Review of Paths of Glory (1957) by Greg P — 18 Jun 2008

Love or hate him, Stanley Kubrick was a very talented director. He has covered and conquered a wide range of genres from political satire, to artsy sci-fi, to flat out horror, but it was a war movie that really got him noticed when he made the devastating "Paths of Glory".

Not an epic like some of his others, but instead, Kubrick elects to go straight for the jugular with a powerful anti-war message. Based on a novel, the movie takes us to World War I as French Colonel Dax (Kirk Douglas) is ordered to send his troops on an attack to capture a key enemy stronghold.

Even though it is practically a suicide mission, Dax follows the orders from his higher ranking officers, which is one example here of the struggle between chain of command and personal ethics. The attempt is short-lived as many soldiers are barraged by enemy fire, and it forces the others to hastily retreat, but this is not taken lightly by General Mireau, as it prompts him to court martial three soldiers for cowardice.

What ensues is a compelling court drama that examines the difference between bravery and sensibility. This is a somewhat similar movie to Clint Eastwood's "Letters From Iwo Jima", in it's promotion for human dignity, and while it isn't as personal or descriptive, it is very moving in it's stance that men should not be simply disposable.

To add depth, there is also an underlying story of callousness and personal triumph by the French generals, who pose well as unsympathetic antagonists. From a technical stand point, it is well shot, especially during the trench scenes, and although the battle scene wasn't anything spectacular, Kubrick makes up for it with his visual capturing of emotion, particularly towards the end.

With the help of a great dramatic performance by Douglas and a timeless anti-war study, this has been ranked as one of the best war movies ever, and is definitely worth seeing.