In 1914, English author and social commentator H.G. Wells coined the phrase “the war to end all wars,” referencing the first World War without a whiff of irony. Since then, myriad artists, songwriters, authors and filmmakers have reinforced the message that “War is hell,” and yet the story of the first World War in the form of All Quiet on the Western Front continues to fester under the skin of modern consciousness, as recently as the 2022 adaptation of the 1930 original film, based on the 1929 German novel, Im Westen nichts Neues.

A German youth eagerly enters World War I, but his enthusiasm wanes as he gets a firsthand view of the horror.