Review
All Quiet on the Western Front (Action, War, Drama) [Based on Novel] (2022)
Director: Edward Berger
Writer: Edward Berger, Lesley Paterson, Ian Stokell, Erich Maria Remarque (Based on Novel by)
Stars: Felix Kammerer, Albrecht Schuch, Daniel Brühl, Edin Hasanovic
The near-romanticised views of a young German soldier are broken as the realities of war provide only death and torment as the political powers that be, gamble with human lives.
From German director Edward Berger, we’re provided with a realistic vision of WWI, wars in general and the psychological effects of such events. It’s an adaptation of the novel of the same name by Erich Maria Remarque, which previously spawned a feature in 1930. It’s intended as an anti-war picture illustrating or criticising armed conflicts as a loss for humanity in general. It’s a German-spoken film produced by Amusement Park and distributed by Netflix.
Disillusioned by patriotism and propaganda, Paul Bäumer ‘’Felix Kammerer’’ and his friends enlist in the Imperial German Army during the First World War. Receiving re-cleaned second-hand uniforms, they’re deployed in Southern France and befriend some experienced soldiers. Soon casualties among their group surmount romanticised illusions of warfare, and the desperation and anguish of one of the deadliest conflicts in human history become their new reality.
Throughout our existence, there’s been conflict, wars waged with rocks, arrows, swords and catapults to grenades, rifles, bayonets and cannons. But, for what, the gain of prosperity or the grasp of national dominance. ‘’All Quiet on the Western Front’’ challenges films portraying wars on Earth and in galaxies far far away for that matter, often directly or indirectly depicting familiar nations in their most troubled times.
In Berger’s iteration of Erich Maria Remarque’s novel, many of the included events are realised effectively, both on the battlefield and behind the curtain of boardrooms and bingo halls. It’s genuinely a grim endeavour, as the initial scene reminds us of and shows one unfortunate soldier passing his blood-drenched tunic to the next. It shines an accurate light on a less common war in film, moving from eerie silence to vociferous gunfire. 
While conveying haunting cinema from visuals alone, the brutal sound design—as aforementioned, is even more astounding. What stands out most is the focus on the German army; in both world wars, they’re depicted as the villain from a victor’s standpoint, and thus so in cinema. In reality, it’s not as black and white.
Portraying ‘’The Great War’’, using a screentime of over two hours, ‘’All Quiet on the Western Front’’ stages an expertly crafted, even grimmer World War film than seen in films such as 2022’s ‘’1917’’. Justly an uncommon depiction of excellence in the War film sub-genre.
Verdict
All is loud on the Western Front.
8,5
