Paths of Glory | | Cast : | Kirk Douglas, Ralph Meeker | | Director : | Stanley Kubrick | | Studio : | Mgm/Ua Studios | | Format : | Black & White, Closed-captioned, Dolby | | Released Date : | January 01, 1957 | | DVD Released Date : | May 01, 2001 | | Language : | English (Dubbed), French (Dubbed), English (Subtitled), English (Original Language), French (Original Language) | | Audience Rating : | Unrated | | | BUY THIS DVD FROM AMAZON |
Customer Reviews
| Rating |  | | Date | June 28, 2005 | | Summary | Casting a Long Shadow | Content
 | 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 insistance 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.
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| Rating | | | Date | May 25, 2005 | | Summary | Anti-injustice, anti-authoritarian | Content
| When you are the one who gets to decide who lives and who dies, what are the criteria that the rest of us should buy into before giving our consent? If a general, or a CEO for that matter, asks the impossible, how far must men go in following their orders before disobedience is permissible? When is it ok for a cog in the machine to stop being a machine and start being a human being? This film suggests that the Ant Hill could only have been taken by live soldiers, and if all the soldiers were being slaughtered in the attempt to cross no mans land, the few survivors should naturally turn back, and live to fight another day. Under these circumstances, taking the Hill would have been impossible.
Ah, but that was an embarrasment for the general who ordered the attack. His judgement could not have been wrong, so, therefore, the men must be cowards. The role of Reason, the nature of absurdity, courage, and cowardice are all examined in this simple story, and the implication is clear that it is better to die bravely in front of a firing squad than to grow comfortable with mendacity and cower before the truth. The real cowards in the story were those who ordered these men to their deaths on the battlefield, because they were afraid to say no and risk their reputations for daring, and also those who ordered their deaths in front of a firing squad, and also those who concealed the truth out of fear of the consequences. Again, it is better to die bravely than live in cowardice. And the bravest of them all was the colonel played by Kirk Douglas, who fought for reason, justice, truth, and against the enemy on every side, even when the enemy was his superior officer. Yes, the enemy can be found in your own ranks, even among your commanding officers.
In the end they are all ordered back to the front. However, the next to the last scene in the cafe, is one of the most astonishing moments in cinematic history.
The soldiers, young and old, are making sport of a pretty young German girl who is being put forward by the proprietor for their entertainment. She has no talent, save for a little 'natural talent' he says, gesturing along the length of her body. "She cannot dance, she cannot tell jokes, but she has a golden throat, she sings like a bird", he tells them. They are laughing and taunting her, and she is nervous and intimidated, and begins to sing, haltingly, but plaintively, and one by one, the men grow silent. The camera moves from face to face, young, old, battle weary, her voice reminds them of all that is delicate and sweet, all that is not brutal and meaningless and horrible. And they all can remember a time, long ago, when they were not fighting and killing and struggling to keep alive, and slowly, one by one, they begin wiping away the tears, then picking up her melody and gradually joining in. Kirk Douglas peers in through the window when the sargeant comes up with their orders to return to the front. "Give them a few more minutes," he says, and turns heel. It is a devastating moment. This is a film with a clear and powerful message. But it is not an anti-war movie. It is anti-mendacity, anti-authoritarian, and anti-injustice. The war setting is just a timless trope to carry the weight of these more significant issues. |
| Rating | | | Date | May 19, 2005 | | Summary | "The paths of glory lead but to the grave"--Thomas Gray | Content
| Anyone who has even cursorily studied Stanley Kubrick's career knows that he was one of the most powerful anti-war voices in the history of cinema. Although his total output was actually rather small, he produced three truly great anti-war classics: PATHS OF GLORY, DR. STRANGELOVE, and FULL METAL JACKET. But of these three, it was PATHS OF GLORY that most fully and vividly expressed the horror and stupidity of war. DR. STRANGELOVE distanced itself somewhat from its subject matter by its humor, while FULL METAL JACKET was emotionally detached from its characters. In most of his films, Kubrick preferred to be coolly disconnected, recording the events. But there is no detachment, no distancing of the camera from the action in this film. There is a visceral involvement at every point, whether following the French soldiers out of their trenches or detailing the steps taken by the French military to exonerate the officers by trying three random soldiers for treason or following the three soldiers through their final hours. This is a gut wrenching movie, and one can only watch it with a sense of horror at the multiple tragedies it depicts. So powerful, in fact, is the film that it was banned in several European nations following its release, including France and Spain, and way delayed in Germany out of fear that it would offend France.
