Private Peaceful is one of those unknown movies that only certain people have seen. Those people are English teachers and their students. However, movies like this are something which can be enjoyed outside the classroom too. Starring George MacKay and Jack O’Connell as the Peaceful brothers, Private Peaceful is a story of two brothers and the life they share together.
The Plot
The movie begins in 1908, when the Peaceful family is living in peace. This is the time before The Great War, their family was together, and they looked at the world with childhood innocence. Charlie takes Tommo to school for the first time and they incur the wrath of Mr Munnings, the head master. But things do not stay peaceful for long. A tragic accident in the forest kills Mr Peaceful and the family is forced to go on without him. As Tommo and Charlie come to terms with the death of their father, they meet Molly, the girl that both of them will fall in love with.
As the boys grow older, they work on the local estate that their father worked on before they are fired for “stealing a hound” that was supposed to be shot. They start working as labourers on another farm. This mundane life ticks over for them, until the news that Charlie has gotten Molly pregnant out of marriage shocks the family. Charlie and Molly get married, much to the horror of Tommo. In his anger, he lies about his age and is enlisted in Kitchener’s Army, hoping to get shipped off and away from his heartbreak. But Charlie can’t leave his little brother to face the trenches alone and joins him.
During their time in the trenches, Charlie continues to stand up for his little brother. Although Tommo once loved Molly, he finds a new sweetheart, a French girl named Anna. Tommo promises to visit her but when he returns from the trenches, her father screams at him that Anna is dead, killed by a shell while collecting eggs to make him and the other soldiers egg and chips. Private Peaceful spends a lot of time in the trenches and attacking the Germans as the British forces move across No Man’s Land. During one attack, Tommo is hurt and Charlie stays with him, defying the orders. This action would see the death of Private Peaceful by firing squad for cowardice.
Thoughts on the movie
When it comes to movies, it is always important to remember that the movie does not have time to add all of those little details from the book that make it so wonderful. That being said, I do have a few issues with the movie version. The acting is wonderful and the overall story is clear. However, and I am being a bit nit-picky here, there are certain elements that should have made more of an appearance. The nursery rhyme Oranges and Lemons features heavily in the book. And it is an important part of the foreshadowing at the end of the story. I heard Oranges and Lemons once in the movie, I’ve actually mentioned it more in this post than the movie did. Speaking of the end of the movie, the scene with the firing squad is wrong. Not just a little bit wrong, a whole lotta wrong. When Private Peaceful faces the firing squad in the book, he does it with a smile on his face and sings quietly. He does not cry. I know that in reality, men who faced the firing squad probably did cry. But having him cry during the firing squad scene kind of defeats the point of having him be brave in other parts of the story.
Fin
Overall, this is a good movie and it is a good story. I know I am being a bit harsh about certain elements but I stand by them. The movie is rated 12 so it is a great way to introduce younger teens to The Great War and the Micheal Morpurgo books. The acting from the cast is solid and features some high profile talent such as Richard Griffiths, Maxine Peake and John Lynch. It does not show the full horrors of the effects of the trenches but it does give some indication of the suffering that happened during this time.
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