
A second nominee in the books! We're sticking with the adapted screenplay nominees with the classic All Quiet on the Western Front.
Now, full disclosure, I have never read the original book, nor have I seen the other two film adaptations, so we won't be discussing how this movie holds up against the others. I'll leave that for other, more knowledgeable reviewers. It may also be worth noting that I watched this movie in two segments, because I have a bedtime.
Also, a content warning is in effect. It is a war movie, and we will be discussing all themes surrounding war, including death and extreme violence.
Briefly, and Without Spoilers
All Quiet on the Western Front (2022) takes place in 1917 during the first World War. We follow an enthusiastic young recruit, Paul Bräumer (Felix Kammerer), and his companions as they join the German army and are shipped off to the front lines. Almost immediately, their romanticized and grandiose notions of war and heroics are shattered by the horrors that come with it. As Bräumer is slowly worn away, commanding officers of the highest level and diplomats work to bring the war to a conclusion, with or without glory.
All Quiet on the Western Front (2022) is based of a 1929 novel of the same name, written by WWI veteran Erich Maria Remarque. The book has been adapted for film two other times, once in 1930 and once in 1979. The 2022 adaptation, written by Edward Berger, Lesley Paterson, and Ian Stokell, is nominated for Best Picture, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best International Feature Film, Best Original Score, Best Sound, Best Production Design, Best Cinematography, Best Makeup and Hairstyling, and Best Visual Effects. Yeah, it was pretty good.
Glory and Honor (Spoilers Ahead!!)
While I've heard this movie is quite a departure from its source material, because I've never read the book, nor watched the other movies, we'll just be discussing the 2022 adaptation as a standalone. And let's be real, it's no surprise it has as many nominations as it does.
From the very beginning, the movie takes us out of calm and quiet and directly into the battle. The opening shot that eventually descends into a world of carnage offers an immediate glimpse into what's to come.
We're eventually introduced to Paul as he and his classmates hurry to their school to enlist. Paul reveals that his parents would not permit him to enlist, but that he's so determined to "not be left behind" that he forges their signature. This is followed by a scene of an older gentleman, presumably the headmaster or a respected teacher, spouting a very nationalist speech, painting a glorious picture of these same boys returning home from war and welcomed as heroes.
Cut to a scene at the end of the movie, less than an hour away from the end of the war, when a furious and frustrated General Friedrich (Devid Striesow) orders the soldiers back into battle in an attempt to gain just a little more ground before the ceasefire goes into effect. He speaks on returning home with honor and not with their tail between their legs.
More importantly, neither of these speakers fought in the war.
To me, this was the theme that stood out the most. The war is painted as so utterly pointless, particularly by the end, and that men are dying for entirely no reason. And that this is all at the command of a handful of older men who are trying to make their mark on history.
There's one line in particular that Friedrich said that really stood out to me, and that was that he claims their hadn't been a war for 50 years and that he was born too late (we're not here to discuss historical accuracy). So you have a handful of older men who never got to live their "glory years" and fight in a proper war and want to live out their fantasies through the lives of younger generations with minimal risk to them. Even during the course of peace negotiations, the lead negotiator, Matthias Erzberger (Daniel Brühl), calls out other diplomats for dragging their feet in signing the terms of the armistice, accusing them of putting their egos above the lives of their soldiers.

And their hunger for glory is more easily hidden from the younger recruits, which you can see in the first speech. But by the second speech, the army is completely done with the BS. There are even soldiers pulled to be executed for desertion when some shout they don't want to fight anymore. Because what's the point? Everyone's starving, everyone knows Germany has lost, and they want to go home. Not fight another battle for another old man.
Fate and Futility
There's also a persistent theme of the futility of the war. That Germany was so clearly in defeat that at some point, the fighting didn't make sense. But I think this was painted most clearly during one of the battle sequences when the Germans overtake the French trenches (briefly). As the Germans are searching the trenches for additional combatants, they come across what seems to be a storage area with food. They find mostly bread and begin eating ravenously.
Keep in mind, at this point, it's well established that the Germans are almost literally starving to death. The blockades of the war are in full effect and both soldiers and civilians alike are facing extreme food shortages. And here they overtake the enemy to find they're mostly well-fed and well-resourced.
Then, just minutes later, the fighting resumes and we see new technologies introduced, like the armored vehicle and flame throwers. It was a perfect way to illustrate the vast differences between the two sides' resources and wealth, and also further underline just how pointless dragging on the war was. That all the glory and honor and blind nationalism in the world won't stop a full-blown tank.
It's All Just Very Good
There were frankly so many good aspects about this particular story. We have to give recognition to the scene in which Bräumer kills the French solder by stabbing him and ultimately can't leave and must watch the man die. Watching Bräumer move from wanting to silence the man to wanting to help him was unequivocally heartbreaking. It's frankly one of the saddest scenes I've watched in a while. And it's a scene that speaks on the ever-present reality that every person who fights in a war is just a person. That they signed up to defend their country (or maybe didn't sign up) and want to return home to see their family some day. But unfortunately, not everyone will.

Also, the score. I'm never going to get that sound out of my head. That "Whaa-Whaaa-Wha." It's so incredibly haunting, especially once that other sound comes in, which vaguely sounds like a body hanging from a tree. It's the soundtrack of nightmares and perfect for this movie.
The production is out of this world. You always hear that battle scenes are difficult, and this movie is frankly so complex and so beautiful in every shot.
'The acting is excellent. The costuming is superb. There's really so much about this movie that just works so brilliantly.
So Much War?
The movie is also two and a half hours long. Remember, I watched it over the course of two days, which actually didn't make it feel so long. But even so, it's a long movie. As in you'll need to strap in.
Also, as much as I appreciated the diplomacy scenes, I also don't know that I cared? I have conflicted emotions about that particular part of the movie. As in I think if you took it out, the movie would be mostly the same.
But Also, Don't Care
Honestly, the pros of this movie overwhelmingly outweigh the cons. It's an excellent war film, unless you're one of the old guys who's happy to throw away innocent lives for a little glory. And also not great for children or anyone who doesn't do well with blood and gore. Everyone else might just love this movie.
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