Paths of Glory

War films usually fall into one of two camps. The first is the gung-ho, war as adventure pro war film, with plenty of explosions, feats of derring-do and lantern jawed heroes. The second is the more sombre war-is-hell anti-war film showing all the horrors, the deaths, the disfigurements and the loss of humanity to be found on the battlefield. Paths of Glory is one of those curious films that can show how both these attitudes can coexist, whilst firmly falling on the side of anti-war.

Telling the story of French soldiers in the trenches of World War I, the film manages this feat in a very clever way. Whilst many war films focus on a soldier or small group of soldiers to tell its story, PoG widens its focus to show us the contrast between the war experiences of the grunts on the ground with those of the Generals, well behind the front lines. The contrast could not be more stark. The soldiers in the trenches encounter a dirty, hellish existence, literally living in holes carved from the ground, under constant artillery barrage and metres from a corpse strewn no-mans land. Meanwhile, the Generals occupy opulent palatial ballrooms, festooned with expensive paintings and outfitted with the very finest of furnishings.

This contrast is where we can observe how this difference in realities can lead to decisions, made in clear conscience, which leads to the senseless slaughter of thousands of men in the trenches. The generals decide to capture the "Anthill", a heavily defended area of German territory. This decision comes in full acceptance of casualties to over 50% of their own troops, and without much thought to the reality of whether their already battle weary troops could accomplish their impossible task. That these decisions are made for the progression of the Generals' own careers only confirms our disgust.

We then see the troops undertaking the assault, which of course fails miserably, with great casualties being suffered. Straddling the divide between the separate worlds of command and operations is Kirk Douglas' Colonel Dax. When men under his command are accused of cowardice in the face of the enemy, Dax defends them personally, and is the only character to truly understand both realities. It is Dax's human responses to the horrors he has to face that allows this film to firmly fall in the anti-war camp.

Paths of Glory is arguably the first great film Stanley Kubrick made, and started a run of probably unparalleled genius in the Cinema of the second half of the 20th century. Often overlooked in the face of his better known and more lauded pictures, PoG remains a tightly wound and exceptional picture. In these ages where men in comfortable rooms continue to make decisions that lead to the senseless slaughter of thousands of soldiers and civilians, and all for their own personal gain, it endures as a film as alive and relevant today as it was in 1957.