All Quiet on the Western Front

Average customer rating:

The brutal poetry of war
Apparently Horace never served active duty
The Horrors of War
A powerful reminder
Nice anti-war message but awfully creaky

All Quiet on the Western Front (Universal Cinema Classics)
Starring: Louis Wolheim , Lew Ayres , John Wray , Arnold Lucy , and Ben Alexander
Director: Lewis Milestone
Manufacturer: Universal Studios
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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Similar Items:

All Quiet on the Western Front
Paths of Glory
Mutiny on the Bounty
The Heiress (Universal Cinema Classics)
The Best Years of Our Lives

ASIN: B000KGGJ0Y
Release Date: 2007-02-06

Amazon.com essential video

If a classic movie can be measured by the number of indelible images it burns into the collective imagination, then All Quiet on the Western Front's status is undisputed. Since its release in 1930 (and Oscar win for best picture), this film's saga of German boys avidly signing up for World War I battle--and then learning the truth of war--has been acclaimed for its intensity, artistry, and grown-up approach. Director Lewis Milestone's technical expertise is already stunning in the great opening sequence, as a professor exhorts his students to volunteer for the glory of the Fatherland while troops march past the windows. Erich Maria Remarque's novel is faithfully followed, but Milestone's superbly composed frames make it physical: the first battle scene, with the camera prowling the trenches as they fill with death and chaos, was surely the Saving Private Ryan of its day. The cast is strong, with little-known Lew Ayres finding stardom in the lead (Ayres became a pacifist and conscientious objector during World War II; although he served in battle as a medic, the stance harmed his career). This DVD has no extras beyond a vintage re-release trailer and Robert Osborne's useful introduction, but the main draw is the excellent picture and sound quality of the print--the movie looks better than it has in years. Those indelible images are now clear enough to cut glass: Ayres' lonely look back at the disappearing troop truck; the blinded soldier who runs into enemy fire at night; the fine pair of boots wasted on a boy with an amputated leg; and the final, devastating seconds, arguably the defining cinematic image of war in the 20th century. --Robert Horton

Customer Reviews:

The brutal poetry of war.......2007-06-10

Ah, the 1930's. The first full decade of sound for pictures. The advent of Technicolor. The full-flowering of Hollywood, bringing escapist entertainment to a world gripped by the Great Depression.

Many great movies were made in the 1930's. "The Adventures of Robin Hood", "Gone With the Wind", "Snow White", "The Wizard of Oz" were all great films from the late 1930's, which many people have refered to as the best time for cinema.

But the early 1930's, though often overlooked by modern audiences, contains such wonderful films as "M", "Frankenstein", "Dracula" and "All Quiet on the Western Front".

This film won the Oscar for Best Picture of 1930. It's well-deserved. The movie plot follows basically the same plot as the novel; centering around a group of young German soldiers going on the grand adventure of war. Whipped into a patriotic frenzy, they enlist, head to the front, and start dropping like flies.

The movie beautifully encapsulates the horror of war. The acting (particularly from Lew Ayres in the staring role), writing and directing are all top-notch. Put the film in color, and it could almost be a movie from this era, rather than one that's almost 80 years old.

The DVD version of this movie is... well, nothing to write home about. Not too many extras, though the comments from Robert Osborne are welcome. No chapter selection for some odd reason, but otherwise... it's ok.

Modern audiences don't really know too much about World War One. It's a largely forgotten war in our national conciousness. As I write this, we're 89 years out from the start of the war. Further, according to Wikipedia's "Surviving Veterans of World War One", there's only 28 veterans left world-wide. Twenty-eight. That's it. One less than when I looked last week, and almost certainly several more than we'll have by next year. Only three of the veterans left are from the USA.

If for no other reason than expanding your knowledge about this horrible, meaningless, stupid war, I strongly recommend this movie.

