Comparing War-Horse And The Lost Battalion

Steven Spielberg’s hugely successful film War-Horse, based off a 1982 novel by Michael Morpurgo, was nominated for and won numerous awards. It describes the journeys of young farm boy Albert and his beloved horse Joey during the perilous time period surrounding World War I. The TV movie The Lost Battalion, while it did not receive nearly the same level of recognition as Spielberg’s work, is still an impressive drama that portrays the historical events of Major Charles Whittlesey’s 800-men battalion against the German army in the Argonne Woods during World War I. Both War-Horse and The Lost Battalion portray compelling stories amid the brutal warfare of World War I and present valuable messages about the ruthlessness of war. While Spielberg’s …show more content…
For War-Horse, the film was worthwhile watching if only for John Williams’s outstanding musical score alone, which incorporated a wide range of musical creativity. Spielberg’s “silent narrator” technique provided a passive lens through which to the view the realities of World War I and war in general and how it destroys lives and cultures. In The Lost Battalion, director Russell Mulcahy focuses on the individual soldiers’ stories and experiences, providing the audience with a shocking and unsettling look at warfare. While War-Horse takes more of a “bigger picture” approach to the battles of World War I, The Lost Battalion “[is] filled with brutal and personal action that makes you feel like you’re there as the men struggle to survive” (Nix). The film also touches on complex moral questions surrounding warfare, as exemplified in the closing exchange between Major Whittlesey and General Alexander. While Alexander brushes aside the huge losses in Whittlesey’s unit as “acceptable,” Whittlesey confronts his commanding officer with questions about what is “acceptable” treatment of human beings during wartime