The movie War Horse weaves the story of a special bond between a boy and his horse. The film begins in 1912 when a teenager named Albert witnesses the birth of a thoroughbred on a farm in Devon, England. As the foal grows, Albert is touched by the special tie the young horse has with its mother. Then, much to his delight, Albert's father buys the thoroughbred at an auction and Albert vows to train the colt to do all that a workhorse could accomplish. He names the horse Joey and then spends a great deal of time transforming the animal into a useful asset for his family farm.

In the midst of training Joey, Albert creates a special bond with the beast. The unique relationship is represented by a distinctive whistle. Whenever Albert cups his hands and blows through his fingers (creating the sound of an owl), Joey comes to his master.

When World War I breaks out, Joey is sold to the British army to become one of eight million horses employed in the war effort. Albert also enlists but has no idea where his beloved horse is. They are separated by hundreds of miles.

As the war draws to a close, a group of soldiers discover Joey brutally tangled in barbed wire. After the soldiers untangle Joey and bring him to a British encampment, a military doctor determines Joey's wounds are so bad that he should be put down. As a sergeant raises his pistol and takes aims at Joey's head, a commotion is heard among the troops.

Albert, with bandaged eyes from an explosion, hears his fellow soldiers talking about a horse. He wonders if it is possible that this war horse could possibly be his horse. Cupping his hands to his mouth, Albert begins his special whistle. Immediately, Joey's ears perk up and his head turns toward his master. With the recognition of the whistle, Albert is able to save Joey's life.

Editor's Note: The scene where Albert trains Joey to come to the sound of his unique whistle is in the first 15 minutes of the movie. The scene where Albert's whistle saves Joey's life is in the last 15 minutes of the movie.