I just finished watching a fantastic film by G.W. Pabst titled Westfront 1918. I was surprised at how open and vulnerable, and just true to reality this German filmmaker was, especially back in 1930! There was no hurrah or praising the war or the Germans. It was not fun or exciting, like 1917 or Midway or what Michael Bay wanted Pearl Harbor to be for some reason. I wasn't rooting for one side to win or lose, I was just in this moment with these people. And they were so real! They weren't characters who were destined to have arcs or anything, it was just a diverse crowd of German soldiers, citizens, and romantics.
The film has some exemplary deep focus photos. There is one point toward the end of the film where the camera is just static and soldiers and tanks rush right to left across this battlefield and we watch the world before us fall apart, unable to do anything. These long shots and multidirectional movements within a still frame are clearly what Pabst was skilled at. His actors are great too, they own their emotions and are surprisingly real for 1930. I can't speak German, however, and did notice some signing from the era, but overall it felt quite real.
A great contributor to its real feeling is the writing. It doesn't feel forced or too focused on plot and objective. It's just snippets of this time German history and we choose to focus on these four individuals simply because they get around on all the action, some more than others.
Lastly, I'd like to praise this film on its depiction of shell shocked soldiers. The year is 1930. before John Wayne was even a thing. The end of the film shows soldiers crying in horror and the travesty of war. It shows the consequences and negative impact war has; consequences which I feel are mostly glossed over today.
I recommend Westfront 1918 to anyone studying the history of film, especially around the transition to the sound era, and German cinema. I look forward to seeing Pabst's other work, such as Pandora's Box. and Diary of a Lost Girl
The film has some exemplary deep focus photos. There is one point toward the end of the film where the camera is just static and soldiers and tanks rush right to left across this battlefield and we watch the world before us fall apart, unable to do anything. These long shots and multidirectional movements within a still frame are clearly what Pabst was skilled at. His actors are great too, they own their emotions and are surprisingly real for 1930. I can't speak German, however, and did notice some signing from the era, but overall it felt quite real.
A great contributor to its real feeling is the writing. It doesn't feel forced or too focused on plot and objective. It's just snippets of this time German history and we choose to focus on these four individuals simply because they get around on all the action, some more than others.
Lastly, I'd like to praise this film on its depiction of shell shocked soldiers. The year is 1930. before John Wayne was even a thing. The end of the film shows soldiers crying in horror and the travesty of war. It shows the consequences and negative impact war has; consequences which I feel are mostly glossed over today.
I recommend Westfront 1918 to anyone studying the history of film, especially around the transition to the sound era, and German cinema. I look forward to seeing Pabst's other work, such as Pandora's Box. and Diary of a Lost Girl