As a side note: if Universal still owns the rights to the novel, they need to be pressured to make a new version of this film in time for the 100th anniversary of the start of the war. Get the young teeny-bopper/teen-idol actors of our era (the Zac Effrons of the world), and let modern audiences see the beauty of youth twisted by war.

It's a lesson no one should ever forget.

Apparently Horace never served active duty.......2007-05-23

This picture serves to illustrate the madness in Horace's statement
that it is sweet and proper to die for one's country. Lew Ayres' perform-
ance was magnificent--especially the marching scene depicting his love and
respect for Kat, via facial expression and body language alone These few
seconds would have been worth the price of admission in 1930.
Those German boys weren't much different from the good, decent German-
American boys I grew up with.

The Horrors of War.......2007-05-08

All Quiet on the Western Front is an excellent adaptation of the Erich Maria Remarque novel about the horrors of war. It follows several German students from the classroom into the trenches as they die one by one. The story features many random stories depicting one boy, Paul Malvern's (Lew Ayres) experiences similarly to the way the book was organized. There are many powerful scenes, like boys going mad in the trenches, the sickening experience of the boys' first battle, and Paul killing a man up close.

Because this film was made at the beginning of the "golden age of Hollywood," viewers might expect it to be highly sentimental and preachy. Although its anti-war message is blatant, it is surprisingly underplayed and straight-forward.

The first few times I tried to watch this film I was put off almost immediately. The sound quality suffers because the film was made so early in the talkie era. The opening scene where the teacher preaches to the students about the glories of war is a bit long. However, after that scene, I soon found myself glued to the screen. Give the film a proper chance before condemning it.

A powerful reminder.......2007-05-07

Such a cinematagraphically sophisticated portrayal of the Great War's horrors and heroes.

Nice anti-war message but awfully creaky.......2007-03-30

Based on Erich Maria Remarque's famous pacifist novel, All Quiet on the Western Front explores the horror of WWI through the eyes of a young German soldier.

Ideas of glory fuelled by patriotism are quickly drowned in the mud-filled trenches of the battlefield. Young lives are squandered cheaply for a few centimeters of ground.

WWI was fought with traditional tactics - the mass charge, trenches - but combined with more efficient killings machines - machine guns, field artillery - led to horrific loss of life among the soldiers.

The Germans learnt from these mistakes in WWII and employed the tactics of the Blitzkreig "lightening war" where speed of movement was paramount.

Back to the film itself. It's really easy to tell this is a child of the early sound era - there is lots of overacting and it is very visual in its telling. Modern audiences will find it very heavy-going though.

Still it has an ageless anti-war message. An important part of film history but very much an antique now.

Average customer rating:

Great War Film!
The "Johnboy" version of AQWF is truly awful
All Quiet on the Western Front
ALL QUIT ON THE WESTERN FRONT
All Quiet on the Western Front DVD

All Quiet on the Western Front
Starring: Richard Thomas , Ernest Borgnine , Donald Pleasence , Ian Holm , and Patricia Neal
Director: Delbert Mann
Manufacturer: Lions Gate
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Action & Adventure | Genres | DVD | Video

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The Lost Battalion
All Quiet on the Western Front (Universal Cinema Classics)
When Trumpets Fade
Gallipoli (Special Edition)
Stalingrad

ASIN: B0000639EU
Release Date: 2002-04-23

Product Description

A devastating story of war and a generation destroyed. In 1914 a group of German schoolboys, idealistic and inflamed with youthful patriotism, set off to fight in the "glorious" war. During their brutal basic training disenchantment begins; then, boarding a train for the front, they see the wounded being rushed back to hospitals. They begin to grasp the grim reality of war.

On their first night in action they come under heavy attack. In the trenches, they begin to fall. Their youth is stripped away by the violence, and the boys become as sullen as veterans.

When Paul (Richard Thomas) shoots a Frenchman and watches him die, he realizes the futility of the war. Wounded, he returns home to a different world, a place where he cannot fit in. Sent back into battle, he meets destiny on a day when the German High Command Communiqu states simply, All Quiet On The Western Front.

