I much prefer my wars on the silver screen rather than up close and personal.
I've watched a lot of war movies over the years, but I can only come up with a handful of really good ones.
Most of the ones churned out by Hollywood during WWII were meant to boost enlistment and gin up public support for the war. Understandable given the times, I just don't think most of them hold up well today.
As Sturgeon's Law goes: ninety percent of everything is crap.
I won't claim these are the "best", just my favorites. Some were critically acclaimed some weren't. Some are well known some are pretty obscure.
If I left out one of your favorites it doesn't mean I didn't like it. These are just the ones that have stuck with me for one reason or another.
So here in no particular order are my favorite war movies.
All Quiet on the Western Front (1930)
For a movie from 1930 this holds up extremely well. The message is timeless.
Based on the classic novel by Erich Maria Remarque, I believe this film should be required viewing in public schools and for those seeking political office. I would call this the archetypal anti-war film and I'd say it holds up very well today.
I've seen both and I'd say the original from 1930 is better than the 1979 made-for-television version.
The ending scene is pure cinematic poetry.
Kelly's Heroes (1970)
The proportions are off but only a total tank geek like myself can tell this is a T-34 made to look like a Tiger.
This is more of a heist film than a war film. Maybe that's why I like it so much. An all-star cast featuring Clint Eastwood, Telly Savalas, Don Rickles, Donald Sutherland and Carrol O'Connor.
The plot is simple. A group of American GI's set out to rob a bank full of stolen gold. Only one problem - it's behind enemy lines.
The film is mostly comedy, and contains many quotable moments. It does veer into serious territory from time to time.
Whoever did the equipment got it right, which was rare for this time period. The German Tiger tanks are really heavily modified T-34s but they look pretty close to the real thing.
Das Boot (1981)
The glamorous life of a submariner. Don't watch this movie if you're claustrophobic.
This masterpiece of German cinema shows the psychological stress of men in combat better than any other I've seen.
A very realistic portrayal of a German U-boat crew as they attack allied shipping and come under attack by British forces. The crew are shown as ordinary human beings and it's hard not to find yourself rooting for them.
I prefer the German version with English subtitles over the dubbed version, but I'm that way with most foreign films. I think you lose something even with the best dubbing.
By Dawn's Early Light (1990)
Powers Boothe and Rebecca De Mornay as B-52 pilots. Neither one is wearing the correct helmet by the way.
Made late in the Cold War, this film depicts an accidental nuclear exchange between the US and Soviet Union. It's been done before, and better (Dr. Strangelove, Fail Safe) but this film did one thing very well. Somebody knew an awful lot about nuclear command-control procedures because they pretty much nailed it.
Powers Boothe does a pretty good job as the B-52 pilot and James Earl Jones is always great. Additional stars include Martin Landau, Rip Torn and Rebecca De Mornay.
Map of the Human Heart (1993)
The RAF attack on Dresden. The director's father was an actual RAF crewman on this mission.
This indy film deals with a young Canadian Inuit boy who ends up as an RCAF navigator during WWII. Among other subjects it deals with the treatment of native peoples in Canada at the time.
The film is mostly a love story. The beautiful Anne Parillaud (Le Femme Nikita) has the lead actress role. Even so, the combat scenes were very well done and the bombing of Dresden is recreated in horrific detail.
Battle of Britain (1969)
Michael Caine (of course) in The Battle of Britain.
This film practically boasts a who's who of British actors. Lawrence Olivier, Trevor Howard and Michael Caine (of course). I never realized that Ian McShane was in this until I looked it up.
Made in the days before CGI, this film made use of real Spitfires and Hurricanes, which were fairly available in 1969. The German planes were depicted by Spanish versions of HE-111 bombers and Bf-109 fighters. If you look closely you can see that the Spanish '109s actually used the same Merlin engine as the Spitfire. The actual German engines were inverted and had the exhaust stacks at the bottom. You have to be a true aviation geek to notice the difference.
Overall it sticks pretty close to history and shows just how desperate things were in 1940.
Paths of Glory (1957)
Kirk Douglas (and his chin) in Paths of Glory.
Stanley Kubrick and Kirk Douglas, what's not to like? This movie does a great job of showing just how out of touch the French high command was in WWI.
British soldiers were referred to by their German counterparts as "Lions led by Donkeys". The same could probably be said about the French.
Kirk Douglas plays a French Colonel whose unit is accused of cowardice after a failed assault on a heavily fortified German position. Douglas desperately tries to defend his men against courts-martial. This is not a "feel good" movie by any means, but there wasn't much feel-good to go around in 1916.
A Guy Named Joe (1943)
Spencer Tracy and Irene Dunne.
I consider this one of the better WWII movies that was made during the war. Sure, it's a cheesy supernatural love story but I think that's what sets it apart.
When the capable but reckless pilot Spencer Tracy is shot down and killed, he is sent back as a ghost to mentor young pilot Van Johnson. Things get complicated when Van Johnson falls in love with Tracy's Earth-bound girlfriend, ferry pilot Irene Dunne.
