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Paths of Glory
Paths of Glory is a 1957 American anti-war film directed by Stanley Kubrick, from a screenplay he co-wrote with Calder Willingham and Jim Thompson. It is adapted from the 1935 novel of the same name by Humphrey Cobb, which in turn was based on the Souain corporals affair during World War I. The film stars Kirk Douglas as Colonel Dax, the commanding officer of French soldiers who refuse to continue a suicidal attack, after which Dax defends them against charges of cowardice in a court-martial. It also features Ralph Meeker, Adolphe Menjou, George Macready, Timothy Carey, Joe Turkel, Wayne Morris and Richard Anderson.
Plot
In 1916, during World War I in Northern France, French Major General Georges Broulard orders his subordinate, Brigadier General Paul Mireau, to take "the Anthill", a well-defended German position. Mireau refuses, citing the impossibility of success. When Broulard mentions a potential promotion, Mireau convinces himself the attack will succeed. In the trenches, Mireau throws a private out of the regiment for showing signs of shell shock. Mireau leaves the planning of the attack to Colonel Dax, despite Dax's protests.