War films hold a special place in the history of film. Nearly since the beginning of the medium, filmmakers have been using film to show the horrors of war. These are, sadly, timeless stories that are always relevant. Enter Edward Berger and his new film, “All Quiet on the Western Front.” Based on the novel of the same name, which is regarded as one of the finest war stories of all time, ‘All Quiet’ is just as relevant today as it was nearly 100 years ago when it was released. And Berger joins The Playlist Podcast to talk about making this film, being the first German filmmaker to tackle the story, and more.
For those unfamiliar with the novel or the previous adaptations, “All Quiet on the Western Front” tells the story of Paul, a teenage German soldier who joins the army to only see himself get sent to the front lines and see the horrors of war firsthand. Through the course of the end of World War I, we watch Paul change as a result of his experiences.
Berger is probably best known for his 2014 film “Jack,” as well as his recent work on drama series such as “Patrick Melrose” and “The Terror.” In our discussion, we talk about the importance of a German filmmaker telling this story.
“It just felt important to have this film made by a German filmmaker because it’s, unfortunately, an area of expertise about how I grew up, with a sense of responsibility towards history, a sense of shame and guilt about what happened, and terror and horror about it. And to put all of that feeling into the movie felt like an important thing to do for me,” he explained.
We also talked about how “All Quiet on the Western Front” is a film that feels sadly relevant in 2022, even though it is firmly set during the First World War.
“To me, it felt like the right time because, at the time, when we were starting it, there was a lot of rising nationalism and patriotism that felt unhealthy to me,” Berger said. “And suddenly, all of these populists started questioning institutions like the European Union, which brought us peace for 70 years. It just felt like the right time to speak about this, and thinking back 100 years and how it was then and what that kind of discourse led to back then.”
“All Quiet on the Western Front” arrives on Netflix on October 28. You can listen to our full discussion below:
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