😍 2022-11-04 17:55:00 – Paris/France.
New version on the front. Originally written in 1929 by Erich Maria Remarque, No news at the front he had a memorable film version in 1930. He won two Oscar statuettes, the most important of the ceremony, Best Picture and Best Director (Lewis Milestone). Less Remembered is a 1979 television movie by American Delbert Mann.
Almost a century after its completion, German director Edward Berger (terror) considered it relevant to commission a new adaptation, this time spoken in the original language of its protagonists and with a premiere that coincides with the resurgence of anti-war slogans.
At the heart of the project were a few key ideas: there was no heroism or glory to be saved from war; the horror of the Great War may have been forgotten in light of the worst episodes of World War II, and in its brutal approach to real events, it was crucial that there was an intimate relationship with the main characters, starting with Paul Bäume (Austrian actor Felix Kammerer), a 17-year-old who enlists in the German army and ends up in the western front.
“In all of our decisions – camera, music, production design, costumes, props or whatever – it was important to (reflect) what Paul, or whoever is in the frame, is feeling at that moment. In that sense, I would say maybe it's an intimate portrait of these young people,” Berger told Deadline.
The sum of these decisions has been visible for a few days on Netflix, where the feature film has become one of the most viewed titles in Streaming. A release that multiplied the praise he had already received at international festivals and in his own country, which chose him as the local candidate to compete for the Oscar for best international film (the same category to which the Chilean Blanquita , as well as Argentina, 1985, the Belgian Shutdown and the South Korean Decision to Leave).
“All Quiet on the Front Lines is a substantial and serious work, acted with urgency and focus and featuring battlefield scenes whose digital fabrications skillfully fuse with the action. It never fails to do its subject justice, though perhaps aware of its own classic status,” commented The Guardian, adding that it was a “powerful, eloquent and self-consciously passionate film. ".
Calling it "the most breathtaking and spectacular version" of the book, the Chicago Sun-Times reviewed: Like many of the best war movies, from Paths of Glory to Platoon, Saving Private Ryan and 1917, it's a difficult and sometimes heartbreaking viewing experience, but it's also a technical marvel, a carefully crafted character study. a timely reminder that young people who fight and sacrifice, kill and die in wars are pawns in a bigger, more complex and often needlessly maddening game of chess.
A little more moderate, the Indiewire portal maintained that “there is a certain Teutonic seriousness in the making of the film, as well as in the subject. As polished but not as flashy as Sam Mendes' 1917, the film shows a similar level of commitment to historical detail, but presents its elaborately staged battlefield scenes in a relatively simpler spoken style. »
On the subject of war, the site notes that “its futility and absurdity remain constant, even as its face changes over time. Unfortunately, Edward Berger's gorgeous but long-awaited version of the story doesn't add much to the canon except for some absolutely stunning visuals. »
Los Angeles Times said that sometimes its two and a half hour runtime feels like an eternity. For the most part, however, Berger keeps the horror front and center, never more so than when Bäumer, trapped with a French soldier, is confronted by his enemy's undeniable humanity.
About the introduction of the character of Daniel Brühl, a negotiator who travels in parallel to sign an armistice with France which was not in the original story, he pointed out that “The decision to include this predominantly voice of pacifism creates a lack of confidence in the film's purpose and the audience's ability to understand it. »
In a less enthusiastic review, The New York Times noted that "Berger has more tools at its disposal than Milestone had with the challenges of the early age of sound, but those advantages make somehow this less impressive upgrade: magnification in scale and prowess lends itself to showcasing.
Regardless, he noted that "the movie aims to hit you with relentless brutality, and it's hard not to be bothered by that."
SOURCE: Reviews News
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