Westfront 1918

Summary

The Western Front 1918

Based on the novel Vier von der Infanterie by Ernst Johannsen, The Western Front 1918 tells the story of four German soldiers of very different personalities and social backgrounds who serve together on the French front during the last year of World War I. The happy Bavarian is unshakeable and optimistic. Karl from Berlin has been home on leave, but finds another man in his wife′s bed and is glad to return to his comrades. The lieutenant only knows his duty and seems not to be interested in anything but his duty. The fourth man is a student who has fallen in love with a young French woman named Yvette, to whom he must bid farewell as the company moves on.

The war brings a gruesome end for all four men. The student is killed in no man′s land. The Bavarian is badly injured during a reconnaissance mission. The man from Berlin dies in a field hospital with the accusation "we are all to blame!" on his lips. The lieutenant, whose upright bearing made him appear invulnerable, loses his countenance and his sanity and is sent to a field hospital as a mental wreck.

Source: German films Service & Marketing GmbH