Spielberg remade this movie in 1989 as Always, with Richard Dreyfuss and Holly Hunter, but I prefer the original. This is also one of the few WWII films that features a P-38.
The Bridges at Toko Ri (1954)
F9F Panthers were still in use when this movie was filmed in 1954.
William Holden stars as a naval reservist called back to active duty as an aviator during the Korean War. The Korean War was very unpopular at home and this movie is surprisingly introspective for having been made just one year after the armistice.
Grace Kelly and Mickey Rooney co-star.
Quotable line: "Where do we get such men?"
Full Metal Jacket (1987)
The battle for Hue City in Full Metal Jacket.
Stanley Kubrick again, this time putting his spin on Vietnam.
This is basically two movies. The first half shows the brutality of Marine basic training, with the role that made R. Lee Ermy's career. The second half shows the brutal fighting in Hue City during the TET Offensive. Ermy is particularly terrifying as the sadistic drill instructor.
The movie is chock full of quotable quotes but this little exchange is my favorite:
Private Joker, do you believe in the Virgin Mary?
Sir, no, sir!
Well, well, Private Joker, I don't believe I heard you correctly!
Sir, the private said "no, sir," sir!
Why you little maggot, you make me want to vomit! You Goddamn communist heathen, you had best sound off that you love the Virgin Mary, or I'm gonna stomp your guts out! Now you DO love the Virgin Mary, don't ya?
Sir, NEGATIVE, sir!
Private Joker, are you trying to offend me?
Sir, NEGATIVE, sir! Sir, the private believes any answer he gives will be wrong and the Senior Drill Instructor will only beat him harder if he reverses himself, SIR!
Twelve O'Clock High (1949)
Theatrical poster for Twelve O'Clock High
Gregory Peck stars as a WWII bomber group commander trying to lead a "hard luck" unit back into fighting shape.
The movie primarily deals with the stresses of combat, both on the aircrews and their commander. The Air Force actually uses this movie as instructional material in leadership courses.
Most of the combat scenes are pieced together from stock footage. Still I think it holds up well.
If find the opening scene to be particularly haunting.
The Caine Mutiny (1954)
Bogie as the infamous Captain Queeg.
Humphrey Bogart received an Oscar nomination for his performance as the borderline-insane Captain Queeg. Fred MacMurray, Jose Ferrer, and Van Johnson play his tormented junior officers.
Like his earlier role in The Treasure of the Sierra Madre, I think Bogie was at his best when playing someone losing their sanity.
Mister Roberts (1955)
The cast of Mister Roberts. I'll watch anything with William Powell in it.
Henry Fonda plays a naval officer stuck on a lonely supply ship during WWII. Desperate for a transfer to a combat unit, he matches wits with his eccentric Captain, played by James Cagney. Great performances from William Powell and a young Jack Lemmon.
Kagemusha (1980)
Thief or Warlord? Does the job make the man or does the man make the job? This is much more than a samurai flick.
This was my introduction to the great Akira Kurosawa.
In feudal Japan a great warlord is assassinated, but a lowly thief is found to be an exact lookalike to the dead warlord.
This movie fairly accurately recreates the Battle of Nagashino, where Samurai on horseback made an ill-fated charge against muskets.
The costumes and battle scenes alone are worth watching.
Enemy at the Gates (2001)
The defense of Stalingrad from Enemy at the Gates.
I'd say this is a good movie, not a great one. I include it because it's one of the few Western movies that gives the Russians their due.
Jude Law plays an expert Russian sniper, with Ed Harris as his German adversary. I love Ed Harris but I thought his character was a little one-dimensional.
Good supporting performances by Ron Perlman and Jude Law.
I especially liked Bob Hoskins as Nikita Kruschev, addressing a General who has failed to achieve his objectives.
"You've failed. I'll have to tell the boss. Or......we can just skip the red tape" (while handing him a pistol)
Zulu (1964)
The thin red line stands against the horde in Zulu.
I've loved this movie since my father let me stay up late and watch it with him when I was 10 years old.
This movie was based on the 1879 Battle of Rorke's Drift in Natal (South Africa), although it takes a few liberties with history.
Stanley Baker and a young Michael Caine must defend a missionary station and field hospital against 4,000 Zulu warriors with a mere 150 men, many sick and wounded.
In some ways this is every Western ever made, with the British standing in for the settlers and the Zulus for the Indians. I think a few wagons even get circled.
Still, Zulu does the "desperate stand against overwhelming odds" better than any in my opinion. Better than 300 and better than any of the Lord of the Rings movies if you ask me.
The final charge of the Zulus with the British firing by ranks still give me chills.
"Volley by ranks! First rank FIRE! Second rank FIRE! Third rank FIRE! First rank...."
I think John Barry's fantastic musical score is what made an already good movie into a great one. It just works perfectly.