Paths of Glory
Movie, 1957, The '50s and before, Set in The Western Front, 1916
Paths of Glory is #4 of 13 in release order and #4 of 13 in chronological order in the Stanley Kubrick.
The story
A commanding officer defends three scapegoats on trial for a failed offensive that occurred within the French Army in 1916.
Paths of Glory recap
Paths of Glory (1957) follows a French colonel defending three of his men at a court-martial after a suicidal attack on the Western Front fails in 1916. Stanley Kubrick directs, adapting Humphrey Cobb's 1935 novel. General Broulard (Adolphe Menjou) dangles a promotion before General Mireau (George Macready) if his division takes a German position called the Ant Hill. Colonel Dax (Kirk Douglas), a former criminal lawyer, leads the attack, which collapses under fire; one company cannot even leave its trench, and Mireau orders his own artillery to shell them. To cover himself, Mireau demands that soldiers be shot for cowardice, and three are chosen: Corporal Paris (Ralph Meeker), picked by an officer with a grudge, Private Arnaud (Joe Turkel), chosen by lot, and Private Ferol (Timothy Carey). Dax defends them at a trial with no indictment and no record. Paths of Glory is Kubrick's fourth feature and his first with Douglas, who also starred in Spartacus.
Paths of Glory ending explained
Paths of Glory ends with the three men executed by firing squad, Arnaud tied to his stretcher after a skull fracture. Dax exposes Mireau's shelling order to Broulard, who sacks Mireau and then offers the job to Dax, assuming that was his aim; Dax refuses with contempt. In a tavern, the troops jeer a captured German girl (Christiane Kubrick, credited as Susanne Christian) forced to sing, until her song moves them to tears. Dax lets them have a few more minutes before they return to the front. The film was not shown in France until 1975.
Post-credits scenes
No. Paths of Glory has no mid- or post-credits scene.
Where to watch Paths of Glory
Paths of Glory is streaming on Kanopy, Hoopla, YouTube TV, Fandango at Home Free, MUBI, and YouTube (free) in the US. You can rent or buy it on Amazon, Apple TV, and Google Play.
Ratings
IMDb 8.4/10, Rotten Tomatoes 96%
Where it fits
- Release order: after The Killing, before Spartacus.
- Chronological order: after The Killing, before Spartacus.
Cast
- Kirk Douglas as Col. Dax
- Ralph Meeker as Cpl. Philippe Paris
- Adolphe Menjou as Gen. George Broulard
- George Macready as Gen. Paul Mireau
- Wayne Morris as Lt. Roget/Singing man
- Richard Anderson as Maj. Saint-Auban
- Joe Turkel as Pvt. Pierre Arnaud
- Christiane Kubrick as German Singer
- Jerry Hausner as Proprietor of Cafe
- Peter Capell as Narrator of Opening Sequence
- Emile Meyer as Father Dupree
- Bert Freed as Sgt. Boulanger
Directed by Stanley Kubrick.