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Amazon.ca
A modest but useful collection of interviews on the subject of Paths of Glory enhances Criterion's edition of Stanley Kubrick's classic antiwar picture. Kubrick himself appears, as a disembodied voice, in two minutes of audio interview in which he speaks of the film and particularly about meeting his wife, then known as Christiane Harlan, for her role in the movie. The longest extras are a half-hour 1979 appearance by Kirk Douglas on Michael Parkinson's BBC chat show--not particularly deep on Paths of Glory memories, but a charming display of Douglas's skills as raconteur--and a 21-minute interview with producer James Harris, Kubrick's filmmaking partner. His stories include some hair-raising tales of actor Timothy Carey, whom Harris eventually had to fire despite his important role in the film. Shorter interviews with Christiane Kubrick and her brother Jan Harlan give background on Stanley Kubrick's methods, and a three-minute report from French TV offers an intriguing look at the true World War I story behind the movie. There's also a commentary track from the distinguished writer Gary Giddins, who brings his enthusiasm for the film and his comfortable style to a pleasant feature-length monologue. --Robert Horton
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Stanley Kubrick had already made his talent known with the outstanding racetrack heist thriller The Killing, but it was the 1957 antiwar masterpiece Paths of Glory that catapulted Kubrick to international acclaim. Based on the novel by Humphrey Cobb, the film was initiated by Kirk Douglas, who chose the young Kubrick to direct what would become one of the most powerful films about the wasteful insanity of warfare. In one of his finest roles, Douglas plays Colonel Dax, commander of a battle-worn regiment of the French army along the western front during World War I. Held in their trenches under the threat of German artillery, the regiment is ordered on a suicidal mission to capture an enemy stronghold. When the mission inevitably fails, French generals order the selection of three soldiers to be tried and executed on the charge of cowardice. Dax is appointed as defense attorney for the chosen scapegoats, and what follows is a travesty of justice that has remained relevant and powerful for decades. In the wake of some of the most authentic and devastating battle sequences ever filmed, Kubrick brilliantly explores the political machinations and selfish personal ambitions that result in battlefield slaughter and senseless executions. The film is unflinching in its condemnation of war and the self-indulgence of military leaders who orchestrate the deaths of thousands from the comfort of their luxurious headquarters. For many years, Paths of Glory was banned in France as a slanderous attack on French honor, but it's clear that Kubrick's intense drama is aimed at all nations and all men. Though it touches on themes of courage and loyalty in the context of warfare, the film is specifically about the historical realities of World War I, but its impact and artistic achievement remain timeless and universal. --Jeff Shannon
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Kubrick's First with Kirk,
By
This review is from: Paths of Glory [Blu-ray] (Blu-ray)
It is the First World War. The French have dug into trenches, 500 miles long, from the English Channel to the border of Switzerland. As the film's intro eloquently states, victories are counted in hundreds of yards gained, at the cost of hundreds of thousands of men. This is the setting of Paths of Glory, certainly and easily one of the greatest war movies of all time.Paths of Glory, Stanley Kubrick's masterpiece, contains some of the most realistic First World War battle scenes ever put to film. The landscape is a cratered no man's land of mud, wire and bodies. The desperation is captured beautifully. The references to "shell shock" are historically accurate (it was considered to be a mythical condition by the generals of the day.) The only film that comes close for realism is the Australian classic, Galipoli. Kirk Douglas is Col. Dax, once a lawyer in his old life, now being ordered to take the "Anthill": A fortfied position that the Germans have held for a year. Now the French intend to take it and keep it, but with tired worn out men. Dax doesn't think it can be done, but agrees to it anyway. The alternative for him would have been to be relieved of duty, and Dax won't abandon his men when they need him. General Mireaux, his ambition for promotion clouding his judgement, has set up an impossible task. The men of course fail, not being able to clear their own wire before being turned back in the face of machine gun fire and shells. A humiliated and embarassed Mireaux orders his artillery to fire on his own men, and when that order is refused he decides to try them for cowardice in the face of enemy. After all, someone must take the blame for failure, and why should it be an officer? Col. Dax returns to his role of a lawyer and defends the three token men chosen to face the charges of cowardice. The ending is as inspirational and tear jerking as they can get. Paths of Glory paints a picture of the way it was, based loosely on the French practice of executing men for cowardice before they "infect" the rest of the men with that defect. The trenches in the film are perhaps drier than the real trenches but the landscapes look very real indeed. Kubricks style at this point was still that of an observer, which came from his years as a newspaper photographer. He places his lenses where an observer would sit, and you can watch the events unfold like a fly on the wall. Kirk Douglas is joined by Kubrick regulars Timothy Carey (two Kubrick films to his name), Joe Turkel (three Kubrick films) as well as Adolphe Menjou and a very young Christiane Kubrick. The film itself is a heartwrenching look at the realities of First World War Europe, and also the human spirit. It attacks our prejudices and practices while reminding us that we are all the same regardless of our station in life. Kubrick seems to have been both fascinated by war while being repulsed by its necessity. This being such an historically important film, I am glad that it has finally received the Criterion treatment, but why is this only the second Kubrick film to be treated as such? (Spartacus is the other.) The restoration is very well done compared to the original DVD edition. The audio is in mono just as the original film was. I appreciate that nobody tried to tinker with the audio to make it multi-channel. This is the way Kubrick made it. Supplimental features are here including audio commentary, an essay, and a fun interview with Kirk Douglad from the 70's, among numerous others. This is absolutely nessecary for any fans of real war films and Stanley Kubrick. Hopefully this ushers in a set of brand new Kubrick Criterion editions. I bought two copies, one for me and one for my dad. 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Probably Douglas' best role ever!,
By Michael A. Newman (New York) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Paths of Glory (Full Screen) (DVD)
I saw this film in a college course on film and I realize why. It is one of the best directed films ever made. The black and white works to perfection.This is my favorite Kirk Douglas film about the French military during WWI. A group of French soldiers are sent on an impossible mission. When they obviously fail, the General afraid of losing face for a stupid decision, decides to court martial some of the soldiers as a punishment. Three soldiers are singled out. One obviously fought very bravely and another was hit on the head and knocked unconcious during the battle. Their stories are futile against the kangaroo French military court. Douglas tries valiently to act as their legal council and present their defense in vain. From what I understand this film is still banned in France! I guess the humiliating loss during WWII did nothing to sway the French military from its self-conceived notion of being a great military power!
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Taught, tense, terrific.,
By A Customer
This review is from: Paths of Glory (Full Screen) (DVD)
One of the great beauties of Paths of Glory is how no shot or word is wasted, how everything plays a part in the greater whole. The best art cuts away the inessential to leave you with a core that grips and provokes you, and that's cerainly true of this movie. Not only are the story and acting superb, but the perfectly taught pacing far outshines nearly every film I've seen, where bloat seems to be all too inevitable. Writers, directors, and editors everywhere could learn a lot from this film.
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