Advantages: Excellent story with a strong performance from Douglas Disadvantages: Very few - maybe not as much action as you might expect
One of director Stanley Kubrick's earlier and lesser known films, Paths of Glory is a powerful anti-war film starring Kirk Douglas. Whilst it did not receive any awards at the time, it has since become a classic, and is currently rated #44 on the IMDb chart - Kubrick's second highest film.
Set on the French frontline in 1916, Douglas plays Colonel Dax - an idealistic man who is ordered to lead his French troops on a seemingly impossible mission. Although he reluctantly does so, the mission turns into a disaster; many men die, and they end up retreating back to their trenches.
Disgusted by this apparent display of cowardice, the General Somebody (played by Somebody Somebody) orders a court marshal. Three men must be picked out and executed as an example to the others. Angry at this scapegoating by the generals, Dax chooses to ...
Advantages: Wonderfully drawn characters Disadvantages: A bit big and scary
Big things tend to scare me, as they're frequently filled with stuff you'll never need, or things that are simply there to take up space. Often with large books, you find lots of empty writing, which seems to be there more to increase the page count than to advance the plot. Kate Elliott's recent "Shadow Gate" was one such and, as a result, the sheer size of "Path of Revenge" was off putting.
As it turns out, there was nothing to worry about, as the story was immediately engaging. Locked in a tower lies the husk of what was once a man; beaten and imprisoned by an immortal. After years of thought, he has found a way to kill the immortal, but he needs certain tools to enable him to do so. These tools are scattered, one in each of the lands that make up the world and held by very different people; a fisherman, a young scholar and a Queen ...
Advantages: A masterpiece! Meaning everything contained in the film is superb! Disadvantages: None, nada, nicto! Don't let the fact it was made in 1957 put you off!
the firing squad.
A simple premise, but a powerful one in the hands of a master craftsman. The clever title, originally taken from a Thomas Gray poem that reads ?the paths of glory lead but to the grave,? is indicative of the message Kubrick wishes to highlight. Representative of the ambition and success of the generals in command, it is the avenues to self-advancement they seek, with the utmost indifference to the fate of the men in the trenches, that provides the films underlying theme regarding military incompetence. The issue is handled in a refrained and subtle way, allowing the script to play out logically without ever feeling the need to dabble in trite sentimentality or unnecessary exploitation. From the brilliant choice to shoot the film in black and white (thus giving a gritty, darker feel to the entire story, and refraining from ...
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