System Requirements:

Running Time 131 Min

Format: DVD MOVIE

Amazon.com

Taken from the novel by Erich Maria Remarque, All Quiet on the Western Front is a devastating portrait by Delbert Mann (Desire Under the Elms, Marty) of a small group of German soldiers throughout the World War I.

The star-studded cast is headed by Richard Thomas (The Waltons) as Paul Baumer, and includes such award-winning actors as Ernest Borgnine, Ian Holm, and Patricia Neal. As both narrator and star, Thomas occasionally seems to reincarnate his familiar John-Boy persona, but creates a character that has many more levels than that television alter ego. Watching Paul as he watches all of his high school buddies die is a highly emotional experience. He returns to his home a different person, conflicted in his feelings about the Army and war, evolving from an idealistic schoolboy to a fearful and humble veteran.

The scenery and costuming in this period piece are well done, and surely contributed to its winning the Golden Globe for Best Motion Picture Made for TV. Also contributing to the greatness of the film are the exceptional cinematography and special effects that, while realistically gruesome, truly emphasize the horrors of war. --Zachary Lively

Customer Reviews:

Great War Film!.......2007-05-25

This is one of the best war films ever made. I've seen the first version also. This film is an improvement over the original although the original was done well with what they had back in early years of film. What really makes this war film great is that it doesn't glorify war at all but shows you the death and destruction of war. This film should be mandatory in all high schools! The book is very good also. The book is more descriptive than the movie. What happens to Paul in this film is happening to our young men and women in Iraq right now!!

The "Johnboy" version of AQWF is truly awful.......2007-05-01

This film might be okay for the general public or high school classroom, but this film brings almost nothing to the table for WWI buffs or lovers of the novel. It's hard to mention anything good about this film other than the fact that it is not as dated as the original film and is also in color.

Earnest Borgnine's casting as Kat is simply laughable. The boys' mentor in the trenches, the "old man," was "old" only in comparison to the teen-aged boys who surrounded him. The battle scenes do not inspire fear or horror. Equipment, uniforms, and sets are inaccurate and "made for TV quality" at best. The acting is wooden and hallow.

This film is a waste of time and is scornfully referred to as "the Johnboy version" by WWI buffs. It is universally reviled.

All Quiet on the Western Front.......2007-01-18

Great war documentary of WWI, there is very little available that shows this period in history on the front, but this one is a classic.

ALL QUIT ON THE WESTERN FRONT.......2007-01-17

I really enjoyed this movie. Not the typical "John Boy" movie. I have not seen the original, although I have recently purchased it. I will be able to make a better comparison once I have seen it. By itself, however, it holds it's own.

All Quiet on the Western Front DVD.......2007-01-10

The DVD followed the novel fairly well, however, I did prefer the book over the movie.

Average customer rating:

The brutal poetry of war
Apparently Horace never served active duty
The Horrors of War
A powerful reminder
Nice anti-war message but awfully creaky

All Quiet on the Western Front
Starring: Louis Wolheim , Lew Ayres , John Wray , Arnold Lucy , and Ben Alexander
Director: Lewis Milestone
Manufacturer: Universal Studios
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Drama | Genres | DVD | Video

Classics | Drama | Genres | DVD | Video

Classics | Action & Adventure | Genres | DVD | Video

Drama | Military & War | Genres | DVD | Video

World War I | Military & War | Genres | DVD | Video

DVDs Under $7.49 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video

( A ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
Similar Items:

All Quiet on the Western Front
Paths of Glory
Mutiny on the Bounty
The Heiress (Universal Cinema Classics)
The Best Years of Our Lives

