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| country = Germany<br />United States
| country = Germany<br />United States
| released = {{Film date|2022|9|12|[[2022 Toronto International Film Festival|TIFF]]|2022|10|28|Netflix}}
| released = {{Film date|2022|9|12|[[2022 Toronto International Film Festival|TIFF]]|2022|10|28|Netflix}}
| language = German<br>French
| language = German
| budget = $20 million
| budget = $20 million
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Revision as of 06:17, 12 March 2023

All Quiet on the Western Front
Official release poster
Directed byEdward Berger
Screenplay by
Based onAll Quiet on the Western Front
by Erich Maria Remarque
Produced by
Starring
CinematographyJames Friend
Edited bySven Budelmann
Music byVolker Bertelmann
Production
company
Amusement Park
Distributed byNetflix
Release dates
  • September 12, 2022 (2022-09-12) (TIFF)
  • October 28, 2022 (2022-10-28) (Netflix)
Running time
147 minutes[1]
CountriesGermany
United States
LanguageGerman
Budget$20 million

All Quiet on the Western Front (German: Im Westen nichts Neues) is a 2022 epic anti-war film based on the 1929 novel of the same name by Erich Maria Remarque. Directed by Edward Berger, it stars Felix Kammerer, Albrecht Schuch, Daniel Brühl, Sebastian Hülk, Aaron Hilmer, Edin Hasanovic, and Devid Striesow.

Set during World War I, it follows the life of an idealistic young German soldier named Paul Bäumer. After enlisting in the German Army with his friends, Bäumer finds himself exposed to the realities of war, shattering his early hopes of becoming a hero as he does his best to survive. The film adds a parallel storyline not found in the book, which follows the armistice negotiations to end the war.

All Quiet on the Western Front premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 12, 2022, and was released to streaming on Netflix on October 28.[2] The film received positive reviews from critics, with praise directed towards its tone and faithfulness to the source material's anti-war message.[3] It received a leading 14 nominations at the 76th British Academy Film Awards (winning seven, including Best Film) and nine at the 95th Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Adapted Screenplay, and Best International Feature.[4]

Plot

In 1917, three years into World War I, 17-year-old Paul Bäumer enlists in the Imperial German Army alongside friends Albert Kropp, Franz Müller, and Ludwig Behm. They listen to a patriotic speech by a school official and unknowingly receive uniforms from soldiers killed in a previous battle. After they are deployed in Northern France near La Malmaison, they are befriended by Stanislaus "Kat" Katczinsky, an older soldier. Their romantic view of the war is shattered by the realities of trench warfare on the Western Front, and Ludwig is killed by artillery on the first night.

On November 7, 1918, German official Matthias Erzberger, weary of mounting losses, meets with German High Command to persuade them to begin armistice talks with the Allied powers. Meanwhile, Paul and Kat steal a goose from a farm to share with Albert, Franz, and another veteran, Tjaden Stackfleet, with whom they have grown close behind the front in Champagne. Kat, who is illiterate, gets Paul to read him a letter from his wife and worries that he will be unable to reintegrate into peacetime society. Franz spends the night having sex with a French woman and brings back her scarf as a souvenir.

On November 9, Erzberger and the German delegation board a train bound for the Forest of Compiègne to negotiate a ceasefire. Paul and his friends go on a mission to find 60 missing recruits sent to reinforce their unit and discover that they were killed by gas after taking off their masks too soon. General Friedrichs, who opposes the armistice talks, orders an attack before French reinforcements arrive. That night, Erzberger's delegation reaches the Forest of Compiègne, and Paul's regiment is sent to the front to prepare to attack the French lines.

On November 10, Supreme Allied Commander Ferdinand Foch gives the Germans 72 hours to accept the non-negotiable Allied terms. Meanwhile, the German attack takes the French front line after hand-to-hand fighting but is routed by a combined arms counterattack, in which the French use Saint-Chamond tanks to overcome German defenses. Franz is separated from the group, and Albert dies trying to surrender. Trapped in a crater in no man's land with a French soldier, Paul stabs him and watches him die slowly, becoming remorseful and asking for forgiveness from his dead body.

Erzberger learns of Kaiser Wilhelm II's abdication and receives instructions from field marshal Paul von Hindenburg to accept the Allied terms. Paul returns to his unit and sees them celebrating the war's imminent end. He finds a wounded Tjaden, who gives him Franz's scarf. Paul and Kat bring him food, but Tjaden, distraught at being crippled, fatally stabs himself in the throat with the fork they brought him.

On November 11, Erzberger's delegation signs an armistice set to take effect at 11:00 AM. After learning of the ceasefire, Paul and Kat steal from the farm one last time, but Kat is shot by the farmer's son in the liver and dies before arriving at an infirmary. Friedrichs, who wants to end the war with a German victory, orders an attack to start at 10:45 AM. Paul kills as many French soldiers as he can before being speared through the chest by a bayonet seconds before 11:00 AM. Paul stumbles out into the trenches and marvels at the end of conflict as he dies from his wound.

