All Quiet on the Western Front (2022)

Every so often, a groaning three-note blast hits the soundtrack of All Quiet on the Western Front, and a few scenes feel pushed when they needed no help. The cutaways are the second problem. Daniel Brühl’s peace talks and a general dining well far from the mud play like a separate, stiffer movie, though the point lands by the end. Everything at the front is devastating. The uniform Paul gets on his first day still has another boy’s name tag inside. Felix Kammerer plays Paul with wide, frightened eyes, a teenager who signed up for a parade and found something no speech prepared him for. Albrecht Schuch makes Kat the warmest presence in the film, the older soldier who keeps the boys alive and asks Paul to read him letters from home. Edward Berger shoots fog, mud and gray mornings with a terrible kind of beauty. An 8.6 because it never once makes war look like an adventure. $375.46 says you write somebody an actual letter this month, on paper, and mean every word.

What works: Felix Kammerer and Albrecht Schuch give raw, unforgettable performances, and the battle scenes are overwhelming without ever feeling like spectacle.

What doesn’t: The cutaways to the peace talks and the generals feel stiff next to the trenches, and the pounding score sometimes oversells moments that were already overwhelming.

Who it’s for: Anyone old enough for a serious, demanding war film, especially readers who met the novel in school.