‘All Quiet on the Western Front’ - A Conversation with Co-Writers Lesley Paterson and Ian Stokell

All Quiet on the Western Front is the newest adaptation of Erich Maria Remarque's novel and the first version from the German perspective. Directed by Edward Berger, it stars Felix Kammerer, Albrecht Schuch, Daniel Brühl, Sebastian Hülk, Aaron Hilmer, Edin Hasanovic, and Devid Striesow. Offscreen had the opportunity to speak with co-writers Lesley Paterson and Ian Stokell on the 16-year journey to bring this version to screen.

Jillian Chilingerian : If there's a movie or a TV show that is adapted from a written version, I like to read and see what changes were made. What is the adaptation process like from bringing it from the page to the screen?

Ian Stokell: When you do an adaptation, especially with a complex book like this where there are multiple themes, you have to try and focus on a couple of them that you hope represent the author's approach and story. When we sat down to start doing it, the futility of war and the betrayal were the two that we liked. We thought it represented the story the best, trying to keep it as close to the book as we could. The third one that we brought in, which was unavailable to Remarque, was historical context, because of course the armistice in 1918 was the start of World War Two. So that's our initial approach how to break down that story that we were going to tell in 2 hours.

JC: Obviously the German perspective was not represented before and now it is in this one. Was there anything else that you wanted to utilize to make our mark?

Lesley Paterson: For us it was the narrative function in the last 6 hours of the war and the armistice signing could give it a cinematic experience because it gave it dramatic tension, it gave it a ticking clock, which the novel itself doesn't have. It's almost like excerpts of the diary, and we felt that a modern cinematic audience would need something else. I guess you're kind of trying to think about all of those things, respecting the novel, finding all the key elements that you want to still encompass the main themes that relate to you, and then a way into the story that gives it some propulsion.

JC: What I think is unique about this one is how you kind of see multiple perspectives, not only in the writing but the camera work or the makeup and the visuals. When you were writing was it important to capture the perspectives from Paul and then go into the high command, those different worlds?

IS: Different perspectives are so important to the story and the film. We were eager to explore all the perspectives we could find and then pick the ones basically that we thought would enhance the story the most.

LS: The beauty of filmmaking is juxtaposition, whether that image is all the mud, blood, fighting, and the terror and then the beautiful nature shots. That was a big juxtaposition. Then the upper brass, all the shininess, all the cleanliness, all the indulgence of food versus the starving poor soldiers. A huge part of our writing is juxtaposition.

JC: Another part of the movie, which I love, is that opening sequence of it taking you through the life cycle of The Soldier from starting in nature, the battlefield, and then you watch that uniform being recycled to the next person. I want to hear more about crafting that together through your writing and how you felt when you saw it come to life visually.

IS: Lesley had the idea for the uniform going back because we were trying to get from the action back to Berlin and while she was off doing training, she came up with it. We sat down next to each other on the couch and we wrote that whole sequence. When it got to Edward, like eleven years later, he added scenes and amazing visuals to it as well to enhance it.

LS: A big thing when you're thinking about an opening sequence is you want something that's going to grab the audience, but then have this thematic depth. That essentially sets up the microcosm of the entire story right there. For us, the thematic essence was the uniforms were worth more than the man. So many people have said how much that brings them into the story and that foreboding of what's to come.

JC: I read that it took about 16 years to get to the screen. What kept your persistence? I just think that's such a beautiful part of finally seeing it made and sticking with it.

IS: We felt that it was a story that needed to be told. When we optioned it in 2006, we wrote the script maybe a year later, and then Edward came on board 12 years later after that. It was very personal at certain points, you get told not enough times that it shouldn't be made again or they're so people are scared of it. We think this is an important story, totally relevant today. In the end, you just say, well, screw it, we're going to just stick at it until it happens.

JC: There are so many films recently where you hear it's been in development for like ten years and then you finally get to see it.