ASIN: 0783230435
Release Date: 1999-01-05

Amazon.com essential video

This 1930 film, No. 54 on the AFI's Top 100 list, still holds up as a surprisingly forceful and honest antiwar drama. Indeed, the modern sensibility is almost as startling as the sometime stagey acting of Lew Ayres, which can be excused by the fact that, three years after the introduction of sound, actors were still applying stage techniques to talking pictures. Ayres plays a German college student during World War I, who is brainwashed into enlisting in the Army (along with the rest of his class) by a zealously inspirational college professor. Once in uniform and on the front lines, however, he quickly discovers that the glory of the Fatherland is of little concern to a soldier dodging bullets and explosions, whose comrades are dying in his arms. As powerful in its way as Platoon almost 60 years later, it remains a classic tale of young soldiers' confrontations with the possibility of imminent and arbitrary death. Director Lewis Milestone shows a surprising range of techniques in this film from the formative years of moviemaking with sound. --Marshall Fine

Customer Reviews:

The brutal poetry of war.......2007-06-10

Apparently Horace never served active duty.......2007-05-23

The Horrors of War.......2007-05-08

A powerful reminder.......2007-05-07

Such a cinematagraphically sophisticated portrayal of the Great War's horrors and heroes.

Nice anti-war message but awfully creaky.......2007-03-30

All Quiet On The Western Front - Contains Restored Footage

Average customer rating:

In-depth look war and peoples attitudes.
Among the Top 5 War Movies Ever!

All Quiet On The Western Front - Contains Restored Footage

Manufacturer: Universal
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

Drama | Military & War | Genres | DVD | Video

All Quiet on the Western Front
Das Boot - The Director's Cut

ASIN: B000LJF348

Product Description

Contains Restored Footage Languages: French, English and Spanish

Customer Reviews:

In-depth look war and peoples attitudes........2007-01-07

The country is at war and Paul Bäumer (Lew Ayres) is in school. His instructor is proud that he is volunteering to protect his country. He and his classmates are off on an adventure. This adventure will challenge the way they look at life and in the process change our life outlook.

On the surface this looks like a pacifist or anti war movie. One may think this has something to do with an enemy's view of war. Also there is a tendency pick the film apart because it is not the book.

In reality this story is more of a, don't get over zealous movie. At least don't let some one mesmerize you. It even happened in a contemporary film "Private Benjamin" (1980). She was promised the army with the private condos. Again we see the zealous ones in "Starship Troopers" (1997) where the movie shows the romantic side of war.

As far as the rating it is ridicules to compare a movie that has to pass censors and only has 130 minutes with the book. Naturally the book is going to be more thorough and descriptive. What we can compare it to is the original movie "Westfront 1918" (1930) directed by George Wilhelm Pabst (1885-1967) and "All Quiet on the Western Front" (1979). Check them all out including the audiocassette of the book.

The points are made much clearer in "Westfront 1918" even though is shorter it is the 5 star movie. Especially when we return to the schoolroom to see the teacher inspiring the next generation of students to become soldiers. "All Quiet on the Western Front" (1930) however is easier to understand then "West Front". You can spend more time in the message and less on the translation from German. In either film the actual down time (between actions) drove me crazy as I remembered the time that we were not fighting or planning something in Viet Nam was when I got antsy. The 1979 movie is a boring TV type movie with "Johnboy" Richard Thomas, playing the part of Paul Baumer. The only good part is when he got shot.

The film was shot in black and white but is still pretty graphic. It deserves to be seen on a big screen. At one point they also sing "Watch on the Rein."

"Im Western Nichts Neues" By Remarque: "He fell in October 1918, on a day that was so quiet and still on the whole front, that the army report confined itself to the single sentence: All quiet on the western Front."

