Still an amazing effort

Rating: 10/10 (28 September 2005)

Considering that this film was made in 1930, it is a remarkable achievement that a film with such a powerful message was allowed to see the light of day, especially considering the circumstances.
Centering on the first World War from a German perspective, it is a story about a group of teenagers who are recruited to join the army. At first, they see it as a great honour and something of an adventure, but as they all face the brutal realities of War, they are soon left disillusioned. When the main character returns home from service and shows his hatred of War, he finds his own compatriots now hate him, and decides to return to the battlefields were he dies, now a mess.
Viewing it from a modern perspective, I was quite amazed by the many messages this film had, and the sad truth that they are even more relevant today in some respects. Everything flows extremely well, the acting is superb and overall this much more powerful then most of the modern movies that exist today about War. This is a remarkable achievement that everyone should see. Brilliant.