Paths of Glory (1957) is a war film by Stanley Kubrick based on the novel of the same name by Humphrey Cobb.[1]
Background
The book had no title when it was finished, so the publisher held a contest. The winning entry came from the ninth stanza of the famous Thomas Gray poem "Elegy Written in a Country Church-yard."[2]
The boast of heraldry, the pomp of pow’r,
And all that beauty, all that wealth e’er gave,
Awaits alike th’inevitable hour.
The paths of glory lead but to the grave.
Production
When the novel was published in 1935 it was a minor success. It was adapted by dramatist Sidney Howard into a play that same year, but the stage version was a failure. A film adaptation was not made until 1957 when Stanley Kubrick decided to adapt it to the screen after he had remembered reading the book in his childhood. Kubrick and his partners purchased the film rights from Cobb's widow for $10,000. It is supposedly inspired by the Souain corporals affair.
The novel was about the French execution of innocent men to frighten others in their resolve to fight. The French Army did certainly carry out military executions for cowardice as did all the other major participants. However the central plank of the film is the practice of selecting individuals at random and executing them as a punishment for the sins of the whole group. This is similar to Decimation, and while it was employed by the Romans, it was rarely used by the French Army in World War I. Little known is the French decimation (the shooting of every tenth person in a unit) of the 10e Compagnie of 8 Battalion of the Régiment Mixte de Tirailleurs Algériens. During the retreat at the beginning of the war these French-African soldiers refused an order to attack. They were shot on the 15th of December 1914 near Zillebeeke in Flanders.
Production took place entirely in Bavaria, Germany, especially at the Schleissheim Palace near Munich.
The only female character in the film, the waif who sings "The Faithful Hussar," was portrayed by German actress Christiane Harlan (credited in the film as Susanne Christian). She later married director Stanley Kubrick, and the couple remained married until his death in 1999.
Plot
Paths of Glory is based loosely on the true story of four French soldiers, under General Géraud Réveilhac, executed for mutiny during World War I; their families sued, and while the executions were ruled unfair, two of the families received one franc each, while the others received nothing.
The film begins with a voiceover describing the trench warfare situation of World War I up to 1916; immediately following this is a scene in which General George Broulard (Adolphe Menjou) of the French General Staff asks his subordinate, General Mireau (George Macready), to send his division on a suicidal mission to take a well-defended German position called the "Anthill." Mireau initially advises against the attack, citing the low probability of success and the danger to his beloved soldiers, but when General Broulard mentions the possibility of a promotion, Mireau quickly convinces himself the attack will succeed.
Mireau proceeds to walk through the trenches, addressing his men. He asks several soldiers (some of whom later become major characters) the question, "Ready to kill more Germans?" He throws one soldier out of the regiment for showing signs of shell shock, which Mireau denies exists, blaming the soldier's behavior on cowardice. Mireau leaves the detailed planning of the attack to the 701's Régiment Colonel Dax (Kirk Douglas) despite Dax's protests that the only result of the attack will be to weaken the French army with heavy losses for no benefit. Mireau does not relent.
During a scouting mission prior to the attack, a drunken lieutenant named Roget (played by Wayne Morris), a decorated veteran of World War II and a fighter ace, sees movement in the direction of the enemy and throws a grenade. Roget had sent one of his two men to scout out ahead, and the other soldier - Corporal Paris (Ralph Meeker) - realizes that the movement was the scout returning. He accuses Roget of killing his own comrade and then running in cowardice, but Roget denies it.
The attack on the German position proceeds, beginning with a first wave of soldiers, and with Colonel Dax leading, but ends in complete failure. None of the men who attack reach the German trenches, and one-third of the soldiers (B Company) refuse to even leave the trench because of heavy enemy fire. General Mireau, enraged, is convinced that his troops who remained in the trench are cowardly, and orders his own artillery to open fire on them to force them onto the battlefield. The artillery commander refuses to fire on his own men without written confirmation of the orders. Colonel Dax returns to the trenches, visibly disgusted that B Company under the command of Lt. Roget is staying in cover instead of charging along with rest of the men. Dax quickly tries to rally B Company to join the battle, but when he climbs up a trench ladder, a retreating French soldier from his own company knocks him down, demonstrating that all of his men have now given up on the charge and the attack has already failed.
