Germany, May 1917. 17-year-old Paul Baumer enthusiastically enlists in the German army and heads off to war. His head is filled with patriotism, honour, visions of heroism and the confidence that Germany will win the war. He soon learns that his impressions of war are far from the reality.
Erich Maria Remarque's "All Quiet on the Western Front" was first published in 1929. It was quite revolutionary, depicting the horrific reality of war rather than the glamourous, sanitised version. In a sense it was the first anti-war novel. It was so unflinching in its portrayal of WW1 that the Nazi party regarded it as treasonous and had the book banned and stripped Remarque of his German citizenship, causing him to flee to Switzerland and ultimately the US.
In 1930 Hollywood made the book into a movie. It was superb, capturing well the horrors that Remarque depicted in his book. It deservedly won the Oscar for Best Picture (and Best Director) in 1930.
In 1979 it was adapted again, this time as a made-for-TV movie. Despite being directed by Delbert Mann and boasting a star-studded cast (Richard Thomas, Ernest Borgnine, Ian Holm, Donald Pleasance) this version was far from being in the same league as the 1930 version and didn't do the book justice. It is quite tame and the performances are quite subdued.
This, the 2022 version, once again captures the essence of the book and is quite unflinching in its portrayal of war. Graphic scenes and realistic plot show the wastefulness and horror of war.
Not as good as the 1930 version though: the characters aren't as fully developed, limiting engagement, and the plot feels a bit padded. A few drawn out scenes could easily have been shorter without losing any detail. Some style-over-substance elements too as the director went overboard with the special effects he had at his disposal (the French counter-attack with tanks and flamethrowers is a good example). The droning sound didn't help either (clearly the director has watched Christopher Nolan's "Dunkirk").
