Paths of Glory (1957)

Director:

Stanley Kubrick

Writers:

Stanley Kubrick (screenplay) &
Calder Willingham (screenplay) ...
(more)

Release Date:

25 October 1957 (West Germany)

Genre:

Drama | War

Tagline:

Never has the screen thrust so deeply into the guts of war!

Plot:

When soldiers in WW1 refuse to continue with an impossible attack, their superiors decide to make an example of them.

Plot Keywords:

General | Soldier | French Army | Cannon Fodder | Controversy

Awards:

Nominated for BAFTA Film Award. Another 3 wins & 2 nominations

Cast

Kirk Douglas	...	Col. Dax
Ralph Meeker	...	Cpl. Philippe Paris
Adolphe Menjou	...	Gen. George Broulard
George Macready	...	Gen. Paul Mireau
Wayne Morris	...	Lt. Roget
Richard Anderson	...	Maj. Saint-Auban
Joe Turkel	...	Pvt. Pierre Arnaud (as Joseph Turkel)
Christiane Kubrick	...	German Singer (as Susanne Christian)
Jerry Hausner	...	Proprietor of Cafe
Peter Capell	...	Narrator of Opening Sequence / Chief Judge of Court-Martial
Emile Meyer	...	Father Dupree
Bert Freed	...	Sgt. Boulanger
Kem Dibbs	...	Pvt. Lejeune
Timothy Carey	...	Pvt. Maurice Ferol
Fred Bell	...	Shell-Shocked Soldier
John Stein	...	Capt. Rousseau - Battery Commander
Harold Benedict	...	Capt. Nichols - Artillery Spotter
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Leon Briggs	...	Capt. Sancy (uncredited)
Paul Bös	...	Maj. Gouderc (uncredited)
Herbert Ellis	...	Small Role (unconfirmed) (uncredited)
Wally Friedrichs	...	Col. De Guerville (uncredited)
Halder Hanson	...	Doctor (uncredited)
James B. Harris	...	Private in the Attack (uncredited)
Rolf Kralovitz	...	K.P. (uncredited)
Ira Moore	...	Capt. Renouart (uncredited)
Marshall Rainer	...	Pvt. Duval (uncredited)
Roger Vagnoid	...	Cafe Owner (uncredited)

Directed by
Stanley Kubrick

Writing credits
Stanley Kubrick		(screenplay) &
Calder Willingham		(screenplay) and
Jim Thompson		(screenplay)
Humphrey Cobb		(based on the novel "Paths of Glory" by)

Produced by
James B. Harris	....	producer
Kirk Douglas	....	producer (uncredited)
Stanley Kubrick	....	executive producer (uncredited)

Original Music by
Gerald Fried

Cinematography by
Georg Krause		(photographed by) (as George Krause)

Film Editing by
Eva Kroll

Art Direction by
Ludwig Reiber

Costume Design by
Ilse Dubois

Makeup Department
Arthur Schramm	....	makeup artist

Production Management
John Pommer	....	production manager: American
Helmut Ringelmann	....	unit manager
George von Block	....	production manager: German

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Dixie Sensburg	....	assistant director (as D. Sensburg)
Franz-Josef Spieker	....	assistant director (as F. Spieker)
Hans Stumpf	....	assistant director (as H. Stumpf)

Sound Department
Martin Müller	....	sound
Al Gramaglia	....	sound re-recording mixer (uncredited)

Special Effects by
Erwin Lange	....	special effects

Camera and Electrical Department
Hans Elsinger	....	camera grip
Hannes Staudinger	....	camera operator
Stanley Kubrick	....	additional cinematographer (uncredited)
Lars Looschen	....	still photographer (uncredited)

Editorial Department
Helene Fischer	....	assistant editor

Other crew
Trudy von Trotha	....	script clerk
Baron von Waldenfels	....	military adviser (as Baron v. Waldenfels)
Sid Stogel	....	publicity director (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Bryna Productions (presents)

