Paths of Glory

Sensational antiwar treatise based on facts with a relentless and vivid denounce against the military commanding class represented by two senior Generals (George Macready , Adolphe Menjou ) who order his men a suicidal mission . France 1916 , an upright officer , Colonel Dax (Kirk Douglas), must lead his soldiers against difficult enemy positions called the 'Ants Hill' . Then he's also the Colonel lawyer assigned to defend three (the privates Timothy Carey , Ralph Meeker , Joe Turkel) of them when the attack is lost against charges of cowardice and submitted to eventual firing squad. Never has the screen thrust so deeply into the guts of war! The most explosive motion picture in 25 years ! Bombshell! The roll of the drums... the click of the rifle-bolts... the last cigarette... and then... the shattering impact of this story... perhaps the most explosive motion picture in 25 years! It explodes in the no-man's land no picture ever dared cross before! Now the screen blasts open the bombshell story of a Colonel who led his regiment into hell and back - while their maddened General waited for them - with a firing squad!

This is a thought-provoking and intelligent war drama perfectly acted by strong cast and masterfully directed. Interesting screenplay based on a Humphrey's Cobb's novel has been well adapted by Stanley Kubrick and Jim Thompson . It depicts a brooding study about futility and insanity of war , making a shattering accusation against the military ruling staff who cares on promotions more than the soldiers . Kirk Douglas is very good as compassionate French Colonel who commands his troops in some spectacular scenes on the trenches . Stunning support cast beautifully performed by notorious secondaries , such as : Emily Meyer as the priest , Wayne Morris as the lieutenant , Richard Anderson as the Major prosecutor , Ralph Meeker , Timothy Carey , Joe Turkel and Suzanne Christian , Kubrick's wife . Special mention for the two selfish and ruthless Generals exceptionally performed by George Macready and Adolph Menjou . Excellent cinematography in black and white by cameramn George Krause , filmed on location in Schleissheim Palace, Munich, and Bavaria Film studios, Geiselgasteig, Grünwald, Bavaria, Germany (studio). The motion picture was wonderfully realized by the maestro Stanley Kubrick and lavishly produced by James B. Harris , his usual producer at the time . This magnificent film along with ¨ All quiet on the Western front ¨ , ¨Westfront 1918 ¨, ¨ Captain Conan ¨ and ¨King and country¨ result to be the best ones about the powerful antiwar theme . Time hasn't dimmed its power , or its poignancy and remains untouchable the critique to the military hypocrisy in an ultra-lucid exposition . Rating : 8.8/10. Phenomenal and marvellous film , above average . Essential and indispensable watching .

Paths of Glory is one of the best movies ever made, and possibly the best "war" movie, period. Paths of Glory does not portray war as conflict between armies or individual soldiers arrayed against one another on the battlefield. Nor does it portray the acts of great leaders and heroes of war. No this film takes a different tact.

The setting is the Western Front of 1916 in the trenches with French soldiers faced off against an invisible German force across a barren No Man's Land. The German's are never seen and the dramatic "combat" is between vain French officers as they vie for prestige and honors. The victims are the innocent French soldiers under their command who suffer miserably because of their arrogance and ignorance.

Brilliant, gripping, and definitely a "must see".

An arrogant French general (a superb George Macready) orders his men on a suicide mission and then has the gall to try to court marshal and execute three of them for cowardice in the face of the enemy. A former lawyer turned colonel (Kirk Douglas in his prime) is the voice of reason against gross injustice. This excellently staged and wonderfully acted production is as much an acting showcase for Douglas as it is a directorial masterstroke by a young Stanley Kubrick who adapted this to the screen from a novel based on actual accounts.

Kubrick displays a great control of sound effects and camera movement in the brief but effective battle scenes that expertly depict the controlled chaos that was trench warfare during WWI. Things get juicier during the ensuing courtroom battle where the deafening disparity between the elite who propagate and profit from war and the common citizens who suffer and die in war is shown with great lucidity.

Unlike later Kubrick epics, this runs at a crisp 90 minutes, though suffers briefly from a slow and awkwardly staged opening ten minutes before Douglas comes on screen. Ultimately, this holds up very well to modern scrutiny thanks to the flawlessness of Kurbick's craft, the amazing ensemble acting, and the surprising depth of its philosophical and psychological pondering. "Paths of Glory" is more anti-arrogance than anti-war, and is unapologetically sentimental and pro-soldier. As such, much can still be gleaned from its message.

I consider Paths of Glory as one of the most memorable of Kubrick's entire output. The most remarkable aspect of this pioneer anti-war film is the complete absence of any persons depicting the "real" enemy. Therefore, the significance of the film lay not so much in its anti-war message, but in its brilliant expose of the "monsters within" the general staff, superbly acted by Adolphe Menjou and George Macready. The message here is that the enemy lurks much closer to home. In most war films, whether they glorify or condemn the carnage, there is rarely any venturing at all into the darker side of the politics. This film is a tour de force in its unabashed depiction of just how misguided is the quest for glory as an end in itself; and in the portrayal of the leaders who would shamelessly sacrifice others for their own self aggrandizement. Truly, one of my all time favourite movies.

How well I remember the audience of 1958 sitting in stunned silence as the daring iconoclasm of the film washed over us like a bucket of cold water at a snoozer's convention. Post-war generations had seen nothing like its brutal honesty before. Instead, Hollywood had taught us that soldiers don't bawl like babies before being shot, that chaplains aren't part of a murderous war machine, that military justice really is about justice, and that generals however far removed are ultimately good and honorable men, (and that cameras always look away from execution scenes). Sure, the movie was not about our army, but the power of its message could not be missed, and no one from that era, having seen it, could again accept Hollywood's platitudes at face value.

Now, fifty years later, the film is still timely, having lost none of its power to illuminate. Thanks be to Kirk Douglas for taking a chance on an unproven Stanley Kubrick and getting Allied Artists to finance what was so clearly a non-commercial project. I suspect too, that it was at AA's insistence that Hollywood veterans be cast, even though the movie was shot to great advantage amidst the majestic settings of old Europe. Given the film's message, I think Kubrick would have preferred no-name principals, but then, who could have surpassed the oily charm of Adolphe Menjou's diabolical general, or the pathetic repulsiveness of Timothy Carey's sacrificial dog-face. (It's ironic that the part of the cowardly lieutenant went to an authentic war-hero, naval air-ace Wayne Morris, then only two years away from an untimely death.) This many decades later, I still have mixed feelings about the celebrated final scene. On one hand, it's so clearly manipulative (someone once called it a "male weepie"), that I try to steel myself against its undeniable force; on the other, it's so superbly well done that the humming chorus of universal brotherhood never fails to move me, even after this many viewings.

Researchers digging into origins of 60's counter-culture should check out themes and characterizations of the screen-play, particularly Timothy Carey's social outcast and Fred Bell's absolutely stunning thirty seconds of emotional break-down. For this is one of the few films from the conformist Eisenhower era to cast a shadow forward in time and serve as a reference point for future generations. The film's abundant cynicism may no longer be as revealing as it once was, thanks to Vietnam. Yet the emotional honesty remains as fresh and compelling as ever in its search for a gut-level depiction of real human anguish. Above all, Kubrick's anti-war classic points toward a more civilized potential amidst the barbarities and passions of combat, whether French or American, and given present political realities, still has many lessons to offer.