Paths of Glory
1957 Directed by Stanley Kubrick
Synopsis
Never has the screen thrust so deeply into the guts of war!
This powerful, fact-based absurdity-of-war film stars Kirk Douglas as a commanding officer who defends three scapegoats on trial for a failed offensive that occurred within the French Army in 1916.
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Film Number 5 on PinHeadLarry145's 30 Days 30 Countries Film Challenge!
United States, 1957.
Well this one has been on my watchlist since I was like a fetus, so tonight I made history by finally watching the ant-war epic by the great Stanley Kubrick. This tiny little film, may have heard of it, is Paths of Glory.
The film is about Colonel Dax, a French regiment commander in WWI who suddenly becomes thrown in a war with his superiors as his men fail to complete a suicide mission. Paths of Glory serves as a look into both trench life during WWI and the inner workings of the French military hierarchy. As the men of the 701st Régiment do battle with…
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"You are an idealist... and I pity you as I would the village idiot."
#23 on Berken's Favorite Movies Of All TimeIn horror, Alfred Hitchcock once said, you're allowed to let a bomb explode on a bus as long as the audience wasn't warned ahead of time - it's shocking and horrifying, but they can take it (think of the first scene in Children of Men). In suspense, however, he believed that because you've built up to that explosion with a ticking bomb for a few minutes you can absolutely not let that bomb explode in the end or the audience will crucify you for wearing them down with unbearable tension and then stamping on their hearts when they're…
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Paths of Glory is another crowning achievement in Stanley Kubrick's filmography. This anti-war film is a masterpiece on so many levels I don’t even know where to begin with. The cinematography is majestic and I was amazed by the way they filmed the battle scenes in the field, being always epic and intense. Also, there is one continuous shot in the trenches that really captured the fear and despair in the soldiers facial expressions and gestures. As for the acting, it was simply top notch. Kirk Douglas gave one of the most sincere and emotional performances in the history of cinema in my opinion and George Mcready was very impressive as the proud and ruthless general. Finally, the story has…
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Still the quintessential anti-war statement, and the film that officially began Kubrick's consistent stream of brilliance, Paths of Glory becomes even more powerful in its Blu-Ray Criterion transfer. At a slim 88 minutes, it's also the shortest film of its kind that I can think of, but it slugs its viewers with a horrifying truth that towers over most everything that Hollywood has produced on the subject of war in the 56 years since.
Kirk Douglas would be among my 10 favorite actors of all-time if I were to ever create such a list, and it is here as a Colonel put through the frontlines of battle during WWI only to later have his regimen put on trial for accusations…
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Paths of Glory is the only Kubrick film that has made me cry. Well, that's a lie. The Shining made me cry but I didn't know I was crying because I was so terrified. I burst into tears right at the very end of Paths of Glory and it took me by surprise. Before that, I was so invested in the characters and the story that I almost considered not watching the ending because I didn't want to know whether or not it actually happened. If you haven't seen this, you probably think I'm crazy and/or hormonal. If you have seen this, then I hope you're on the struggle bus with me.
If I were assessing Kubrick's films objectively, I…
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An absolutely devastating WW1 film about a group of soldiers asked to perform an impossible mission by their ruthlessly ambitious captain. Three innocent men must stand trial for cowardice, defended by their Colonel a brilliant Kirk Douglas.
Showing the futility of war and the position many soldiers must have been in being lead by clueless and ruthless leaders.
This film blew me away.
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suffers from a little tedium but it's worth the ride
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Powerful acting, powerful directing, powerful cast and powerful visuals.
Only one man can get all 4 above right and that is the Legend Stanley Kubrick.
What a fantastic film, why didn't I watch this years ago. Kirk and Stanley somehow have clicked twice working together and what we have here is another master piece.
Some great dialogue scenes where Quentin Tarantino must of got some ideas from.
This is a very moving story and I wouldn't be surprised that something liked this happened.
A great classic .:) -
Essentially, a simple plot for a Kubrick film, but no less powerful than 2001 or Dr. Strangelove. It's a timeless parable of war's foolishness. And, if nothing else, Paths of Glory contains one of Kirk Douglas's best performances.
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One of Stanley Kubrick's many masterpieces, PATHS OF GLORY stars Kirk Douglas as a Colonel in the French Army during WWI, tasked with defending the honor and the lives of three soldiers who are tried for cowardice (under penalty of death) following a doomed, impossible attack on a pivotal German stronghold.
Mostly American actors playing Frenchmen, speaking English (sometimes with very American accents) is mildly distracting on occasion, but that's extreme nitpicking. This is a flawless and incredibly powerful film, full of elements that would become Kubrick trademarks (amazing tracking shots, elaborate interior sets, extreme skepticism regarding authority...) The hopeless storming of the stronghold alone is one of the most incredible sequences I think I've ever seen, and prefigures virtually every great war film to follow.
Two stone-cold masterpieces that I'd never seen this week! First THE MALTESE FALCON and now this. Life is good!
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Twenty-two years later Joe Strummer wrote "Death or Glory".
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Kirk you melt my heart.
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Antibelicismo 100%. La película más redonda de Stanley Kubrick.
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Film Number 5 on PinHeadLarry145's 30 Days 30 Countries Film Challenge!
United States, 1957.
Well this one has been on my watchlist since I was like a fetus, so tonight I made history by finally watching the ant-war epic by the great Stanley Kubrick. This tiny little film, may have heard of it, is Paths of Glory.
The film is about Colonel Dax, a French regiment commander in WWI who suddenly becomes thrown in a war with his superiors as his men fail to complete a suicide mission. Paths of Glory serves as a look into both trench life during WWI and the inner workings of the French military hierarchy. As the men of the 701st Régiment do battle with…
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An anti-war masterpiece to be sure, but also a photographic masterpiece. Besides the fact I'm supposed to think obviously American actors are French, the film is palpably real and immensely intriguing. This feeling of intensity is influenced no more than by Kubrick and his team's fantastic visual accountability in this film.