Distributors

• United Artists (1957) (USA) (theatrical) (released thru)
• United Artists (1957) (West Germany) (theatrical)
• United Artists Films (1958) (Finland) (theatrical)
• United Artists (1958) (Sweden) (theatrical)
• Bison Film (1965) (Sweden) (theatrical)
• Mainostelevisio (MTV3) (1965) (Finland) (TV)
• American Broadcasting Company (ABC) (1968) (USA) (TV)
• Yleisradio (YLE) (1983) (Finland) (TV) (2003) (2008)
• TV3 (1988) (Finland) (TV)
• MGM/UA Home Video (1990) (USA) (VHS)
• Chapel Distribution (1997) (Australia) (theatrical) (new 35mm print re-issue)
• MGM Home Entertainment (1997) (USA) (VHS) (pan and scan)
• Warner Home Video (1999) (Netherlands) (VHS)
• MGM Home Entertainment (Europe) (2002) (Sweden) (DVD)
• MGM/UA Home Entertainment (2002) (USA) (DVD)
• Park Circus (2005) (UK) (theatrical) (re-release)
• MGM Home Entertainment (2007) (USA) (DVD)
• Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment (2007) (Netherlands) (DVD)
• Criterion Collection, The (2010) (USA) (DVD) (Blu-ray)
• Cinemagia (Brazil) (DVD)
• Criterion Collection, The (19??) (USA) (video) (laserdisc)
• International DVD Group (2009) (Argentina) (DVD)
• MGM/UA Home Entertainment (2007) (USA) (DVD) (as part of the pack 'UA 90th Anniversary Prestige Collection', )
• Warner Home Vídeo (Brazil) (VHS)

Other Companies

• Munich Symphony Orchestra  music performed by (uncredited)

Also Known As:

Runtime:

88 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | German | Latin

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Argentina:13 (original rating) | Australia:PG | Canada:14 (Nova Scotia) | Canada:G (Quebec) | Canada:PG (Manitoba/Ontario) | Finland:K-16 | France:(Banned) (original rating) | France:U (re-release) | Ireland:12 | Norway:16 | Sweden:15 | UK:A (original rating) (passed with cuts) | USA:Approved (MPAA rating: certificate #18708) | Spain:T | Iceland:L | Spain:(Banned) (1957-1986) | West Germany:12 (f) | South Korea:15 | Brazil:14 | Argentina:Atp (re-rating) | Netherlands:12 (2007) (DVD) | UK:PG (tv rating) | UK:PG (video rating) (1989) (2002) | UK:PG (re-rating) (2005) | USA:TV-14 (TV rating) | USA:Not Rated | Italy:16+

Filming Locations:

Munich, Bavaria, Germany

Company:

Bryna Productions

Trivia:

In an early attempt to sell the project to a studio, Stanley Kubrick and producer James B. Harris rented military uniforms and gathered several male friends to pose for a photograph that would capture the essence of their story. They affixed the photo to the cover of each screenplay copy.

Goofs:

Anachronisms: The French soldiers are shown using a British Vickers machine gun in one of the trench scene. They should have been using a Hotchkiss weapon, or some other firearm of French design.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Narrator of opening sequence:War began between Germany and France on August 3rd 1914. Five weeks later the German army had smashed its way to within eighteen miles of Paris. There the battered French miraculously rallied their forces at the Marne River and in a series of unexpected counterattacks drove the Germans back...

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Two-Fisted Tales (1992) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Künstlerleben (Artist's Life), Op.316

Stands the Test of Time

An arrogant French general (a superb George Macready) orders his men on a suicide mission and then has the gall to try to court marshal and execute three of them for cowardice in the face of the enemy. A former lawyer turned colonel (Kirk Douglas in his prime) is the voice of reason against gross injustice. This excellently staged and wonderfully acted production is as much an acting showcase for Douglas as it is a directorial masterstroke by a young Stanley Kubrick who adapted this to the screen from a novel based on actual accounts.

Kubrick displays a great control of sound effects and camera movement in the brief but effective battle scenes that expertly depict the controlled chaos that was trench warfare during WWI. Things get juicier during the ensuing courtroom battle where the deafening disparity between the elite who propagate and profit from war and the common citizens who suffer and die in war is shown with great lucidity.

Unlike later Kubrick epics, this runs at a crisp 90 minutes, though suffers briefly from a slow and awkwardly staged opening ten minutes before Douglas comes on screen. Ultimately, this holds up very well to modern scrutiny thanks to the flawlessness of Kurbick's craft, the amazing ensemble acting, and the surprising depth of its philosophical and psychological pondering. "Paths of Glory" is more anti-arrogance than anti-war, and is unapologetically sentimental and pro-soldier. As such, much can still be gleaned from its message.