11. General Mireau - Paths Of Glory
If those little sweethearts won't face German bullets, they'll face French ones! - General Paul Mireau
One of his earliest films, Paths of Glory explores Stanley Kubrick's often used theme of humanity's breaking point, the thin line sometimes between humans and monsters by depicting the sadistic cruelty of the French army in World War I. Leading the charge of evil is the insane and glory hungry General Paul Mireau. Mireau and Patton share a lot of similar qualities. They both sought to increase their reputation and fame through near impossible military triumphs, both thought that men who didn't fight were cowards, and both smacked soldiers around they deemed cowards. However, there are some great differences that kept Patton (Patton as portrayed by George C. Scott in the film Patton, not the man in real life; Mireau on the other hand is fictitious) from making the list. For one thing Patton would never have ordered the artillery to fire on his own troops because they were pinned down and could not advance, he would never have had his men executed for not being able to defeat the enemy in an impossible attack, and he could actually win battles. Mireau is the despicable General who sends men to their hopeless deaths for the sake of personal glory and has them killed for cowardice when they fail. He is another example of a military officer that churns your gut; delivering military justice that is really anything but just. Watch Paths of Glory, his character will make you sick... and make you think twice about visiting that recruiting office.