327. All Quiet On The Western Front (Im Westen nichts Neues); movie review

 

ALL QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT (IM WESTEN NICHTS NEUES)

Cert 15

147 mins

BBFC advice: Contains strong threat, violence, injury detail, disturbing scenes

Oh, how I wish I had been old enough to have asked my great-grandfather about his experiences at The Somme.

But would he have wanted to relive the horrors - or were they best left in the recesses of his memory bank?

Having watched All Quiet Of The Western Front, it seems inconceivable that anyone who served on either side could have gone on to resume normal lives.

The physical and mental toll would have been enormous.

Edward Berger's searing film, based on the 1929 novel of the same name, is an unsentimental reflection of life in the German trenches.

Interestingly, the recruitment of soldiers is eerily similar to British representations with teenagers signing up for what they seem to believe will be short-lived posturing.

Within just a few hours, they face their own mortality and the pervading stench of death.

The movie's focus is teenager Paul Bäumer (Felix Kammerer) who enlists with his school friends and is sent with them to northern France.

He goes through the hell of the frontline where his personality quickly changes from care-free 17-year-old to battle-hardened soldier.

The film then moves on to the final days of the war during which negotiations for a truce are taking place as thousands of lives are still being lost.

It is clear that those in charge simply don't care about the men they lead but are instead blinded by political point-scoring or their own ambitions.

This is almost more upsetting than the horribly violent scenes of the trenches.

I thought 1917 was a stupendous film but while All Quiet Of The Western Front isn't quite as compelling, it is even grittier.

If your stomach can take it, it is a must-see.

Reasons to watch: The grittiest First World World film ever

Reasons to avoid: Constant flow of upsetting scenes

Laughs: None

Jumps: None

Vomit: None

Nudity: None

Overall rating: 9/10

Did you know? Fighting continued up to 11 am on 11, November 1918, with 2,738 men dying on the last day of the war.

The final word. Edward Berger: "It’s a German book, it’s been made into an American movie once, or even twice with a television movie. And so why do it again? What immediately popped into my head was, 'Let’s make a German movie out of this. This is a very German story. The time is right to tell this in the German language.' That just felt undeniable in a way." AV Club

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