Big, moving, well-made family blockbusters don’t come along very often. But when they do, they remind us how wonderful it is to be caught up in a thumping good story with characters (including animals) we can connect with and care for. In the age of big brainless 3D franchise films (Pirates, Transformers), it is wonderful to see good traditional storytelling and warm, affectionate filmmaking brought back to our cinema screens in such a stirringly successful way. I’m sure, as the years go by, War Horse will come to be regarded as a cinematic classic.
Disney’s blu-ray release is incredible. The transfer is one of the best the studio has released, and Spielberg’s over-the-top sunset ending looks magnificent.
War Horse (2011), directed by Steven Spielberg, is released on blu-ray and DVD in the UK by Walt Disney Studios, Certificate 12.