Among the Top 5 War Movies Ever!.......2006-12-18

This is one heck of a war movie with very touching scenes that transcend time. Shot in 1930 in B/W, the emotions and dramatisations of human nature depicted through excellent acting nevertheless remains timeless. We get scene after scene of memorable moments and we get gruesome war scenes akin to those seen on "Saving Private Ryan". During the scene of Paul Baumer's first defense of an allied attack, we see a soldier blown to bits with just his hands hanging onto the barbed wire remaining. The extras were all actual veterans of the Great War and it certainly showed in their very realistic portrayals of the battle scenes. As I don't want to spoil it for those of you who have not yet seen this movie, I'm not going to describe the rest of the best scenes in detail but other than the heart-wrenching brilliant ending "butterfly" scene, you have to catch the early professor "recruiting" scene, all the "Himmelstoss" scenes, the "Duval" scene, "french farm" scene, the "home leave" scene and the "Kat" scene. If this isn't the best anti-war movie ever, it surely comes close and ironically slightly less than a decade later saw the advent of WWII. I guess people never learn from history and apparently also not from a brilliant movie. As for the disc itself, the sound comes in Dolby Digital but only 2.0 Mono quality and despite attempts at restoration, the picture quality is average to begin with but steadily gets worse towards the end. The sound quality also gets progressively worse and a very noticeable hiss becomes apparent towards the end of the movie all due to a heavily deteriorated master tape. However, I note that a newer version with remastered sound has been advertised to be released very soon although I wonder if we can expect any improvement in video quality as well. Overall, this gets 4 stars only because of the less than perfect video and sound quality as well as the very limited Special Features (just the Theatrical Trailer and some production and casting notes)but otherwise, this is one of the best movies of all time and is a must see for any film buff. Recommended.

All Quiet On The Western Front [PAL, Region 2, Import]

Average customer rating:

All Quiet On The Western Front [PAL, Region 2, Import]
Starring: Lew Ayres , Louis Wolheim , John Wray , Slim Summerville , and William Bakewell
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: 8373990917

Product Description

Lewis Milestone's adaptation of Erich Maria Remarque's anti-war novel is a masterpiece whose power to disturb remains undiminished by the passage of time. The film stars Lew Ayres as the young Paul Bauman, who, along with a group of his teenaged classmates, are conscripted into the German army during WWI. The youths quickly realise that the patriotic hogwash they had been fed by their schoolmaster has absolutely has nothing to do with the horror they observe and experience on the front lines.

All Quiet on the Western Front [Region 2]

Average customer rating:

Great War Film!
The "Johnboy" version of AQWF is truly awful
All Quiet on the Western Front
ALL QUIT ON THE WESTERN FRONT
All Quiet on the Western Front DVD

All Quiet on the Western Front [Region 2]
Starring: Richard Thomas , Ernest Borgnine , Donald Pleasence , Ian Holm , and Patricia Neal
Director: Delbert Mann
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

DVDs Under $14.99 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video

( A ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video

The Lost Battalion
All Quiet on the Western Front (Universal Cinema Classics)
When Trumpets Fade
Gallipoli (Special Edition)
Stalingrad

ASIN: B00004R82W

Amazon.com

Customer Reviews:

Great War Film!.......2007-05-25

The "Johnboy" version of AQWF is truly awful.......2007-05-01

All Quiet on the Western Front.......2007-01-18

Great war documentary of WWI, there is very little available that shows this period in history on the front, but this one is a classic.

ALL QUIT ON THE WESTERN FRONT.......2007-01-17

All Quiet on the Western Front DVD.......2007-01-10

The DVD followed the novel fairly well, however, I did prefer the book over the movie.

Average customer rating:

The Extraordinary Infantryman

A Walk in the Sun

Manufacturer: Vina Distributor
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Westerns | Genres | DVD | Video

Product Description

This highly acclaimed WWII film was directed by Lewis Milestone(All Quiet on the Western Front). It follows a platoon of infantry in Italy, faced with capturing a strategic farmhouse from heavily fortified German forces. Numerous aspects of war are explored here, as ordinary soldiers, from all walks of life, undergo severe stress when facing possible, sudden death!

