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Paths of Glory

Paths of Glory (1957)

tomatometer

71

Average Rating: 7.1/10
Critic Reviews: 7
Fresh: 5 | Rotten: 2

No consensus yet.

audience

94

liked it
Average Rating: 4.2/5
User Ratings: 31,543

My Rating

Movie Info

Adapting Humphrey Cobb's novel to the screen, director Stanley Kubrick and his collaborators Calder Willingham and Jim Thompson set out to make a devastating anti-war statement, and they succeeded above and beyond the call of duty. In the third year of World War I, the erudite but morally bankrupt French general Broulard (Adolphe Menjou) orders his troops to seize the heavily fortified "Ant Hill" from the Germans. General Mireau (George MacReady) knows that this action will be suicidal, but he

May 15, 2001

United Artists

Cast

All Critics (41) | Top Critics (7) | Fresh (38) | Rotten (3) | DVD (11)

While the subject is well handled and enacted in a series of outstanding characterizations, it seems dated and makes for grim screen fare.

May 8, 2007 Full Review Source: Variety | Comments (6)
Variety
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This masterpiece still packs a wallop, though nothing in it is as simple as it may first appear; audiences are still arguing about the final sequence, which has been characterized as everything from a sentimental cop-out to the ultimate cynical twist.

May 8, 2007 Full Review Source: Chicago Reader | Comment
Chicago Reader
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Songs at the ends of dramas usually make us feel better. They are part of closure. This song at the end of this movie makes us feel more forlorn.

January 20, 2006 Full Review Source: Chicago Sun-Times | Comment
Chicago Sun-Times
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Paths of Glory is all about that greatest of all movie subjects: power.

December 9, 2005 Full Review Source: New York Magazine | Comment
New York Magazine
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There's a near mathematical logic to the scenario and the cruelty is compounded by class.

November 29, 2005 Full Review Source: Village Voice | Comment
Village Voice
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Both a terrifying, grim look at battle and an excruciatingly tense courtroom thriller. Together, it's a devastating indictment of war as conducted by opportunists and liars.

February 24, 2005 Full Review Source: Chicago Tribune | Comment
Chicago Tribune
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Stanley Kubrick often spoke out against war in his film, using violence as a weapon against the audience's sensibilities. Never was he more convincing as here.

August 15, 2011 Full Review Source: Oscar Guy | Comment
Oscar Guy

watching it is to watch the birth of the one of the greatest filmmakers of the second half of the 20th century

October 26, 2010 Full Review Source: Q Network Film Desk | Comment
Q Network Film Desk

For all its chilly symmetry and beauty, the sheer injustice shown will have your pulse racing.

October 3, 2007 Full Review Source: Film4 | Comment

Stanley Kubrick's best meditation on war (yes, Full Metal Jacket fans, you heard me).

April 9, 2007 Full Review Source: eFilmCritic.com | Comment
eFilmCritic.com

Truly a Kubrick classic with strong Kirk Douglas performance.

January 21, 2007 Comment
Dispatch-Tribune Newspapers

The final scene, in which Kubrick presents close-ups of soldiers watching a captured German girl being forced to sing for their pleasure is nothing short of masterful.

June 24, 2006 Full Review Source: Time Out | Comment

Working with a big budget for the first time, Kubrick superbly marshals the battle scenes. But the behind-the-scenes military wrangling seems so regimented and preordained that there's not much left to respond to.

April 6, 2006 Full Review Source: Boulder Weekly | Comment

Star Kirk Douglas used to say he didn't have to wait 50 years to know that Paths Of Glory would 'always be good.' He was right.

April 1, 2006 Full Review Source: Empire Magazine | Comment
Empire Magazine

One of the great anti-war dramas.

March 17, 2006 Comment
Las Vegas Review-Journal

The searing Paths Of Glory continues to impress with its striking blend of formal brilliance, economical storytelling and emotional directness.

December 6, 2005 Full Review Source: BBC | Comment
More Critic Reviews

Audience Reviews for Paths of Glory

I know Paths of Glory is a beloved classic, and yes, it features the masterful Kubrickian technique we've all come to love, but aside from the two standout final scenes, it's hard to get past Kirk Douglas' scene chewing. Call me crazy, but I don't buy him as a French Colonel -- surely some attempt (from anyone) to

April 15, 2012
JonathanHutchings
Jonathan Hutchings

Super Reviewer

Despite being known as a bit of a classic Kubrick's anti war film was not a box office hit at the time of release and was actually frowned upon by various European countries for the portrayal of the military and its negative message towards the establishment in general.It is clear to see the moral injustice carried out

January 23, 2012
phubbs1

Super Reviewer

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Foreign Titles

  • Wege zum Ruhm (DE)
  • Paths of Glory (1957) (CA)
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