Common Sense Note
Parents need to know that Paths of Glory is a heavy, war-is-futile movie directed by Stanley Kubrick. For a war film with battle scenes, there's almost no blood or gore, although a bloody dead body is briefly seen once and wounded soldiers with bloody bandages are in the background several times. Although there's little of concern visually, the movie's heavy themes about the useless loss of life during war, and how the chain of command enables impossible situations that lead to even more loss of life, are told at a careful, considerate pace best appreciated by teens and up. The all-adult cast is frequently seen drinking alcohol, sometimes as a social norm and sometimes as an escape, and it's clear that it can lead to tragic consequences on the battlefield.
Sexual
Content
A man makes a curving gesture indicating the female form in front of the woman herself, who's under duress, apparently being coerced into entertaining the troops.
Violence
Battle scenes are shown with gunshots sounding, grenades blasting, and soldiers falling and lying in the field, all with little blood and no gore. Bloody bandages on the wounded are seen in passing several times, and a bloody, dead body is briefly shown, still smoking after an explosion. Several punches are shown, including a man punching a priest and a general striking a shell-shocked enlisted man. An execution is shown in which the firing squad's shots are heard and then the victims convulse and collapse, but no blood is seen.
Language
"Go to hell" is used once.
Social
Behavior
War is a futile, unending exercise in which people often die for no good reason. The structure of the military, from generals who are pressured by the press and the public to lowly privates with poor judgment who are put in impossible situations, creates an atmosphere that perpetuates useless loss of life. When we disregard the humanity that binds us and blindly follow orders, the results are tragic.
Consumerism
Not applicable
Drugs / Tobacco /
Alcohol
Officers and enlisted men are frequently seen drinking, and it's clear early on that alcohol consumption causes problems, and even tragedy, on the front. A soldier is seen in passing with a cigarette, and an officer offers another a cigar, which is declined. A wounded man is shown receiving an injection.