Customer Reviews:

The Extraordinary Infantryman.......2006-04-25

I use the term ordinary to emphasize just how extraordinary the US infantryman was in WWII. In motion pictures it seems that most war films focus and glorify trained teams sent on secret missions or small groups of elite fighting men trained for a specific purpose. Most of these films never really focus on the men, the morality and camaraderie developed (one exception being THE DEVIL'S BRIGADE) and the day-to-day grind of combat and unsettled nerves. A WALK IN THE SUN is one of a handful of war films that focuses on these endearing elements of civilian men thrown into this mundane (on the surface) yet extraordinary routine of constant exposure to death from enemy ordnance. They are a unit from mixed backgrounds thrown into this maelstrom of uncertainty and death. They develop camaraderie and build trust in each other and execute the daily task they are ordered to without real knowledge of the bigger picture and without specific question of purpose. They get the job done ay any cost whatever the reason. Men die, they grieve and they keep moving. They are on the lowest rung in the field of getting the job done. And they persevere. Recent pictures like SAVING PRIVATE and the restored Sam Fuller epic THE BIG RED ONE have redirected the focus to the lowly ordinary infantryman out there getting the job done. BATTLEGROUND and THE STORY OF G.I. JOE have been around for a while and they too have gotten their deserved recognition. Their greatness comes because they have focused on the men. A WALK IN THE SUN is poetic in nature. Mild mannered Sterling Holloway's death scene is very poignant and difficult to watch and even fathom because of the irony that war has exposed these men to. The diversity of the men is great yet the leader types pick up and take charge when it becomes necessary without any hesitation. Dana Andrews is a man seeing that they get the job done. John Ireland, in one of his better performances, is a distant and cool character that seems like the eyes and ears of the viewer taking in all that transpires. Screenwriter Robert Rossen's script is rich in the character studies of these men including Richard Conte, Lloyd Bridges, Norman Lloyd, George Tyne, Huntz Hall and Herbert Rudley under Lewis Milestone's lyrical direction.

Average customer rating:

Great War Film!
The "Johnboy" version of AQWF is truly awful
All Quiet on the Western Front
ALL QUIT ON THE WESTERN FRONT
All Quiet on the Western Front DVD

All Quiet on the Western Front
Starring: Richard Thomas , Ernest Borgnine , Donald Pleasence , Ian Holm , and Patricia Neal
Director: Delbert Mann
Manufacturer: Geneon [Pioneer]
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Drama | Genres | DVD | Video

Drama | Military & War | Genres | DVD | Video

World War I | Military & War | Genres | DVD | Video

Anti-War Films | Military & War | Genres | DVD | Video

( A ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
Similar Items:

The Lost Battalion
All Quiet on the Western Front (Universal Cinema Classics)
When Trumpets Fade
Gallipoli (Special Edition)
Stalingrad

ASIN: B00003G4J2
Release Date: 2000-01-11

Amazon.com

Description

A devastating story of war and a generation destroyed. In 1914 a group of German schoolboys set off to fight in the "glorious" war. During their brutal basic training disenchantment begins; then, boarding a train for the front, they see the wounded being rushed back to the hospitals. They begin to grasp the grim reality of war. When Paul (Richard Thomas) shoots a Frenchman and watches him die, he realizes the futility of war. Wounded, he returns home to a different world, a place where he cannot fit in. Sent back into battle, he meets destiny on a day when the German High Command Communique states simply, All Quiet on the Western Front. Richard Thomas, Ernest Borgnine, Donald Pleasance, Ian Holm, Patricia Neal

Customer Reviews:

Great War Film!.......2007-05-25

The "Johnboy" version of AQWF is truly awful.......2007-05-01

All Quiet on the Western Front.......2007-01-18

Great war documentary of WWI, there is very little available that shows this period in history on the front, but this one is a classic.

