The film explores the story of a group of soldiers facing more challenges behind the front lines. One day, the French General Staff passes a direct order to Colonel Dax in order to take Ant Hill at any cost. Things seemed to have turned into a different framework when the officer refused their commander to continue the suicide attack, as Dax tried to defend the soldiers against the charge of cheese in the stronghold of this place.
Kirk Douglas and Timothy Carey are outstanding among the troops on the front line, while Kubrick's relentlessly probing camera offers constant evidence of a film-maker at the height of his powers.
The final scene, in which Kubrick presents close-ups of soldiers watching a captured German girl being forced to sing for their pleasure is nothing short of masterful.
This masterpiece still packs a wallop, though nothing in it is as simple as it may first appear; audiences are still arguing about the final sequence, which has been characterized as everything from a sentimental cop-out to the ultimate cynical twist.
Those who are used to 2001: A Space Odyssey or A Clockwork Orange will initially find this black-and-white First World War drama starring Kirk Douglas rather traditional, until its radical content is revealed.
More than 20 years after Mr. Cobb's novel was first published, Mr. Kubrick reminded us that human folly is rarely checked for long. A half-century on, he is still right.
