June 18, 2010

Paths of Glory

The Top 63 Marathon, part 15



Data
Title: Paths of Glory
Year: 1957
Length: 87 minutes
Director: Stanley Kubrick
Writers: Stanley Kubrick, Calder Willingham & Jim Thompson, based on the novel by Humphrey Cobb
Starring: Kirk Douglas, Ralph Meeker, Adolphe Menjou, George Macready
Music: Gerald Fried
Distinctions: currently #49 on the IMDb's Top 250



My reaction
Synopsis: WWI soldiers are tried for cowardice
How I saw it: on video (rented from Netflix), yesterday
Concept: Bad. All Quiet on the Western Front lite. War is bad, people!
Story: Good. It's necessarily preachy by its nature, but otherwise well-written.
Characters: Good.
Dialog: Good.
Pacing: Good. It's a long hour-and-a-half, but I'm just glad it wasn't the long three hours I expected from a 50's war movie.
Cinematography: Great.
Special effects/design: Good.
Acting: Good.
Music: Good.
Subjective Rating: 6/10 (Okay). Its whole point is that it has Something To Say, and that always annoys me. It's very well made, although (apart from the cinematography) not exceptional. I was able to get into it and enjoy it at times. But mostly it beats you over the head.
Objective Rating: 2.8/4 (Good)

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