As a result of the failure of the attack, General Mireau tries to transfer blame from himself to the soldiers, so he decides to publicly execute 100 of them as an example. General Broulard convinces Mireau to reduce the number to three, one from each company. Corporal Paris is chosen because his commanding officer, Lt. Roget (the one who had thrown a grenade earlier), has a personal vendetta against him. Private Ferol (Timothy Carey) is picked by his commanding officer because he is a "social undesirable." The last man, Private Arnaud (Joe Turkel), is chosen randomly by lot, despite being one of the best and most courageous soldiers.
Colonel Dax defends the men at their court-martial for cowardice. Dax challenges the court's authenticity, arguing that he was prevented from introducing evidence that would have been vital for the defence, that the prosecution presented no witnesses, that no written indictment was ever made against the accused, and that no stenographic record of the trial was kept. In his final summation to the court he requests mercy, saying, "Gentlemen of the court, to find these men guilty would be a crime to haunt each of you till the day you die." The three men are convicted and sentenced to death, nonetheless.
Later, Dax, aware of the reason Lt. Roget picked Corporal Paris to be executed, calls Roget to his quarters and assigns him as the officer in charge of the executions. When a horrified Roget protests by telling Dax he has never overseen an execution before, Dax explains in a mocking tone that it is a simple matter - the two primary responsibilities are to offer the men a blindfold and to put a bullet in each man's head after the firing squad has finished. Despite additional protests by Roget, Dax dismisses him curtly from his quarters. After Roget leaves, the artillery commander who refused General Mireau's order to fire on his own men enters and tells Dax he has some important information related to the planned executions.
Dax seeks out Broulard and reveals Mireau's treachery (regarding the command to fire artillery against their own men) to Broulard, complete with sworn statements by witnesses, but Broulard takes no immediate action. The condemned men are imprisoned and given a last meal. When visited by a priest (Emile Meyer), Ferol is willing to have his confession heard, and Paris agrees after initially admitting to not being religious, but Arnaud is drunkenly angry and tries to attack the priest. Paris punches Arnaud to prevent the attack, causing Arnaud to fall backward against the wall, which fractures his skull.
With great pomp and ceremony, the three condemned men are led out into a courtyard, where the soldiers from all three companies are present and at attention, along with senior officers and members of the press. Arnaud is carried out on a stretcher and tied to the execution post. Ferol is blindfolded and remains accompanied by the priest to the end. Paris is then offered a blindfold by Lt. Roget but refuses. Roget meekly apologizes to Paris for what he has done and Paris seems to accept Roget's apology. All three men are then shot and killed by the firing squad.
Following the execution, General Broulard invites Dax to a breakfast with General Mireau. Unexpectedly, General Broulard makes it clear that Mireau will be investigated for the order to fire artillery on his own men. Mireau leaves angrily, declaring that he has been made a scapegoat, but claiming to the end to be a true soldier. General Broulard then offers Dax Mireau's position, insinuating that Dax had been angling for promotion all along. Dax responds angrily, insinuating what the general can do with the promotion. The cynical General Broulard disdains Dax for being an idealist, saying he pities him as he would the village idiot; Broulard adds that he's done no wrong. Colonel Dax replies that he pities the general for his inability to see the wrongs he has done.
After the execution, some of Dax's soldiers are in a tavern, carousing, when the proprietor brings a young captured German woman on stage and makes her sing the German folk song "The Faithful Hussar." The hardened troops begin to howl and whistle wolfishly at her, but, touched by her song, they end up humming along, some openly weeping. Dax overhears this scene from outside. A sergeant appears with word that the regiment has been ordered to return to the front, but Dax tells him to give the men a few minutes more.
Cast
Reception
The film was released in January 1958 and premiered in Munich, Germany and Los Angeles, United States.[3] The film was considered a modest box office success, though it did earn Kubrick much critical acclaim.[4]
The release of the film and its showing in parts of Europe were controversial. Active and retired military personnel, offended by the way the French military was portrayed in the film, vehemently criticized it after its showing in Brussels (although the film was otherwise well received). Contrary to a persistent urban legend, the film was not banned in France; however, the French government placed enormous pressure on United Artists, the European distributor for the film, through diplomatic channels, to refrain from releasing the film. As a result, the film was not submitted to French censors, and was not shown in France until 1975, when moral codes had changed and attitudes calmed.[5] In Germany, the film was not allowed to be shown for two years after its release to avoid any strain in relations with France. The film was also officially censored in Spain by the government of Francisco Franco for its anti-military content, and was not released in that country until 1986, 11 years after Franco's death.
