Paths of Glory (1957)

Director:

Stanley Kubrick

Writers:

Stanley Kubrick (screenplay) &
Calder Willingham (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

25 October 1957 (West Germany)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | War

Tagline:

Never has the screen thrust so deeply into the guts of war!

Plot:

When soldiers in WW1 refuse to continue with an impossible attack, their superiors decide to make an example of them.

Plot Keywords:

General | Soldier | French Army | French | WWI

Awards:

Nominated for BAFTA Film Award. Another 3 wins & 2 nominations

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Kirk Douglas	...	Col. Dax
Ralph Meeker	...	Cpl. Philippe Paris
Adolphe Menjou	...	Gen. George Broulard
George Macready	...	Gen. Paul Mireau
Wayne Morris	...	Lt. Roget / Singing man
Richard Anderson	...	Maj. Saint-Auban
Joe Turkel	...	Pvt. Pierre Arnaud (as Joseph Turkel)
Christiane Kubrick	...	German singer (as Susanne Christian)
Jerry Hausner	...	Proprietor of cafe
Peter Capell	...	Narrator of opening sequence / Judge (colonel) of court-martial
Emile Meyer	...	Father Dupree
Bert Freed	...	Sgt. Boulanger
Kem Dibbs	...	Pvt. Lejeune
Timothy Carey	...	Pvt. Maurice Ferol
Fred Bell	...	Shell-shock victim

Runtime:

87 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | German | Latin

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Spain:T | Iceland:L | Spain:(Banned) (1957-1986) | West Germany:12 (f) | South Korea:15 | Brazil:14 | Argentina:Atp (re-rating) | Netherlands:12 (2007) (DVD) | UK:PG (tv rating) | Argentina:13 (original rating) | Australia:PG | Canada:14 (Nova Scotia) | Canada:G (Quebec) | Canada:PG (Manitoba/Ontario) | Finland:K-16 | France:(Banned) (original rating) | France:U (re-release) | Ireland:12 | Norway:16 | Sweden:15 | UK:A (original rating) (passed with cuts) | UK:PG (video rating) (1987) (uncut) | USA:Approved (MPAA rating: certificate #18708)

Filming Locations:

Munich, Bavaria, Germany

Company:

Bryna Productions

Trivia:

Composer Gerald Fried actually created two main title themes for the movie. While most prints of the film features his arrangement of the French national anthem, "Marseillaise," another version opened with an original composition by Fried. The latter version was created for select European markets that might have taken offense at the anthem's use in a film so critical of France's military leadership.

Goofs:

Boom mic visible: During the first tracking with Dax in the trenches, the shadow of a boom-mike is visible.

Quotes:

General Mireau: Hello there, soldier. Ready to kill more Germans?
Private Ferol: Yes, sir.
General Mireau: What's your name, soldier?
Private Ferol: Sir, Private Ferol, Company A.
General Mireau: Aha. You married, soldier?
Private Ferol: No, sir.
General Mireau: I'll bet your mother's proud of you.
Private Ferol: Yes, sir.
General Mireau: Carry on, Private, and good luck.
Private Ferol: Thank you, sir.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Starship Troopers 2: Hero of the Federation (2004) (V)

Soundtrack:

Der Treue Husar

An anti-war movie hitting closer to home.

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.