A short time later, a newly arrived German recruit that Paul had saved in the combat finds Paul's mud-caked body and picks up Franz's scarf. He leaves Paul's tag and does not take it. His death will not be recorded.

Cast

Production

The film was announced in February 2020 with Edward Berger directing and Daniel Brühl as part of the ensemble cast.[6] Principal photography began on 9 March 2021 in Prague, Czech Republic, and lasted 55 days. The film cost $20 million.[2][7][8]

Release

All Quiet on the Western Front premiered at the 47th Toronto International Film Festival on September 12, 2022. It played exclusively at the Paris Theater in New York on October 7 before expanding to other theatres from October 14.[9] It launched on Netflix, which acquired distribution rights prior to production,[10] worldwide on October 28.[11] From its release on Netflix to March 3, 2023, the film logged over 150 million hours viewed worldwide. Viewership tripled after the film's Oscar and BAFTA nominations, and was on the global Top 10 Non-English Film list for 14 weeks and in the Top 10 Films in 91 countries.[12]

A making-of documentary called Making All Quiet on the Western Front was released on Netflix globally on February 20, 2023.[13] A Collector's Edition Blu-ray release is scheduled for March 28, 2023, in the United States and April 24, 2023, in the United Kingdom.[14]

Reception

Critical reception

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 90% of 152 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 8.2/10. The website's consensus reads: "Both timely and timeless, All Quiet on the Western Front retains the power of its classic source material by focusing on the futility of war."[15] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 76 out of 100, based on 36 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.[16]

Reubyn Coutinho, on Netflix Junkie, wrote, "It does not pull its punches with the screenplay having the potential to make you squirm...The film touches upon the loneliness, the catalyst of desperation, the fear of civilians in battle, and the chaos."[17] Ben Kenigsberg, writing for The New York Times, found the film to be less impressive than the 1930 version, but appreciated the pounding soundtrack. He also praised the addition of a parallel plot tracking the armistice, even if it diverged from the first person narrative of the novel. He found the tweaked fate of the characters to be narratively powerful.[18]

Jamelle Bouie in The New York Times said the 2022 version missed the essence of the novel, which is not just antiwar, but also portrays the alienation and terrible toll even on those who come home. "Remarque is not as interested in the war and geopolitics as he is in the war as human absurdity made manifest." In a sequence of the 1930 film, omitted from the 2022 film, Paul comes home on leave and can't relate to former teachers and other adults. "You still think it's beautiful and sweet to die for your country, don't you?" says Paul. "The first bombardment taught us better." According to Bouie, "The inclusion of this political subplot and the exclusion of Paul's return home transforms All Quiet on the Western Front from a psychological examination of the soldier's experience and a condemnation of war into a much simpler story of virtuous soldiers and cynical leaders who betrayed them."[19]

Mark Kermode says that, although it is on Netflix, there is an excellent reason to see it in cinemas because it is "visually very, very impressive, overwhelming, and gruelling." "It is harrowing of course ... and it should be."[20] Cultural historian Bethany Wyatt makes a case for its being the "finest First World War film to date". She claims that it "is faithful to the spirit of Remarque's novel".[21] Wyatt says "it is difficult to match the power of the 1930 All Quiet on the Western Front's conclusion," ... "but the 2022 adaptation succeeds in crafting its own elegy for the men who did not return home."[21]

Many German critics praised the action sequences but found fault with the film's considerable deviations from the book,[22][23] which is required reading in many German schools.[24] Hubert Wetzel, writing in Süddeutsche Zeitung, criticized the film's alterations to the book stating that "you have to ask yourself whether director Berger has even read Remarque's novel".[25] The film also received negative reviews from Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung.[26] Historian Sönke Neitzel praised the battle scenes as being more historically accurate than the previous adaptations but criticized the film for depicting soldiers being shot to prevent desertion, despite only forty-eight soldiers having been executed during World War I.[22]

The New Statesman said that "...in Germany, it is seen as shallow, cynical and 'horny for Oscars'".[27] Military historian and profesor Sönke Neitzel believes the film is incorrect, loaded with clichés and not very authentic.[28]

