London
(ANI):
Steven
Spielberg
is
all
set
to
bring
War
Horse
on
the
big
screen
after
he
bought
the
rights
to
the
children"s
story
that
became
a
huge
West
End
hit.
Theatre
audiences
have
been
mesmerised
by
the
tale
of
a
boy
who
braves
the
trenches
of
the
First
World
War
in
the
hope
of
finding
his
beloved
horse.
Michael
Morpurgo,
who
wrote
War
Horse
in
1982,
welcomed
news
that
the
Hollywood
director
is
developing
his
story
into
a
film
script.
“I
can
think
of
no
one
better
to
do
this.
It
is
so
exciting.
I
only
just
learnt
this
in
the
last
two
days.
After
such
a
fantastic
success
with
the
play,
it
needs
someone
of
his
imagination
and
skill
at
turning
books
into
great
visual
experiences
for
the
film
version," Times
Online
quoted
him
as
telling
the
London
Evening
Standard.
The
film
rights
to
the
1982
novel
have
been
acquired
by
Spielberg"s
DreamWorks
Studios.
The
director
said
that
he
had
been
deeply
moved
by
the
story
of
a
young
boy
from
Devon
who
follows
the
horse
to
the
Western
Front
in
1914.
In
fact,
he
revealed
that
he
had
known
that
he
wanted
to
make
the
story
into
a
film
from
the
moment
he
read
it.
“Its
heart
and
its
message
provide
a
story
that
can
be
felt
in
every
country,"
he
said.
DreamWorks
Studios
have
confirmed
that
Lee
Hall,
the
Newcastle-born
scriptwriter
nominated
for
an
Oscar
for
Billy
Elliot,
has
already
been
drafted
in
to
write
the
screenplay.
It
has
not
yet
been
confirmed
if
Spielberg
would
direct
the
film
himself.
War
Horse
tells
the
story
of
Joey,
first
seen
as
a
yearling
colt,
who
is
sold
to
the
cavalry
in
the
First
World
War.