IMDb > Paths of Glory (1957)
Paths of Glory
Quicklinks
Top Links
trailers and videosfull cast and crewtriviaofficial sitesmemorable quotes
Overview
main detailscombined detailsfull cast and crewcompany creditstv schedule
Awards & Reviews
user reviewsexternal reviewsnewsgroup reviewsawardsuser ratingsparents guiderecommendationsmessage board
Plot & Quotes
plot summarysynopsisplot keywordsAmazon.com summarymemorable quotes
Fun Stuff
triviagoofssoundtrack listingcrazy creditsalternate versionsmovie connectionsFAQ
Other Info
merchandising linksbox office/businessrelease datesfilming locationstechnical specslaserdisc detailsDVD detailsliterature listingsNewsDesk
Promotional
taglines trailers and videos posters photo gallery
External Links
showtimesofficial sitesmiscellaneousphotographssound clipsvideo clips

Paths of Glory (1957) More at IMDbPro »

Photos (see all 24 | slideshow) Videos (see all 4)
Paths of Glory (1957) -- AllTrailers.net - Trailer (Flash)

Oscar Nominations    Photos    more »

Overview

User Rating:
8.6/10   41,417 votes
Your Rating:
Saving vote...
Deleting vote...
/10   (delete | history)
Sorry, there was a problem
MOVIEmeter: ?
Down 1% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Director:
Writers:
Stanley Kubrick (screenplay) &
Calder Willingham (screenplay) ...
more
Contact:
View company contact information for Paths of Glory on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
25 October 1957 (West Germany) more
Genre:
Tagline:
Never has the screen thrust so deeply into the guts of war! more
Plot:
When soldiers in WW1 refuse to continue with an impossible attack, their superiors decide to make an example of them. full summary | full synopsis
Plot Keywords:
Awards:
Nominated for BAFTA Film Award. Another 3 wins & 2 nominations more
User Reviews:
They Couldn't Take An Ant Hill more (254 total)

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Kirk Douglas ... Col. Dax
Ralph Meeker ... Cpl. Philippe Paris

Adolphe Menjou ... Gen. George Broulard
George Macready ... Gen. Paul Mireau
Wayne Morris ... Lt. Roget / Singing man

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 / Judge (colonel) of court-martial
Emile Meyer ... Father Dupree
Bert Freed ... Sgt. Boulanger
Kem Dibbs ... Pvt. Lejeune

Timothy Carey ... Pvt. Maurice Ferol
Fred Bell ... Shell-shock victim
more
Create a character page for: ?

Additional Details

Runtime:
87 min
Country:
Language:
Aspect Ratio:
1.33 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Certification:
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) | 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) | UK:PG (video rating) (1987) (uncut) | USA:Approved (MPAA rating: certificate #18708)
Filming Locations:

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
Composer Gerald Fried actually created two main title themes for the movie. While most prints of the film features his arrangement of the French national anthem, "Marseillaise," another version opened with an original composition by Fried. The latter version was created for select European markets that might have taken offense at the anthem's use in a film so critical of France's military leadership. more
Goofs:
Boom mic visible: During the first tracking with Dax in the trenches, the shadow of a boom-mike is visible. more
Quotes:
General Mireau: Hello there, soldier. Ready to kill more Germans?
Private Ferol: Yes, sir.
General Mireau: What's your name, soldier?
Private Ferol: Sir, Private Ferol, Company A.
General Mireau: Aha. You married, soldier?
Private Ferol: No, sir.
General Mireau: I'll bet your mother's proud of you.
Private Ferol: Yes, sir.
General Mireau: Carry on, Private, and good luck.
Private Ferol: Thank you, sir.
more
Movie Connections:
Soundtrack:
Der Treue Husar more

FAQ

A Note Regarding Spoilers
Is "Paths of Glory" based on a novel?
Any recommendations for WWI movies similar to "Paths of Glory"?
more
68 out of 74 people found the following review useful.
They Couldn't Take An Ant Hill, 2 July 2006
10/10
Author: bkoganbing from Buffalo, New York

Almost one hundred years later the concept of that static war of the trenches that was the Western front of World War I is almost unfathomable. After the French army stopped the German offensive at the Battle of the Marne, the French and British armies faced the Germans in a line of trenches that stretched from Belgium to Switzerland. About a quarter of France was occupied for four years in that time. The casualties ran into the millions in that stalemate that gains were only measured in meters.

It was always just one more offensive over the top charging into automatic weapon fire that would break the other guy. Just such an offensive was planned one day in 1916 against a German stronghold dubbed the ant hill.

General George MacReady, promised a promotion by his superior Adolphe Menjou, orders a beaten and tired battalion to charge the ant hill. The attack flops and MacReady looks for scapegoats. He decides after coming down from shooting 100 men to a selected three drawn by lot. The unlucky three are Joseph Turkel, Ralph Meeker, and Timothy Carey.

The commander of the three Kirk Douglas asks to serve as their counsel and he makes a good show of it at the kangaroo court martial they have. But the fix is definitely in.

Except for Spartacus, Kirk Douglas rarely plays straight up heroic types in film. Even his good guys have an edge to them, a dark side. But as Colonel Dax, Douglas is at his most heroic. He may be one dimensional here, but he's great. Especially in that last scene with Adolphe Menjou when he tells the man off in no uncertain terms, mainly because Menjou has misread Douglas's motives.

Menjou and Macready portray two different military types. The arrogant MacReady as versus the very sly Menjou. Not very admirable either of them. Menjou was not very popular at this time in Hollywood because of the blacklist. He favored it very much, his politics were of the extreme right wing. Nevertheless he was a brilliant actor and never better than in this film, one of his last.

The enlisted men are a good bunch also. They're kind of like the posse in The Oxbow Incident, just an ordinary group who become ennobled in martyrdom as they go to the firing squad for the sake of politics.

Paths of Glory is one of the best anti-war films ever made. It ranks right up there with All Quiet on the Western Front which showed the war from the German point of view. Both will be classics 200, 300, a thousand years from now.

Was the above review useful to you?
more (254 total)

Message Boards

Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for Paths of Glory (1957)
Recent Posts (updated daily)User
American and British accents stadler-3
Total Fiction or based on true events? kag2
name of song douglas1058
Other good black and white / old films? The_tim
last scene with the german babe, what does it stand for? agnishevchenko
Reviving the 'NOT an Anti-War film' Debate Voice-in-the-Machine
more

Recommendations

If you enjoyed this title, our database also recommends:
- - - - -
Capitaine Conan Uomini contro All Quiet on the Western Front Cross of Iron Joyeux Noël
IMDb User Rating:
IMDb User Rating:
IMDb User Rating:
IMDb User Rating:
IMDb User Rating:
Show more recommendations

Related Links

Full cast and crew Company credits External reviews
News articles IMDb top 250 movies IMDb Crime section
IMDb USA section Add this title to MyMovies

You may report errors and omissions on this page to the IMDb database managers. They will be examined and if approved will be included in a future update. Clicking the 'Update' button will take you through a step-by-step process.