Accolades

Award Date of ceremony Category Recipient(s) Result Ref.
National Board of Review December 8, 2022 Top Five Foreign Language Films All Quiet on the Western Front Won [29]
Best Adapted Screenplay Ian Stokell, Edward Berger and Lesley Paterson Won
European Film Awards December 10, 2022 Best Makeup and Hairstyling Heike Merker Won [30]
Best Visual Effects Frank Petzold, Viktor Müller and Markus Frank Won
Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association December 12, 2022 Best International/Foreign Language Film All Quiet on the Western Front Nominated [31]
St. Louis Gateway Film Critics Association December 18, 2022 Best International Film Nominated [32]
Dallas–Fort Worth Film Critics Association December 19, 2022 Best Foreign Language Film 4th place [33]
Alliance of Women Film Journalists January 5, 2023 Best Screenplay, Adapted Edward Berger, Lesley Paterson, Ian Stokell Nominated [34]
Best Non-English Language Film All Quiet on the Western Front Nominated
San Diego Film Critics Society January 6, 2023 Best Director Edward Berger Nominated [35]
Best Adapted Screenplay Edward Berger, Lesley Paterson and Ian Stokell Won
Best International Film All Quiet on the Western Front Won
San Francisco Bay Area Film Critics Circle January 9, 2023 Best International Feature Film Nominated [36]
Golden Globe Awards January 10, 2023 Best Motion Picture – Foreign Language Nominated [37]
Georgia Film Critics Association January 13, 2023 Best International Film Nominated [38]
Critics' Choice Movie Awards January 15, 2023 Best Foreign Language Film Nominated [39]
Seattle Film Critics Society January 17, 2023 Best Film Not in the English Language Nominated [40]
Online Film Critics Society January 23, 2023 Best Film Not in the English Language Nominated [41]
British Society of Cinematographers February 11, 2023 Cinematography in a Feature Film James Friend Won [42]
Vancouver Film Critics Circle February 13, 2023 Best Foreign Language Film All Quiet on the Western Front Won [43]
Houston Film Critics Society February 18, 2023 Best Foreign Language Feature Nominated [44]
Art Directors Guild Awards February 18, 2023 Excellence in Production Design for a Period Film Christian M. Goldbeck Nominated [45]
British Academy Film Awards February 19, 2023 Best Film Malte Grunert Won [46]
Best Director Edward Berger Won
Best Actor in a Supporting Role Albrecht Schuch Nominated
Best Adapted Screenplay Edward Berger, Lesley Paterson, Ian Stokell Won
Best Film Not in the English Language Edward Berger, Malte Grunert Won
Best Casting Simone Bär Nominated
Best Cinematography James Friend Won
Best Costume Design Lisy Christl Nominated
Best Editing Sven Budelmann Nominated
Best Make Up & Hair Heike Merker Nominated
Best Original Score Volker Bertelmann Won
Best Production Design Christian M. Goldbreck, Ernestine Hipper Nominated
Best Sound Lars Ginzsel, Frank Kruse, Viktor Prášil, Markus Stemler Won
Best Special Visual Effects Markus Frank, Kamil Jafar, Viktor Müller, Frank Petzoid Nominated
Hollywood Critics Association Awards February 24, 2023 Best International Film All Quiet on the Western Front Nominated [47]
Golden Reel Awards February 26, 2023 Outstanding Achievement in Sound Editing – Foreign Language Feature Frank Kruse, Markus Stemler, Alexander Buck, Benjamin Hörbe, Alexander Buck, Thomas Kalbér, Moritz Hoffmeister, Kuen Il Song, Carsten Richter, Daniel Weis Won [48]
Cinema Audio Society Awards March 4, 2023 Outstanding Achievement in Sound Mixing for a Motion Picture – Live Action Viktor Prášil, Lars Ginzel, Stefan Korte, Daniel Kresco, Jan Meyerdierks, Hanse Warns Nominated [49]
Academy Awards March 12, 2023 Best Picture Malte Grunert Pending [50]
Best Adapted Screenplay Edward Berger, Lesley Paterson and Ian Stokell Pending
Best International Feature Film Germany Pending
Best Original Score Volker Bertelmann Pending
Best Sound Viktor Prášil, Frank Kruse, Markus Stemler, Lars Ginzel and Stefan Korte Pending
Best Production Design Christian M. Goldbeck and Ernestine Hipper Pending
Best Cinematography James Friend Pending
Best Makeup and Hairstyling Heike Merker and Linda Eisenhamerová Pending
Best Visual Effects Frank Petzold, Viktor Müller, Markus Frank and Kamil Jafar Pending

See also

References

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  2. ^ a b "Netflix's All Quiet on the Western Front Shoot Underway in Prague, New Cast Members Join". Variety. May 4, 2021. Archived from the original on May 4, 2021. Retrieved October 8, 2021.
  3. ^ Schuetze, Christopher F. (October 28, 2022). "In a German All Quiet on the Western Front, History Has a Starring Role". New York Times. Archived from the original on October 31, 2022. Retrieved October 31, 2022.
  4. ^ "2023 | Oscars.org | Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences". oscars.org. Archived from the original on January 24, 2023. Retrieved January 24, 2023.
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  8. ^ "Die erste Verfilmung störte Goebbels mit Stinkbomben und weißen Mäusen". Die Welt. August 25, 2022. Archived from the original on February 2, 2023.
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  12. ^ Tangcay, Jazz (March 3, 2023). "Netflix's All Quiet on the Western Front Clocks More Than 150 Million Hours Viewed Since Release (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved March 4, 2023.
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External links