But the true target of this film is not France or Germany or Spain or Britain or the United States, but any nation that would deliberately wage war. The theme is intended to be universal, not particular to one nation or one war, but any nation and all wars. Kubrick is criticizing upper class elites who send average men into battle to die for no good reason; aloof elites that value their own reputation more than human life; the fundamental stupidity of the entire enterprise of waging war and the military classes whose job it is to fight. The title of the novel was taken from Thomas Gray's ""Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard," the full line of which reads "The paths of glory lead but to the grave." But Kubrick is not merely saying that the problem with war is that the undeserving die: he is wanting to confront the entire war-making machine.
Few directors in the history of film have been so careful with detail as Kubrick, but rarely to so much effect in this one. There is an extraordinary richness to this film that comes out in nearly every aspect of it, from the vividly awful battlefields where the soldiers fight and die, to the sumptuous castles where the remote generals reside. Many scenes required dozens of retakes before they achieved the perfection that Kubrick demanded.
The virtually all-male cast-incredibly rare in the 1950s, where it was always imagined that romantic interests must be injected into every film-is exceptional, not just the major performers, but the group of familiar and unfamiliar supporting performers. This is probably my favorite Kirk Douglas film. In most of his roles he was asked to project brash cynicism, but here he is morally serious from beginning to end. He proves to be both the best intentioned and most naïve individual in the film, striving desperately to see that justice is served, and only reluctantly realizing that the entire trial of the three token deserters is a sham and a joke. Ralph Meeker was a capable actor who rarely found roles equal to his talent, but here, in what was his finest role, he is splendid as the good soldier who is wrongly selected to stand trial for desertion. We feel his plight more than the other soldiers because we know him to be a good man dedicated to doing his duty. George Macready enjoyed a long screen career, but he had only a few truly great roles, the two best known being Rita Hayworth's husband in GILDA and in this film as General Mireau, the true villain in the failed battle and in the tragedy of trying the soldiers for cowardice. Adolph Menjou-who off screen was best known for being one of the best dressed men in the world and for his staunch anti-Communism and brutal verbal attacks on those he imagined to be too sympathetic to leftists (his political stance actually hurt his career-contrary to the understanding of many, attacks on supposed communists hurt the accusers as much as the accused, limiting the careers of folks like Menjou and Robert Taylor)-is exceptional as the smooth, plotting, incredibly cynical and self-preserving General Broulard. Macready and Menjou contrast marvelously in their coldness and cruelty with the humane compassion of Kirk Douglas's Col. Dax.
For many years PATHS OF GLORY was rarely shown even in the United States, in particular during the sixties and the Vietnamese War. In the decades that have followed, however, the film has rightfully gained a larger audience, and it is now acknowledge for the masterpiece that it is. In my own opinion, this is one of Kubrick's greatest films, the equal of such films as 2001 and DR. STRANGELOVE and A CLOCKWORK ORANGE, and better than any of his others. It is also arguably the most powerful expression of the idiocy of war in the history of cinema. |
| Rating | | | Date | March 21, 2005 | | Summary | A brilliant and important film | Content
| It is very difficult to write about this film and fully do it justice. But I think that simplicity is its greatest singular accomplishment, while depicting military folly, ambition, politics, courage and humanity. They couldn't be more effectively mixed together in this 1957 classic. All the actors gave top-notch performances, where the final soul-touching scene becomes one of cinema history's most moving and unforgettable moments.
Here, in his second feature film, the great director Stanley Kubrick begins a series of brilliant exploration of the dark side of human nature. Set in the trenches of 1916 France, Kirk Douglas as French Colonel Dax, has high principles in the world already gone mad. His unit is ordered to attack and take the heavily fortified Ant Hill by vainglorious Gen. Paul Mireau (George Macready). Col. Dax voices his disapproval of the mission but after being threatened with reassignment, decides to lead the charge himself. But as expected, the hill is very well defended and they come under murderous heavy fire. The situation becomes hopeless.
