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* AdaptationDisplacement: Humphrey Cobb's novel sold well in 1935, but now most people aren't even aware the story was originally a book.
* AmericansHateTingle: The film wasn't even released in France until 1970, for a number of reasons. One of them is the movie's stereotype that all UsefulNotes/WorldWarI officers partied in their chateaus while their men died on the field, which is in direct contrast to the historical record that ''officers'' were statistically more likely to become casualties than their own enlisted men. But the biggest reason the film caused so much outrage in France was ValuesDissonance regarding World War I itself. Essentially, while World War I in the Anglosphere's popular conscious is often viewed as futile and pointless (although this view has been challenged and scrutinized in recent decades), in France it's usually seen as a war of national defense against an aggressive and militaristic invader. To give a rough analogy, imagine if the same general plot and message was transplanted to the Pacific Theatre of World War II, only with American soldiers and generals.
* AwardSnub: Failed to even get nominated for Best Picture at the UsefulNotes/{{Academy Award}}s. Ditto Creator/StanleyKubrick for Best Director and Creator/KirkDouglas for Best Actor.
* CompleteMonster: [[GloryHound General Paul Mireau]] is the opportunistic [[InsaneAdmiral commander]] of the 701st regiment in UsefulNotes/WorldWarI. Taking his men on a dangerous mission to secure a promotion by capturing Anthill, Mireau threatens and beats even his shell-shocked soldiers, and eventually sends thousands to their deaths while only concerning himself with the speed of his forces' advance. When a group of his own soldiers refuse to participate in the fruitless conflict, Mireau [[UnfriendlyFire orders them bombarded with artillery]]. After losing the battle, an enraged Mireau tries to [[ShotAtDawn execute]] 100 of his own soldiers, forced to amend the order to three but enjoying their wrongful killings all the same.
* FridgeHorror: All French enlisted men and junior officers are [[{{conscription}} conscripts]] - they are forced to fight against their will.
* ItWasHisSled: You know what will happen to the soldiers on trial for cowardice, but that doesn't make the whole affair any less cathartic.
* MoralEventHorizon: Mireau crosses it when he orders his artillery to fire ''on'' B company in order to force them out of the trenches.
* SignatureScene: Colonel Dax reviewing his men shortly before the doomed assault on the Anthill. It's the scene shown on most modern covers of the film.
* TearJerker: The ending. A young German woman is forced to sing for the soldiers in a tavern. They are cat-calling, hooting, and laughing at her. Then she starts to sing a simple, well-known ballad about love in war, "The Faithful Soldier". The audience quiets down, and they start to hum the song along with her, as they recall their youth, their homes, and their loves in a world they may never see again.
** Also doubles as a heartwarming moment. When she first starts singing, she's terrified and crying in the face of a crowd of raucous men who are her country's enemies. But as she continues to sing, they stop whistling and cat-calling and start humming with her in unspoken companionship, and she becomes more at ease among them, and even seems to enjoy singing to them.
** Hell, much of the movie is this, especially in the second half. The biggest example would probably be the actual execution of the soldiers, in particular Private Ferol's reaction to his impending death. The poor guy can't stop crying and simply says he wishes he could see his wife again. Even the SmugSnake prosecutor looks deeply uncomfortable reading the sentence of the condemned men.
* ValuesResonance: Sociopathic officers and government officials who treat war like a business can still be seen in modern warfare. The film's view of patriotism and "raising morale" continues to ring true with a lot of people over half a century after its release.
* VindicatedByHistory: The film failed on its first release, yet it's now considered one of the most poignant stories of war ever told. It wasn't released in France until 1970 for its criticism of the French army.
* TheWoobie: The shell shocked soldier in the beginning who Mireau slaps for "cowardice", as well as the condemned soldiers.
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