RojoPaths of Glory
Now there are a lot of people who don’t like Kubrick, and there are many who do, I’m part of that many who do. When I first begun to realise something I thought as a teen-ager “I really want to make films, I begun on a quest to watch as movies as I could, when I found a director I liked I tried to watch all their films, Stan was the first.
For a long time I liked his films though I had only seen I think Full Mental Jacket, and A Clockwork Orange. I began with the Killing. Totally awesome, I mean I was blown away because I was of the opinion of “if it old and black and white it won’t appeal”.
Bullshit.
I then moved to Paths of Glory the film I want to talk about (though taking a Kubrick odyssey is a great thing to do). Paths of Glory was to black and white that enlightened me you could say, where The Killing had me going “hey black and white, pretty cool” Paths of Glory may me go “I got to see more old films”. But of course Kubrick was the main reason I loved this film. His despotic touch I love, his feel for drama I think nobody has come near to since (maybe Wes Anderson). Kubrick’s cinematography is always solid, consistent, and a joy to watch, his corridors of consequence in Paths of Glory a mellifluous dolly shot down French trench’s as explosions and war can be heard oh so close.
The script is sublime with a juxtaposition of reason and sanity in the trenches where insanity should prevail (I point to the conversation the soldiers have about how best to die) to the madness of the General and his opulent surroundings.
Kirk Douglas is amazing as Dax, the day comith you will agree that Kirk Douglas was once electrifying, and the mad General Mireau (George Macready) another outstanding performance.
It can indeed be argued that Kubrick films are consistent in that they always deal with the same themes. The fallibility of man, the trust and decisions lying in the hands it shouldn’t, the in inner killer and malevolent being that man is (and it is said the Kubrick’s film illustrated the asininity of war, I think this wrong. Kubrick I feel is only showing us the realities of war, he himself was not against war.) This is a good thing as he takes such different stories (and genres) and still is able to weave that which he finds so intriguing about this world.
Paths of Glory an early example of his genus.
9/10
Film & TV on DVD
I find it tackles similar issues to Robert Alderich's Attack and Peckinpah's Cross of Iron...military brass looking for personal glory rather than the livelihood of the men.
Great choice, i was actually going to review this one on my blog soon...watched it again the other week
PS cool that you dug The Killing, it's my favorite early Kubrick work.