All Quiet on the Western Front (Dir: Lewis Milestone, 1930).
A pre-code WWI drama adapted from German author Erich Maria Remarque's 1928 novel, All Quiet on the Western Front follows a group of students as they enlist in the army, detailing their transformation from idealistic boys to war weary soldiers, depicting the squalid living conditions and futility of the loss of young lives with a stark realism.
A pre-code WWI drama adapted from German author Erich Maria Remarque's 1928 novel, All Quiet on the Western Front follows a group of students as they enlist in the army, detailing their transformation from idealistic boys to war weary soldiers, depicting the squalid living conditions and futility of the loss of young lives with a stark realism.
Despite a lifelong love of vintage movies, until recently, I knew Lewis Milestone’s anti-war epic by reputation only. After my first viewing I am happy to report that All Quiet on the Western Front more than lives up to 90 years of hype. In short, it is a masterpiece.
Told, unusually, from the perspective of German soldiers. At first the broad American accents are a little jarring and take some getting used to. But remember this is so early in the history of sound cinema that it is a miracle they are talking at all. Little else in the picture strikes a wrong note. Nowhere to be found are the static camera shots often associated with early talkies. With its inventive camera angels, practical special effects and hundreds of extras it presents a visual spectacle that more than holds its own against modern CGI aided blockbusters. The film is full of affecting imagery, from the sight of the rapt students stirred up by an impassioned indoctrination on the glory of serving the "Fatherland", to the poetic final frames of a butterfly on the battleground, fading to shot of a cemetery.
Its powerful anti-war message, seen by some as controversial, is as potent now as when the movie was made; so potent in fact that the feature was outlawed in Germany at the behest of the Nazis. Its plea for pacifism is all the more pertinent when one remember that the world would be in conflict again in less than a decade.
With the possible exception of Lewis Ayres, in the lead role of young soldier Paul, much of the cast is unrecognizable to modern audiences. This arguably lends the film more authority, as no preconceptions of star status are allowed to diminish the powerful performances. Director Milestone elicits sensitive, natural performances from the cast which compliments the brutally beautiful images that he and cinematographer Arthur Edeson have created.
Its powerful anti-war message, seen by some as controversial, is as potent now as when the movie was made; so potent in fact that the feature was outlawed in Germany at the behest of the Nazis. Its plea for pacifism is all the more pertinent when one remember that the world would be in conflict again in less than a decade.
With the possible exception of Lewis Ayres, in the lead role of young soldier Paul, much of the cast is unrecognizable to modern audiences. This arguably lends the film more authority, as no preconceptions of star status are allowed to diminish the powerful performances. Director Milestone elicits sensitive, natural performances from the cast which compliments the brutally beautiful images that he and cinematographer Arthur Edeson have created.
Almost a century after its release All Quiet on the Western Front remains probably the most powerful indictment on the horrors of war ever put to celluloid. Released a mere twelve years after the Armistice, the movie was met with immense critical acclaim, receiving the Academy Awards for Best Picture and Best Director in what was only the third year the ceremony was held. The movie is indisputably both an influential landmark in cinema history and a bona fide classic. Simply one of the greatest movies ever made.
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