When they turn around, the crooked and glory-seeking General, angered by his troops' unwillingness to sacrifice themselves, orders the French artillery to fire upon them. When the artillery detachment refuses without a signed authorization from the general, the rest of the film shows military politics at work and reveals the evil and lack of remorse for human life for the sake of glory in the battlefield. The General is embarrassed and orders examples must be made in the form of three innocent French soldiers selected at random for a court martial for cowardice. They are sentenced to death by a kangaroo court.
The movie's pacing is more powerful and ironic than the preceding one, building to a shattering climax. Composer Gerald Fried created two main title themes for the movie. Most prints of the film features his arrangement of the French national anthem, "Marseillaise," while another version opened with an original composition by Fried also. Subsequently, the title 'Paths of Glory' (taken from Thomas Grey's "Elegy Written in a Country Church-Yard") was created for select European markets since it might take offense at the anthem's use in a film so critical of France's military leadership during WWl.
Though the battlefield scene is in France, Kubrick chose to shoot the film in and around Munich, Germany. The attention to the meticulous composition of his shots reflects his background as a still photographer and foreshadows his other great films to come. Most interior scenes were filmed at Bavaria's Geiselgasteig Studios, and the court-martial scenes were shot in nearby Schleissheim Castle, an 18th-century structure serving then as a national museum. During WWII the factories near Schleissheim were hit by an air raid. Some bombs fell on the old castle during WWll, causing heavy damage. The ruins surrounding Col. Dax's headquarters were not studio sets since they were actual damage from WWll.
The film is not especially violent and blood splattered compared to the war movies of today, but it still could not diminish the stunningly surrealistic effect of a First World War battlefield night attack. And the complete absence of showing the Germans is thought provoking, since the enemy is truly within! It is said that over a ton of explosives were discharged in the first week of filming alone. Special effects director, Erwin Lange had to appear before a special German government commission to get permission for acquiring the huge number of explosives needed for the battle scenes.
Generally considered Director Stanley Kubrick's ("Dr. Strangelove", "Full Metal Jacket") best work, it does not only deliver a powerful message, where it satirizes war and army politics, but also shows great insight into human nature. It was banned in France for its negative portrayal of the French army until 1975. In turn, the film was not allowed to be shown for a couple of years in Germany after its release...to avoid dislocating the still rickety relations with France. The third country to censor the film was Spain under Franco's dictatorship for its anti-military message. It was not released there until 1986, 11 years after Franco's death.
You may not like B&W films--but you must make an exception to this one. Astounding visuals from a variety of incisive angles are standard. The mobile wide-angle shots moving through the squalid trenches as the battle begins (without cutting), the suspense and tension prior to a battle, up to the deadly oblivion of no-man's land are top-notch...not to mention the acting (Kubrick must have molded the actors into their roles). And see the final scene...perhaps the most moving and unforgettable moment in cinema history! The only woman in the film, Christiane Kubrick, then Christiane Harlan, the director's future wife (they were married in 1958 and remained so until the director's death in 1999), as a captured German waif forced to sing in front of French troops. When she comes on stage, the soldiers begin to jeer and make charged statements that demean her nationality because she is German. She begins to sing a German song "The Faithful Hussar". Though the soldiers do not know German, they become emotionally touched and absorbed by the song, and overwhelmed by the melancholic and haunting beauty of the melody, they begin to hum along. They realized that humanity is not automatically, by default cruel and ruthless and corrupt all of the time. It is images like these that makes the many imperfections committed by Hollywood and the modern motion picture industry tolerable--even forgiveable.
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| Rating | | | Date | October 18, 2004 | | Summary | An Indictment of the French Army during WWI!! | Content
| Stanley Kubrick's vision is remarkable. His shots are carefully crafted, especially during the court martial. Watching this movie made me realize how absurd war really is. This film is based on the true story of a General's blunder during a battle in World War I. The role of the French General especially angered me because it showed there were people in the French Army during that time who should never have been in command. It speaks volumes!! It's an unforgettable classic. |
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