IS: What we've learned so much is timing is everything in this business and you just have to hold on long enough for the timing and the lot to come. Six years ago it would have been impossible to make this film as a German-speaking language film. You wouldn't have been able to raise finance for a foreign film or a war film, for that matter. The way that this film is being made from the German perspective is exactly as it should be. It took us 16 years to get there, which is just what it is.

IS: You just got to stick with it until all the stars align. And sometimes it takes a long time and sometimes it doesn't.

JC: By living in the changing culture of how people feel about international films and accessibility, I get to see so much that I probably wouldn't have been able to have access to. My favorite part of the movie is just getting to hear German. There's a there's poetry, there's music to that language that is so specific and it adds a layer of texture and humanity to the whole story.

IS: It is a whole perspective thing as well because language is a completely different perspective depending on the language.

JC: What did you want audiences to kind of take away? There can be a historical aspect of forming the entire picture of World War One. The reflection aspect because it is relevant today or having it for the German people. What your intent was or like what do you hope people take away?

LS: I think the big message is one of anti-war, that there is no hero. It is not an adventure. Edward talks a lot about the German perspective being one of shame and embarrassment. He wanted to encapsulate that essence within the story. As you mentioned, I think the historical context makes audiences understand if we treat our enemies like that what could be the consequence? We never really look at the other side.

IS: From our perspective, I'm sure everybody on the film and Netflix as well, nothing would make us happier than this film becoming less relevant as the years go by. But as we've seen, 100 years later and we're still fighting out of trenches. It's an indictment of the way things are, and hopefully, it makes people take stock.

JC: Were there any specific moments you wrote that you were excited to see on screen?

LS: I would say probably for both of us, two things the flamethrowers and the tanks. When we wrote that scene, we were like it is just visually so intense.

IS: When we wrote the first version all those years ago, we had Albert killed with a flamethrower soon into the script and Edward came on and moved it slightly further.

LS: The visuals of that and the tanks almost being this alien-like experience. What we were most struck by was the immediacy and the intensity with which Ed and James captured that on the productions. Everybody captured that sense of these young boys had never seen anything like that, and then the tanks. Modern audiences were so used to seeing these big, wild, mad things all the time and yet, this felt as arresting and scarier than anything I think I've ever seen on screen.

IS: I think was Felix's performance. You always want a great acting performance and then Felix came along. We were like, Oh my God, he's brilliant.

LS: All the acting was just impeccable.

JC: Was there anything that came together while shooting that wasn't on the page?

LS: For me, it was how Ed likes to hang on the reaction shots rather than necessarily what's going on. My favorite example of that is the French woman. When Albert is watching the French woman and he just sort of closes in on his reaction of wow, I'm never going to have this. It goes from sort of excitement, joy, and happiness to his face dropping at that realization. I love that he chose to highlight different aspects that weren't necessarily what I had imagined when writing it.

LS: From everyone that I've spoken to from the team, there is constant talk about this cross-collaboration and everything working in sync. How was that experience? Have you ever had that?

LS: That's what's been great actually, about this kind of circuit with all the Q and A's is hearing the perspective of all of the heads of departments and getting to know them and their expertise and their vision, because all of them were in service of the same vision. That's why it's so powerful cause you've got this layering that is all consistent, yet building and building. Well, of course, it's Ed's vision, the way that he works, but it's also the material. A lot of the heads of departments were German and so it was a big passion project for everyone. Everyone was invested.

IS: The impportance of the book, everybody was aware of it and they didn't want to mess it up. So they gave it their best shot and were eager to just make it the absolute best they could.

JC: When you're telling it from your perspective finally, it's like a bit of intimidation of we got to get it right. But there's such a passion behind it that translates well to the audience. When the Oscar nominations came out, my friends and I were so excited for you and your team.

IS: I bet you were excited as us.

JC: I could only imagine.

LS : It is a dream come true, because we're going to be biased, but it's a true work of art.

IS :We've been thinking about it and dreaming about it literally for 16 years.

LS: I think Ian and I are so grateful and honored to be a part of something like this with Ed and Malte. I mean, what a team and what a vision and goal. We feel so lucky. I mean, we do.

All Quiet on the Western Front is now streaming on Netflix and in select theaters.