ALL QUIT ON THE WESTERN FRONT.......2007-01-17

All Quiet on the Western Front DVD.......2007-01-10

The DVD followed the novel fairly well, however, I did prefer the book over the movie.

Best Pictures - The Ultimate Collection (All Quiet on the Western Front / The Deer Hunter / The Lost Weekend / Out of Africa / The Sting)

Average customer rating:

An eclectic collection of Best Picture winners

Best Pictures - The Ultimate Collection (All Quiet on the Western Front / The Deer Hunter / The Lost Weekend / Out of Africa / The Sting)
Starring: Louis Wolheim , Lew Ayres , John Wray , Arnold Lucy , and Ben Alexander
Director: Lewis Milestone , Billy Wilder , and George Roy Hill
Manufacturer: Universal Studios
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Action & Adventure | Genres | DVD | Video

General | Comedy | Genres | DVD | Video

General | Drama | Genres | DVD | Video

Film Noir | Mystery & Suspense | Genres | DVD | Video

( B ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
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Tootsie
Best Picture Collection (American Beauty / Braveheart / Forrest Gump / Gladiator / The Godfather / Titanic / Terms of Endearment)
Studio Classics - Best Picture Collection (Sunrise / How Green Was My Valley / Gentleman's Agreement / All About Eve)

ASIN: B00005UMFE
Release Date: 2002-01-29

Customer Reviews:

An eclectic collection of Best Picture winners.......2007-02-03

The group of films in this collection is so varied, it would be hard to be a real fan of one of the five and not really dislike one of the others. There's no common theme here, not even a time period. The films included are as follows:

All Quiet on the Western Front (1929-1930) - A group of German schoolboys are encouraged to sign up to fight in World War I. Once they get to the front, they encounter the harsh realities of killing your fellow man up close. It's still a powerful film because it was made pre-code and there was much more freedom to use harsh symbolism than in films made after 1934. It really embodies the antiwar sentiment that was common between the world wars. (5/5)

The Lost Weekend (1945) - This is another really great film. Great acting by Ray Milland as Don Birnam, an alcoholic writer whose brother pays his bills so he can go on drinking. After decades of movies making drunkenness look like great fun, this film showed just how low a man can sink when he really needs a drink. (5/5)

The Sting (1973) - This was a different kind of film to win the Best Picture award. It seems like it should be a film noir, since it is about revenge for a grifter buddy murdered by a mobster, but the mood of the film is actually rather playful. (5/5)

The Deer Hunter (1978) - This is a great film about the effect of the Vietnam war on three friends from Pennsylvania. It is effectively a war movie without a war. The focus is more on what happens before and after the three experience what happens in Vietnam than what happens during their time in the military. (5/5).

Out of Africa (1985) - This is one of those slow beautiful-to-behold but impossible-to-watch kind of movies that the Academy honors every now and then. I've sat through it exactly once, just so I could honestly say I had given it a chance, but I really found it insufferably boring. It's supposed to be based on the life of storyteller Isak Dineson, who lived in Africa from 1913 until 1931 running a coffee farm, and her love for a man that wants to keep his freedom. (3/5)...And I consider myself an easy grader.

If you average the ratings of the movies together, you get 4.6/5, so I round up the score to 5 stars. You basically have four excellent films in this pack and one pseudo-dud. However, your mileage may vary depending on your taste in film. It's a good value if you are trying to collect the Best Picture winners on DVD and you can find it for under sixty dollars, plus its content doesn't overlap with the other Best Picture boxed sets. Overall, highly recommended.

Great Books: All Quiet On the Western Front

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Great Books: All Quiet On the Western Front

Manufacturer: Discovery Education
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Educational | Genres | DVD | Video

DVD:

DVD

DVD

DVD

A View to a Kill

Ultimate Combat 6: Battle in the Cage : DVD

How the Grinch Stole Christmas!/If I Ran the Zoo (REGION 1)

DVD: B*Tch

Da waren's nur noch neun - Agatha Christie