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MOVIE: They Shall Not Grow Old DIRECTOR: Peter Jackson RATING: MA15+ REVIEWER: Leigh Paatsch

WHILE there have been countless documentaries chronicling the heroism, tragedy and epic scale of World War I, there has never been one as personal, intimate and directly moving as They Shall Not Grow Old.

This passion project for master filmmaker Peter Jackson – inspired by his grandfather’s service with the South Wales Borderers during The Great War – blends a mesmerising level of cinematic innovation with a disarmingly vivid brand of storytelling that shines a whole new light on one of history’s darkest conflicts.

Drawing extensively from the film and sound archives of the Imperial War Museum and the BBC, Jackson has crafted a compelling narrative that is locked purely to the perspective of ordinary soldiers.

The overall effect is like nothing seen on screen before. Even the most seasoned military buffs will be stopped in their tracks by the radical new direction taken by Jackson here.

The ancient black and white footage we all associate with World War 1 – scratchy, flickering and sped up due to the camera frame rates of the era – is virtually nowhere to be seen in They Shall Not Grow Old.

Thanks to advances in processing technology, that footage is now of the highest quality: crystal clear, full of astonishing detail, and free of all staccato, herky-jerky movement.

Somewhat audaciously, Jackson has raised the stakes by hand-colouring the footage and then rendering it into 3D. The risks taken pay off in spectacular and gripping fashion.

The wildly varying rhythms of daily life on the battlefields on France – the fixed routines, the unpredictable brutality and the sheer humanity – are captured powerfully and poignantly., with a level of detail that is highly immersive.