I needed a break from Italian 70's cinema so I sat down and watched:
All Quiet on the Western Front (2022).
This is not a remake of either Lewis Milestone's 1930 adaptation or Delbert Mann's 1979 version, but rather a direct adaptation of Erich Maria Remarque's 1929 book of the same name.
I have not seen either of the earlier movies or indeed read the book, so I went in with as open a mind as one can have concerning such a famous work. I of course knew it is set in WWI from the German point of view and that it is staunchly anti war. Beyond that I knew nothing.
The movie starts with four students that naively volunteer for the army and proudly and with a belly full of propaganda march off to the western front. All their inflated dreams of honor and glory are immediately punctured upon arriving at the trench. Everything is downhill from there.
The movie can be broken up into four different elements.
Gruesome battle scenes.
Generals and politicians talking.
Soldiers having a conversation.
Amazing nature scenes.
First off, All Quiet on the Western Front is a cinematic masterpiece but only from a visual point. This visual point is however magnificent, no questions and no doubts. It is stupidly pretty. The battle scenes are horrific, brutal and really well done. The rest is meaningless and boring.
As stated, I knew the movie is anti war, and I have no problem with that. My problem lies in how it tries to convey that message. Yes, the slaughter is horrible, but we already know it is. The truth is that war is the ultimate horror humanity can orchestrate. The slaughter is senseless and tragic, and the only ones who want it are the ones who don't need to participate, I.E. generals and politicians. I get that the filmmakers probably didn't want to diverge from the original material too much, but beyond a basic “war is bad and awful” this movie has nothing to say.
This brings me to point 3. We don't really get to know the characters at all. There is a handful of scenes where the soldiers are talking and they unfortunately don't really do anything for the narrative or character development. We learn that they yearn for home and their families, that they really don't want to be in the trenches and that they miss female company. Well so what? Sure these are valid feelings but every soldier feels this unless they are complete psychopaths. Any competent maker of thrillers know that they have to make you feel for the characters before the killer comes creeping or the tension is lost. In All Quiet on the Western Front there is no tension to speak of. Without the personal touch, the tragedy devolves into statistics. Sure, I did feel a little for the poor guys, but it could have been so much better. Their deaths could have meant something.
Point 2 is almost completely pointless and in my opinion does very little for the movie as a whole. This brings us to point 4. The movie is interspersed with the most beautiful shots of nature. Every shot is like a painting and could be the pride of any calendar. What I don't get is why they are there in the first place. Contrast to all the mud and blood? Maybe, I have no idea, but they are worth seeing just for their sheer beauty.
Otherwise, the movie is fine. The actors do a great job, the soundtrack is weird but good and as I said, the cinematography is A+.
So, do I recommend this movie? Yes and no. I'm sure you noticed that I have a lot of harsh criticism and I stand by that. All Quiet on the Western Front is two hours and twenty eight minutes long, and despite that, I had no trouble sitting through it. I guess what it boils down to is that it could have been a masterpiece and instead we get a pretty snooze fest broken up by complete carnage. If you like war movies or if the subject matter has some other appeal, then by all means watch it, but otherwise I'd say give it a miss.
That is that and all that. Join me again next time and until then, have a great week!
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