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Kirk Douglas had one of the most iconic careers in Hollywood, starring in classic movies like Spartacus, Ace in the Hole, and 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. However, Douglas also teamed up with legendary director Stanley Kubrick in 1957 to create one of the greatest anti-war films ever made, the renowned Paths of Glory.
In Paths of Glory, Douglas stars as Colonel Dax, a WWI commanding officer in the French Army who faces off against his superior officers to defend three soldiers accused of cowardice. While the film received critical acclaim upon its release and is today considered one of the most impactful war films in history, it faced censorship in Europe and was banned outright in France, Spain, and even Switzerland. Like other classic anti-war films that defined their genre, Paths of Glory defied political conventions, refusing to shy away from its portrayal of military corruption and injustice.
Paths Of Glory Is Kirk Douglas’ Best Movie
Douglas Is The Film’s Voice Of Morality
Though Douglas is most remembered as the shirtless leading man of the 1950s, his performance as Dax in Paths of Glory is defined not by heroics but by moral convictions. In one of the coolest shots in Kubrick’s filmography, Dax’s regiment is ordered to cross No-Man’s Land and take the German position on “the Anthill,” a suicidal mission that fails almost as soon as it begins. After countless lives are lost, General Mireau (George Macready) orders 100 to be court-martialed for cowardice before his superior, General Broulard (Adolphe Menjou), convinces him to reduce the number to just three men — one from each company.
In one of the movie’s most iconic scenes, Dax gives an impassioned speech before the court, declaring that the case is “a mockery of all human justice.”
Colonel Dax, who was a criminal defense lawyer before the war, volunteers to defend the three soldiers at their court-martial, a kangaroo court that refuses to allow the defense to submit evidence exonerating them. In one of the movie’s most iconic scenes, Dax gives an impassioned speech before the court, declaring that the case is “a mockery of all human justice.” His pleas are no use, though, and the three men are sentenced to death by the firing squad the next day.
Why Paths Of Glory Was Banned By Various Different Countries
The Film’s Portrayal Of Corruption Was Too Much For Post-War Europe
The portrayal of the French higher ranks as arrogant and corrupt in Paths of Glory was met with immediate controversy in Europe, barely 10 years removed from the Second World War and still reeling from its vast destruction. Unsurprisingly, the French government took the greatest issue with Kubrick’s film, banning its release and distribution in the nation until 1975. The film was also banned in Spain, under dictator Francisco Franco, as well as in Switzerland and West Germany, both wishing to avoid upsetting diplomatic ties with the French.
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Kirk Douglas’ 10 Best Movies, Ranked
With a career spanning more than 60 years and over 90 movies, screen legend Kirk Douglas truly stood as one of Hollywood’s all-time greats.
However, censorship did not prevail over Paths of Glory, and the film has gone on to win commercial and critical success and is considered by many to be one of the most impressive war movies ever created. The film’s unflinching morality in the face of despicable corruption separates it from your typical wartime picture, and Kirk Douglas’ brilliant performance as the face of that righteousness carries Paths of Glory to heights otherwise unobtainable.
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