Set in Britain during the First World War, “Testament of Youth” is a moving, well acted film depicting the horrors of that war to end all wars. Based upon a memoir written by Vera Brittain, this film tells the story of war from a woman’s point of view. Vera Brittain is well-known in the United Kingdom. Her book becomes a best seller and her work as a pacifist in the years following the war made her a house-hold name there.
Vera Brittain was part of a very privileged family living in the English countryside. Her greatest desire is to attend Cambridge a goal her father sees as senseless. Eventually, she and her brother convince him and she is accepted. Then the war breaks out. Her brother and the young man she has fallen in love with enlist. Feeeling useless, she volunteers as a nurse eventually going to serve close to the front lines in France.
Tragedy follows. Her fiancee, her brother and a friend all die. These dramatic events change her forever. At the end of the war, she returns to Cambridge and eventually writes “Testament of Youth.”
Several established British actors Miranda Richardson, Emily Watson and Dominic West play small roles. Alicia Vikander portrays Vera and Kit Harington her fiancee.
Although this movie deals with the horrors of war, it is a rich, rewarding experience.