All Quiet On The Western Front on DVD (1930)

A Good Read

Someone from Lancs , 25/11/2003

I had heard of this film being a classic but somewhere in the back of my mind I thought it was a German black & white film which means that this is a remake. I started off thinking that the film was slow but, after a certain point, I could not put it down, just like a good book. There is enough in the film for it to portray the reality of war and it has the added twist that it is filmed from the German side but it could not be accused of portaying gratuitous violence. All the harsh realities are there without any one of them being dwelt on for too long. The film made its point and then moved on. If you like a good read then this film should be for you.

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Wooden

A customer from Brighton, England , 13/01/2006

This was one of the best books I have ever read, and have yet to see any film of it that remotely lives up to the sublime writing. This version was entirely wooden, missing every mark along the way. Erich Maria Remarque writes hauntingly from his characters' points of views in all his books, and evokes such a strong sense of being there, inside the scenes, inside the characters, that it would be nearly impossible to portray in any film. One to watch with the mute button, perhaps, like Collateral (cinematography far better than the scripts). This one was especially bad, as the main character's acting is as believable as any junior school play. Stiff, overacted, unbelievable. Read the book, instead.

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Fascinating classic

A customer from Colchester, England , 07/08/2005

Revolutionary early anti-war movie. Acting often a bit wooden, but many other features quite ahead of its day; after all, this is a movie from 1930. Must-see.

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War without the gore

steelami from London , 25/05/2005

In some ways this movie has dated. The very showy acting style has too much melodrama for my taste. No emotion's ever mentioned without it playing hard across the face. In other ways it's hard to remember how long ago the film was made. The crane tracking shots along the barbed wire as charging infantry go down like wheat are incredibly powerful and really moving. The whole perspective of the story, from the soldiers point of view, compares with movies like Saving Private Ryan and carries a similar powerful pacifist plea without nearly as much gore.

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Wooden

A customer from Brighton, England , 13/01/2006

This was one of the best books I have ever read, and have yet to see any film of it that remotely lives up to the sublime writing. This version was entirely wooden, missing every mark along the way. Erich Maria Remarque writes hauntingly from his characters' points of views in all his books, and evokes such a strong sense of being there, inside the scenes, inside the characters, that it would be nearly impossible to portray in any film. One to watch with the mute button, perhaps, like Collateral (cinematography far better than the scripts). This one was especially bad, as the main character's acting is as believable as any junior school play. Stiff, overacted, unbelievable. Read the book, instead.

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Fascinating classic

A customer from Colchester, England , 07/08/2005

Revolutionary early anti-war movie. Acting often a bit wooden, but many other features quite ahead of its day; after all, this is a movie from 1930. Must-see.

Read all highest rated reviews