No Greater Glory. 1934. USA. Directed by Frank Borzage. 35mm . 74 min.
Based on the novel The Boys of Paul Street by Ferenc Molnár, No Greater Glory was one of several Hollywood films that, inspired by the failed League of Nations disarmament conference of 1932–34, took an uncompromising antiwar stance. Set in Budapest, the film follows a group of young boys who wage a mock war against a rival gang over a vacant lot. Borzage portrays the boys’ leader, Boka (Jimmy Butler), as charismatic and idealistic, yet it’s his example that leads the frail, timid Nemeseck (played by future B director George Breakston) into danger and betrayal. With a moral force that would not be seen again until the antiwar films of the 1960s, No Greater Glory reflects the hopelessness and futility of war, as well as the human cost of violence and hatred.