The surface meaning of this ad is simple: visually, this is a film, and in this film, there is a boy and a horse. Textually we see that aforementioned horse is of/pertaining to war in some regard.
The advertiser's intended meaning is that the film is epic, a journey, and even a tear jerker. This is a sad movie that will ultimately uplift you.
The cultural meanings are great and varied.
- The boy and his horse are close together. The horse is arching it's head over the boy, as though to hug him. They're friends.
- The boy and horse are looking to the left. Because of the way we read from left to right, this appears to be indicative of looking back on things. This is furthered by the boy looking over his shoulder.
- The sky also takes advantage of the left-right reader model. there is sunshine and blue skys behind us, and dark storm clouds ahead.
- The overall color scheme, rich in reds and deep natural browns, indicates a historical setting, a serious tone, and a theme of passion.
- The style of the image is evocative of Civil War era paintings, particularly the Gettysburg Cyclorama, which has far less horses than I remembered. The film itself takes place during WWI, but nonetheless, the cultural image of cavalry horses on canvas is a strong one to indicate bravery.
- The font of the words "WAR HORSE" is strong and serious, while dignified. This give the reader the impression that this film is high class drama, not Helvetica Hipster or something of that ilk.
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