The film was nominated for a BAFTA Award under the category Best Film but lost to The Bridge on the River Kwai. The film also won a Jussi Awards' Diploma of merit. In 1959 the film was nominated for a Writers' Guild of America Award but ultimately lost.[6]
In Douglas' memoirs, he tells how Kubrick considered a traditional "Hollywood Happy Ending," with the three men getting a last minute reprieve. It was Douglas who insisted on the more realistic ending, which had been in the original script co-written by Kubrick.
Kubrick has been quoted[citation needed] as saying he never interpreted the movie as "anti-war." He instead characterised Paths of Glory as "anti-authoritarian ignorance." These are themes he later revisited in Dr. Strangelove and Full Metal Jacket, both of which are 'war movies'. A similar anti-authoritarian approach was amply displayed in A Clockwork Orange.
During the production and release of the movie, Douglas experienced significant negative publicity and financial loss for his role in the making of such a film. Nevertheless, he persisted in his efforts and the film was made and released. As the years have passed, both the significant artistic quality and topical content of the film have proven Douglas to be right on all counts. It is considered to be one of this iconic actor's greatest legacies.[citation needed]
David Simon, creator of critically acclaimed series 'The Wire', has said that 'Paths Of Glory' was a key influence on the HBO crime drama.[7]
Popular culture
The British series Blackadder Goes Forth (set in the British trenches during World War One) appears to have taken some inspiration from "Paths of Glory", particularly the episode "Corporal Punishment" in which Capt. Blackadder is subjected to a ludicrously unfair trial (the judge appears as a witness for the prosecution), a virtual Kangaroo court. The character of General Melchett differs wildly from the actor's previous roles in the Black Adder, being portrayed as a sociopath with a complete detachment from both the practical capacities of his officership as well as any rapport with the other officers, let alone with the men under him - a direct parallel to George Macready's role. At one point in the series, the famous scene of the French general touring the trenches is recreated with the story's counterparts.
Paths of Glory is the name of a card-driven strategy game covering World War I in Europe and the Near East, developed by game designer Ted Raicer and published by GMT Games. "Paths of Glory" is also the name of the tenth track in Faith No More's Album of the Year.[8] Mike Patton (songwriter/singer of Faith No More) is a huge fan of Stanley Kubrick, and a few of the band's songs/videos have Kubrick-inspired themes in them.[9] David Simon, describes Paths of Glory as the film template for his HBO series The Wire.[7]
The Tales from the Crypt episode "Yellow" in 1991 echoes the movies themes. The episode stars Kirk Douglas, Eric Douglas, Dan Aykroyd, and Lance Henriksen. Here Kirk Douglas plays a Great War general whose ne'er-do-well son (played by Eric Douglas) is tried for cowardice in the face of the enemy on a scouting mission in the trenches. Aykroyd effectively plays the Colonel Dax role, and Henriksen is the mortally wounded soldier who bears witness against the son. The episode pivots on the ego of both the father and the son.
Preservation and restoration
In 1992, the film was deemed "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant" by the Library of Congress and selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry. In October and November 2004 the movie was shown at the London Film Festival by the British Film Institute.[10] It was carefully remastered over a period of several years; the original film elements were found to be damaged. However, with the aid of several modern digital studios in Los Angeles the film was completely restored and remastered for modern cinema. In addition, Stanley Kubrick's widow Christiane (who also appears in the closing scene as the German Singer) made a guest appearance at the start of the performance.[11]
See also
References
- ^ Paths of Glory, Film Reviews, Variety, Accessed November 2007.
- ^ Elegy Written in a Country Church-yard, Thomas Gray, Accessed 2007.
- ^ Paths of Glory, Turner Classic Movies (TCM), Accessed November 2007.
- ^ Kubrick remembered as filmmaker who transcended the medium, CNN News, Accessed November 2007.
- ^ [1], Accessed July 23, 2008 (in French).
- ^ The Gods of Filmmaking, Paths of Glory Accessed November 2007.
- ^ a b The Wire: David Simon Q & A, NJ Star-Ledger March 9, 2008
- ^ lyrics Paths of Glory, Album of the Year by Faith No More, Accessed November 2007
- ^ Faith No More, Kubrick influences, FAQ; Scroll to question 26, Accessed November 2007.
- ^ Timeout London, Paths of Glory, Accessed November 2007
- ^ "Paths of Glory", BFI London Film Festival, viewers information leaflet, October 2004.
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