In 1912, a bay Irish Hunter is born in Devon, England. At an auction, farmer Ted Narracott outbids his landlord Lyons for the colt, to the dismay of his wife Rose, because the family needs a working horse that can plough the field, not an Irish Hunter. Their son Albert, accompanied by his best friend Andrew, names the colt Joey, and teaches him to come when he imitates an owl’s call. The pair form a close bond. Against all odds, the horse and boy successfully plough a rocky field, saving the family’s farm. War Horse 2011 full Movie
Rose shows Albert his father’s medals from the Second Boer War, and gives him Ted’s regimental pennant, confiding in Albert that his father carries physical and mental scars from the war.
In 1914, as war with Germany is declared, heavy rain ruins the family’s crops, forcing Ted to sell Joey to the army. Albert is heartbroken and tries to stop the sale but is too late. Captain James Nicholls sees Albert’s attachment to the horse and promises to look after Joey. Albert tries to enlist but is too young, and before the company departs, he ties his father’s pennant to Joey’s bridle and promises Joey he will find him.
Joey bonds with Topthorn, a black stallion with whom he is trained for his military role. The horses are deployed to Flanders with a flying column under the command of Nicholls and Major Stewart. They lead a cavalry charge through a German encampment, but the unit is decimated by machine gun fire. Nicholls is killed along with almost all his fellow cavalrymen and the Germans capture the horses.
Gunther, a young German soldier, is assigned to the care of Joey and Topthorn. When his brother Michael is sent to the front line, Gunther takes the horses and the four of them desert the war. The German army soon tracks down the boys, who are shot for desertion, but the Germans leave without noticing the horses. They are found by a French girl named Emilie the next morning.