Parents' Guide to Journey's End

This drama about the First World War is quietly moving as it conveys the horrors of war without heaviness, focusing on humanity and relying little on battle scenes. R.C. Sherriff's source play was first performed onstage with Laurence Olivier in 1928 and was previously adapted into a movie in 1930, marking the directorial debut of James Whale (Frankenstein, Bride of Frankenstein). It's tried-and-true stuff, and it still works. Director Saul Dibb (The Duchess) stages it with plenty of mud and gloom -- and even wobbly hand-held cameras -- and yet it has enough patience and care that it works beautifully.

Potent little moments, like attempting to clear mud from a whistle, punctuate the story. The cast is especially excellent, starting with Bettany, whose avuncular presence (the men call him "uncle") is downright calming; right before the mission, he coaxes Raleigh to think about other things (hot cocoa and a Lewis Carroll poem). Butterfield is appealingly naïve, and Jones makes a grimly funny cook, providing a commentary on the dishes he manages to put together. Even Claflin -- who usually seems to be cast more for his looks than his presence -- is fine here. Together, the characters manage to discuss things more immediate and personal than war, and, by extension, tell everything there is to say.