Paths of Glory (1957)

A grim anti-war film so profound and technically commanding it would have defined most careers, but for a 29-year-old Stanley Kubrick, it was only a stepping stone.

Directed by: Stanley Kubrick

Cinematography by: Georg Krause

Country: United States

Genre: War/Drama

Based on the anti-war novel by Humphrey Cobb, Paths of Glory is the movie that made the film world stop dead in their tracks, do a triple take, and declare, “Hot mama, I think this Kubrick kid might have some freak ass talent” (a very popular 1950s colloquialism probably). Producers were ostensibly among these triple-taking, dead-stopping declarers who viewed Paths of Glory, and they decided to hand Kubrick the reins to Spartacus (1960), one of the highest budgeted films of the 60s, for his next project; subsequently, to the delight of those producers I’m sure, Spartacus’s box-office success moved it to the even better categorization of being one of the highest grossing films of the 60s (it grossed about $48 million, which equates to a little over $400 million in 2019 with inflation. Also I don’t really know how inflation works so maybe that conversion is wrong). The young filmmaker - only in his early thirties at this point - then followed that mega blockbuster up with two more revered masterpieces in Dr. Strangelove (1964), and 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968), so Kubrick did indeed prove, time and time again, to have some freak ass talent.

In Paths of Glory, a lot of Kubrick’s Freak Ass Talent™️ and technical brilliance shines through in his exalted trench and battle sequences where he pulls off a number of exceptional long takes, tracking shots, and combination (Pizza Hut and Taco Bell) long take tracking shots. The trench sequence is one of Kubrick’s utmost famous though: it’s got a big, shiny showcase in the Kubrick Hall of Fame that exists in my head.

The sequence is edited into a shot reverse shot, rhythmically tracking Kirk Douglas’s character, and his POV perspective, as he strides through the trenches of an active war zone, bombs rattling the earth loose around him. Stone-faced he advances between two winding columns of his soldiers, knowing he has to lead them into an unwinnable battle, yet he continues on, stoic, grim, and duty-bound, like a 20th century Eddard Stark.
(unnecessary pop culture reference count: 2)