All Quiet on the Western Front
With the loss of limbs and gory deaths shown rather explicitly, this is undoubtedly the most violent American film of its time. This is because the Production Code was not strictly enforced until 1934 and also because Universal Pictures deemed the subject matter important enough to allow the violence to be seen. The scene where a soldier grabs a strand of barbed wire and then is blown up by an artillery shell, leaving only his hands still grabbing the barbed wire, was told to director by a former German soldier working as an extra, who saw that happen during a French attack on his position during the war. Milestone used it in the film.,When the young recruits go out on their first patrol, to string the barbed wire, the veteran uses a mallet to drive the post into the ground. While the movie went to the trouble to have the right kind of post, they used it completely wrong. That post was developed by the Germans to allow them to put up barbed wire much more quietly then the Allies. The bottom portion of each post is twisted into an auger; this allowed the soldiers to simply put the post on the ground, put a rod through one of the holes in the post, and screw it into the ground. This was one of innovations that the Allies copied. Both sides had listening posts near the wire on their sides to listen for infiltrators and wire crews; once detected, they would be cut to pieces by machines gun or mortar fire.,Paul Bäumer: You still think it's beautiful to die for your country. The first bombardment taught us better. When it comes to dying for country, it's better not to die at all.,Later reissues of the film mentioned that the film was an Academy Award winner in the opening credits.,The Library of Congess also restored a sound version, 133 minutes long, which is the version occasionally shown on American TV.,Edited into No Greater Glory (1934),All Quiet on the Western Front
(1930) (uncredited)
Music by Lou Handman
Lyrics by Bernie Grossman,World War 1 and a young German, Paul Baumer, enthusiastically joins the Army. With romantic notions of war and idealistic dreams in his head he undergoes training and then is sent off to the Western Front. In due course the romantic notions are replaced by the harsh reality of war and he becomes disillusioned with it all.

Great World War 1 movie, made when the war was still fresh in everyone's minds.

Might well be the first anti-war war movie, as it depicts the grim realities of war, rather than the romantic, heroic non-existent version of it.

Harrowing, shocking, original, unpredictable, and just as relevant today as in 1930.

Surprisingly good production values for 1930.

Solid performances all round.

Far far better than the 1979 remake.,