75
Wearing its sincerity like an Armistice Day poppy, the resulting montage-film – which premiered at the London Film Festival ahead of future TV transmissions – does its utmost to honor the conflict’s fallen.
What are people saying?
What are critics saying?
95
This was, undeniably, a risky proposition; no one wants to airbrush history. But by thoughtfully employing cutting-edge technology, Jackson has instead created an essential portal connecting audiences of the present to his subjects in the past.
80
An emotionally rich documentary that wows both as a technical achievement and an unforgettable portrait of a terrible period of 20th century history.
90
Los Angeles Times by Kenneth Turan
They Shall Not Grow Old is a tribute paid by the present to the past, and what a gorgeous gift it turns out to be.
100
Jackson and his entire production team have produced a film which is both a form of cultural monument and a monumental cinematic achievement.
100
The Telegraph by Robbie Collin
By applying cutting-edge restoration techniques to footage shot at the time, Jackson has crafted an historical portrait of matchless immediacy and power, in which young souls lost in a century-old war stare out across the years and meet our gaze.
63
It is immersive, letting us hear and feel the concussion of artillery, if not whistling hail of bullets and the desperation and fury of hand to hand combat.
100
RogerEbert.com by Scout Tafoya
It's a simple thing but if it's not the first film to show World War I taking place under heavenly blue skies it certainly feels like it is. The odd clarity is a horrible but absolutely necessary gift from Jackson and Walsh to these men.
80
The Hollywood Reporter by Stephen Dalton
As a immersive primer on the first-hand experiences of British soldiers, this innovative documentary is a haunting, moving and consistently engaging lesson in how to bring the past vividly alive