Synopsis – A German youth eagerly enters World War I, but his enthusiasm wanes as he gets a firsthand view of the horror – All Quiet on the Western Front.
Director – Lewis Milestone
Starring – Lew Ayres, Louis Wolheim, John Wray
Genre – War | Drama | Historical
Released – 1930
If you liked: 1917, Dunkirk, Empire of the Sun
All Quiet on the Western Front is one of the earliest non-silent anti-war movies and arguably remains the most powerful today as it shows the transformation a young German soldier suffers during his time in the World War I trenches. He started off with a childlike confidence that going to war would lead to everlasting glory, only for the reality of the conflict to beat him down and leave him struggling with his own mortality and the hypocrisy shown by those who didn’t fight but promised the world to those who did.
The film is a cinematographic masterpiece full of symbolism, impressive camera work, and a surprising level of violence. Positioning the viewer in the heart of the warfare to where you almost feel you’re one of these young men charging towards a hail of machine-gun bullets, explosions and nearly certain death. The film also benefits from the fact the entire cast delivers exceptional performances throughout, especially Wolheim and Ayres, who masterfully help depict how the conflict affected different generations.
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