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:

Richard Burton and James Mason were considered for the part of Colonel Dax.

Goofs:

Crew or equipment visible: Camera wire visible in few shots where the prisoners are being taken to their execution spot.

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:

Featured in "The Rotten Tomatoes Show: Alice in Wonderland/Stolen/Brooklyn's Finest (#2.9)" (2010)

Soundtrack:

La Marseillaise

An anti-war movie hitting closer to home.

I consider Paths of Glory as one of the most memorable of Kubrick's entire output. The most remarkable aspect of this pioneer anti-war film is the complete absence of any persons depicting the "real" enemy. Therefore, the significance of the film lay not so much in its anti-war message, but in its brilliant expose of the "monsters within" the general staff, superbly acted by Adolphe Menjou and George Macready. The message here is that the enemy lurks much closer to home. In most war films, whether they glorify or condemn the carnage, there is rarely any venturing at all into the darker side of the politics. This film is a tour de force in its unabashed depiction of just how misguided is the quest for glory as an end in itself; and in the portrayal of the leaders who would shamelessly sacrifice others for their own self aggrandizement. Truly, one of my all time favourite movies.