"(The Way Ahead came during) a period in which the British film had almost totally absorbed documentarian methods... Never was a virtual documentary such a huge commercial success-possibly the biggest of the war... The British were tiring of a long war, and especially fed up were the draftees... Here was a film which was a totally accurate picture of British army life, presented recognizable gripes with warmth and good humor, and somehow made it all seem worthwhile and to a positive end... The NCO types are magnificently drawn: Billy Hartnell is not only the 'definitive' British army sergeant, but he also became the stock movie sergeant thereafter. Officers of the caliber of David Niven were unfortunately less commonplace, but after the film's release many officers consciously tried to emulate him (and) at least the attempt was an improvement. So realistic is the film's documentarian style and underplayed humor that the first big action sequence-a fire aboard a troopship-despite being a studio-made sequence seems to carry all the authenticity of a newsreel." -William K. Everson