Paths of Glory film analysis and themes

¶ … Paths of Glory directed by Stanley Kubrick. Specifically it will discuss what I thought of the video and if it enhanced my understanding of the topic.

Paths of Glory" is set in World War I in 1916, and it follows the impossible attack of the German-held "Ant Hill" by French soldiers commanded by a slightly crazy and power-hungry German general. It takes place on the Western Front, near Verdun in France, and it is a gripping look at the trench warfare tactics of the war. The men are not ready for the attack, but the General, because of his own needs and desires, orders them to attack anyway. The attack is bloody and ultimately fails, and some of the men refused to leave the trenches, which infuriates the General. The General convinces his superior that the men acted rashly and must be disciplined, so he selects three men of the company to court-martial as an example to the others.

The General attends the court-martial proceedings, intimidates the judge, and eventually, even though a brilliant defense is raised by Colonel Dax, one of the commanders of the regiment, they are sentenced to death, and are shot soon after, even though Dax attempts to change the verdict. The film ends with Dax turning down a promotion, and the intent of the superior to go after the mad General for his order to fire artillery on his own men because they would not leave the trenches. The film is a very dark look at war in general, and the overall madness of war, and I think that was the most powerful part of the film, along with the warfare, which was brutal. It made trench warfare come alive, unfortunately, and it showed the brutal conditions of the battlefield and warfare at the time. The scene of the men running across No Man's Land as the unseen enemy just mows them down is haunting, and seems to represent the reality of war far too well. These men are attacking because of a mad general's own desires and plans, and they have nothing to do with the men's safety, or even the war. The film shows the upper command as scheming and self-adsorbed, and even crazy, and that might not be so far from the truth when it comes to war. This film made me think about the effects of war, on the people, the countryside, and the soldiers, and about the commanding officers and their ability and stability. This film is supposedly based on a real event, and that makes it all the more frightening - that commanders are willing to sacrifice and jeopardize their men for their own selfish ambitions.

The court-martial itself was also extremely troubling, because it was so clearly unfair and did not represent the appeals of the men at all. The judge was clearly biased or influenced, and the men were doomed from the start, something that seemed impossible in real life, but could be all too true. The entire situation was frightening because it seemed so real, and it was not at all difficult to believe a situation like this could occur. It made me think about the men and women fighting in Iraq today, and how many of them could be facing the same issues of poor commanders and situation that are not all on the up-and-up. If our people are facing situations like that because of poor leadership, I think it is wrong. I think we have not learned lessons from war, and so, people still die because of stupidity, ignorance, and power struggles, rather than at the hands of the enemy.