🍿FindToWatch
Movie · History, Drama · 1957 · Not rated

Paths of Glory: parents' guide

12+our pick

Best for ages 12 and up. Not formally rated.

A grim, powerful anti-war classic best suited to thoughtful young teens, especially those studying history. In 1916 France, an ambitious general orders a hopeless attack, then puts three soldiers on trial for cowardice to cover his failure while their colonel fights to defend them. The battle scenes and a firing-squad execution carry little blood, but the injustice and the condemned men's fear are hard to watch. Language is nearly clean and there is no sex; officers drink heavily, and a drunk lieutenant causes a soldier's death. Released before the modern rating system, it has no MPA rating; we suggest 12 for its heavy themes.

What's in it

Violence

Moderate

Trench warfare with shelling, machine-gun fire and soldiers falling in no man's land, plus a few punches. A drunk officer's grenade kills one of his own men. One bloody body is glimpsed, and a firing-squad execution is shown without visible blood.

Language

Mild

Nearly clean. Reviewers found a single mild curse, a 'go to hell,' and nothing stronger.

Sex and nudity

Mild

No romance or nudity. In one tavern scene, rowdy soldiers jeer and make a crude gesture at a frightened young German woman pushed onstage to sing, before her song moves them to silence.

Drinking, drugs and smoking

Moderate

Officers and enlisted men drink often, and one lieutenant is drunk on a night patrol, with deadly results. Soldiers smoke cigarettes, a general offers a cigar, and a wounded man is given an injection.

Scary or intense scenes

Moderate

No horror, but real dread: men advance into withering fire, a shell-shocked soldier is cruelly ordered out of the regiment, and the condemned prisoners face their final night in fear before the execution. The unfairness may upset sensitive viewers.

Worth talking about

The film asks what soldiers owe commanders who treat them as expendable. Talk about obedience, scapegoating, and when it is right to refuse an order.

Where to stream →

On our lists

Similar picks around 12+

11+ RockyMovie · Sports, drama · 1976 · PG Violence: moderate, Language: moderate, Sex and nudity: mild, Drinking, drugs and smoking: moderate, Scary or intense scenes: mild 13+ The OutsidersMovie · Drama, crime · 1983 · PG-13 Violence: moderate, Language: moderate, Sex and nudity: mild, Drinking, drugs and smoking: moderate, Scary or intense scenes: moderate 12+ Grave of the FirefliesMovie · Animated, drama · 1988 · Not rated Violence: moderate, Language: mild, Sex and nudity: mild, Drinking, drugs and smoking: mild, Scary or intense scenes: strong 13+ Dead Poets SocietyMovie · Drama · 1989 · PG Violence: moderate, Language: moderate, Sex and nudity: moderate, Drinking, drugs and smoking: moderate, Scary or intense scenes: moderate 11+ Jurassic ParkMovie · Sci-fi, action · 1993 · PG-13 Violence: moderate, Language: moderate, Sex and nudity: mild, Drinking, drugs and smoking: moderate, Scary or intense scenes: strong 13+ Hoop DreamsMovie · Documentary, sports · 1994 · PG-13 Violence: mild, Language: moderate, Sex and nudity: mild, Drinking, drugs and smoking: strong, Scary or intense scenes: mild

Checked October 13th, 2026 against Common Sense Media, movieguide.org, Wikipedia, bbfc.co.uk. The age is our judgment, not an official rating, and every family draws its lines differently: read the notes, not just the number. Spotted something we missed? Tell us. How we rate.