327. Paths of Glory (1957)

Directed By Stanley Kubrick

Synopsis

War is stupid, grotesque and senseless. So are military courts.

Review

The first of many Kubrick films on this list does not disappoint in the least. You can almost see this as a prequel to Dr. Strangelove, it isn't as outwardly funny or as farcical but the same grotesquery of war is displayed here.

The film is quite short at under 1 hour 30 minutes but it is also a sharp, short punch to the gut. The whole film seems like a bad dream, there are lines of dialogue here that just make you laugh with incredulity, not because they are bad or unbelievable but because they are just on the right side of believable for you to imagine those characters saying them.

Of course this effect is only possible because the acting is so amazingly good throughout. The soldiers are played by people who have an almost documentary feel about them, the "actors" are the officers and that kind of creates a division between the real people and those who are detached of humanity, the soldiers do not look like actors at all. Kirk Douglas is the only exception among the officers, being the humane officer whose struggle we follow. Amazing and very infuriating film, Kubrick was an angry man and this was an amazing outlet.

Final Grade

10/10

Trivia

From Wikipedia:

The release of the film and its showing in parts of Europe were controversial. Active and retired military personnel, offended by the way the French military was portrayed in the film, vehemently criticized it after its showing in Brussels (although the film was otherwise well received). Contrary to a persistent urban legend, the film was not banned in France; however, the French government placed enormous pressure on United Artists, the European distributor for the film, through diplomatic channels, to refrain from releasing the film. As a result, the film was not submitted to French censors, and was not shown in France until 1975, when moral codes had changed and attitudes calmed. In Germany the film was not allowed to be shown for two years after its release to avoid any strain in relations with France. The film was also officially censored in Spain by the government of Francisco Franco for its anti-military content, and was not released in that country until 1986, eleven years after Franco's death.

Trailer: