited with Albert.

Unfortunately, disaster strikes, and the father is forced to sell the horse to Captain James Nicholls (Tom Hiddleston), a cavalry officer, as WWI starts. To everyone’s surprise, their son Albert (Jeremy Irvine) trains the horse, who has been named Joey, to come at his call and to pull a plow. Lyons (David Thewlis), to buy a horse better suited for racing than plowing, even though Rose (Emily Watson), his wife, correctly points out that they can not afford it. Plot Summaryĭrunk and resentful, Ted Narracott (Peter Mullan), a local farmer, outbids his landlord, Mr. By the end of the war, the German, Austro-Hungarian, Russian and Ottoman Empires had ceased to exist. Although the German offensives almost broke through, the Allies counter-attacked and achieved total victory by November. Hoping to achieve victory before the United States could ship over enough soldiers to tip the balance on the side of the Allies, Germany launched a final series of offensives in the spring of 1918. The Russian Empire collapsed in the spring of 1917, and the formation of the Soviet Union following the October Revolution meant that Germany no longer had to fight on two fronts. However, the strategy not only failed to strangle Britain, but also forced the United States to abandon its neutral stance and enter the war. Aware that Britain was dependent on maritime trade for survival, Germany risked American involvement by commencing unrestricted submarine warfare in 1917. Three years of bloody attacks produced terrifying casualties but failed to end the stalemate. After a few months of marching in the beginning of World War I, the Allied countries (Russia, France, Belgium and Britain) and the Central Powers (Germany and Austria-Hungary) found themselves facing each other across massive lines of fortifications that stretched across Europe. Germany’s decision to violate Belgian neutrality brought both Belgium and Britain into the war. Austria threatened tiny Serbia the Russian Empire backed Serbia Germany supported Austria and France supported Russia. The assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, heir to the Austro-Hungarian Empire, by a Serbian nationalist set off a chain of events that activated a complex set of alliances. Producer: Kathleen Kennedy and Steven Spielbergĭirector: Steven Spielberg Historical Background Cast: Jeremy Irvine, Peter Mullan, Emily Watson, David Thewlis, Tom Hiddleston, Benedict Cumberbatch, Celine Buckens, Niels Arestrup, Toby Kebbell and Hinnerk Schonemannīased on the play War Horse by Nick StaffordĬo-producer: Tracey Seaward and Adam SomnerĮxecutive Producer: Revel Guest and Frank Marshall
