Bridge Too Far / Paths of Glory 2pk (1957)

A BRIDGE TOO FAR: In September 1944, flush with success after the Normandy Invasion, the Allies confidentally launched Operation Market Garden, a wild scheme intended to put an early end to the second World War by invading Germany and smashing the Reich's war plants. However, a combination of battlefield politics, faulty intelligence, bad luck and worse weather led to disaster. An epic retelling of World War II's most tragic blunder, A Bridge Too Far meticulously depicts the ambitious plan which resulted in more Allied casualties than the entire Normandy landing. Painstakingly recreated on actual battlefield locations and boasting a remarkable all-star cast, A Bridge Too Far accurately recaptures the monumental scope, excitement and danger behind one of the biggest military gambles in history.

PATHS OF GLORY: It's a soldier's lot to do or die. But must he also take the blame for the incompetence of his superior officers? Kirk Douglas stars in a harrowing anti-war film in which "the trench scenes are the most vivid ever made. An overpowering piece of cinema" (Halliwell's Film & Video Guide). Safe in the picturesque chateau behind the front lines, the French General Staff passes down a direct order to Colonel Dax (Douglas): take the Ant Hill at any cost. A blatant suicide mission, the attack is doomed to failure. Covering up their fatal blunder, the Generals order the arrest of three innocent soldiers, charging them with cowardice and mutiny. Dax, a lawyer in civilian life, rises to the men's defense but soon realizes that, unless he can prove that the Generals were to blame, nothing less than a miracle will save his clients from the firing squad. A compelling masterpiece from world-class director/writer Stanley Kubrick and screenwriters Calder Willingham and Jim Thompson, Paths Of Glory is a blistering indictment of military politics and "an unforgettable movie experience." (Newsweek)