All Quiet on the Western Front

All Quiet on the Western Front ★★★★

All Quiet on the Western Front” is officially the 3rd adaptation of the source material. It desperately needed an update and this film is exactly that. Much more intimate than the original film with solid performances. The intimacy made the violence much more emotional and impactful. 
The only issues I had were the deviations from the source material. Not having read the book, just by articles and having seen the original film, the ending here is different. And there is an entirely new plot line involving the government’s negotiations of a cease fire which was never in the book.
I didn’t like the change in the ending but the political storyline wasn’t bad.
Overall, taking on a 3rd adaptation I understand not rehashing what has already been done. But to deviate from the ending is something I didn’t appreciate. The emotional weight of the entire film hits harder here, though. And the theme of anti-war is not muddled in any way. It’s still present. 
So, i’d consider this 2022 adaptation as a companion piece to the 1930 film. 1930’s was more accurate, but the 2022 is way more emotional.

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