All Quiet on the Western Front

1930 • 134 minutes

About this movie

Relive the drama, conflict and power of one of the most influential anti-war films ever made - All Quiet on the Western Front. Universal's first Best Picture Academy Award® winner is now available in its original glory completely restored by the Library of Congress. Follow a group of idealistic young men as they join the German Army during World War I and are assigned to the Western Front, where their patriotism is destroyed by the harsh realities of combat. The hard-hitting, timeless masterpiece returns with stunning visual enhancement to its deserving place in film history! "****! Time hasn't dimmed its power, or poignancy, one bit." (Leonard Maltin)

Ratings and reviews

No character development. We had no idea who any character was. Writer did not invite us to get to know anything about anyone, except, for one guy, & even that was minimal. We have to get to know them to care about them & be drawn into their story. Not sure there was a story. Bad acting. Movie was simply one scene of men talking......then another, etc. Low budget movie as well with comical scenes with dirt, rats, fog etc obviously being hand thrown into camera range & cheap fireworks to simulate bombs.

I absolutely love this movie. Although it's not as bloodied as the later version, it is w/out a doubt just as intriguing. The horrors of 'trench warfare': living exposed to nature & feeling almost powerless to it; the rats, flees, lice, mud and never forget that there're people in the opposite trenches throwing everything that they have into killing them or driving the survivors out of their minds. This is an abstract view & the best way to visualize the world of these long dead heroes.

The movie follows many details from the book, but I still think something is missing. When telling a story, it is not just following the plot, but also giving it the feeling as if it was real. Overall, the movie was good for the time it was made.