Best or Worst War Movies of All Time

[Platoonist]

ORIGINAL: MrsWargamer


In an age of awesome CGI, they still can't get the visuals accurate. All they need is someone that makes models to tell them what was and wasn't used and precisely what it looked like. Models makers can be extremely obsessed with accuracy.

I noticed that in many of these CGI heavy films the physics always seem to be off. There might be a time when computer generated imagery finally crosses the "uncanny valley" and becomes indistinguishable from the real thing. Only none of that will matter as long as filmmakers continue to apply physics with a sloppy touch. The complete disregard for gravity, friction and intertia. Sometimes having that “sky’s the limit” freedom means knowing when to keep it grounded.

[GaryChildress]

ORIGINAL: Zorch

I can't believe no one has mentioned this classic.

Is that a scene from "the movie which shall not be named"? If so I had already mentioned it in the OP.

[Zorch]

ORIGINAL: GaryChildress

ORIGINAL: Zorch

I can't believe no one has mentioned this classic.

Is that a scene from "the movie which shall not be named"? If so I had already mentioned it in the OP.

Yes...we both failed to read all the previous posts. [:D]

[pkpowers]

my top SIX;

The desert fox (James Mason is ROMMELL)

The Bedford incident

The gallant hours

The Blue Max

Breaker Morant (my all time best)

almost forgot, Das Boot is a close second

[Bo Rearguard]

ORIGINAL: pkpowers



The desert fox (James Mason is ROMMELL)

The German general, F.W. von Mellenthin who served with Rommel in the Afrika Korps was once asked what he thought of James Mason's performance in the film The Desert Fox by the editor of his 1956 book, Panzer Battles.

Apparently, he smiled before replying, "Altogether too polite." [:D]

[Curtis Lemay]

I count Band of Brothers and The Pacific as movies (of a sort). They top my chart.

[RangerJoe]

ORIGINAL: warspite1

As kids, sitting down to watch a war classic on our small black and white TV was a big thing chez warspite - particularly on a Sunday evening or at Christmas [:)].

The ones that stood out were probably: Dam Busters, Waterloo, Tora, Tora, Tora, 633 Squadron, Battle of the Bulge, Zulu, Battle of Britain, Operation Daybreak and The Great Escape.

No longer being a kid, and actually understanding something about the war meant that the likes of 633 Squadron and Battle of the Bulge quickly fell off that list. While Cross of Iron, Memphis Belle and A Bridge Too Far replaced them.

Later came the likes of Das Boot, Gallipoli, Downfall, Conspiracy (if that counts) and Schindler’s List – the latter kind of knocked everything else into a cocked hat.

Worst films – I don’t really concentrate on those, largely because I tend to avoid dross by looking at reviews first. Never seen U-571 and never will. Seen bits of the Dany-and-Rafe-go-porking-nurses show, but only to laugh at, and I can’t think of too many others. I did accidently watch Dywizjon 303 thinking it was Hurricane. Now that was pretty bloody awful and 90 minutes I’ll never get back….

Favourite War Films? What have I re-watched – and by that I don’t mean because it’s on telly, but because I actively set out to want to re-watch a film (I guess that is as good a test as any)?

Well on that basis I suppose a top 10 would be:

Schindler’s List
Conspiracy
Battle of Britain
Operation Daybreak
Waterloo
Das Boot
Downfall
Gallipoli
Tora Tora Tora
Zulu

I never saw some of those. Schindler's List was put in as a school assignment for one student. The student received an "A."

I liked Das Boot, then I saw it again with the crew speaking English. Who would have thunk that a German U-Boat crew would be speaking in English?

Zulu is one of those where they mangled some people and mushed them together, invented things to make it "better." But I did like it.[;)]

Mephis Belle was made much worse than it really was for the last mission. You should see the documentary on it.

Waterloo, isn't that an ABBA song? You liked the video?

But no Operation Petticoat with a pink submarine? No movie about sinking the Bismark? How about the Guns at Batasi?

[warspite1]

ORIGINAL: Curtis Lemay

I count Band of Brothers and The Pacific as movies (of a sort). They top my chart.

warspite1

If Band of Brothers counts in this genre then that would defo be in my top 10.

[warspite1]

ORIGINAL: RangerJoe

ORIGINAL: warspite1

As kids, sitting down to watch a war classic on our small black and white TV was a big thing chez warspite - particularly on a Sunday evening or at Christmas [:)].

The ones that stood out were probably: Dam Busters, Waterloo, Tora, Tora, Tora, 633 Squadron, Battle of the Bulge, Zulu, Battle of Britain, Operation Daybreak and The Great Escape.

No longer being a kid, and actually understanding something about the war meant that the likes of 633 Squadron and Battle of the Bulge quickly fell off that list. While Cross of Iron, Memphis Belle and A Bridge Too Far replaced them.

Later came the likes of Das Boot, Gallipoli, Downfall, Conspiracy (if that counts) and Schindler’s List – the latter kind of knocked everything else into a cocked hat.

Worst films – I don’t really concentrate on those, largely because I tend to avoid dross by looking at reviews first. Never seen U-571 and never will. Seen bits of the Dany-and-Rafe-go-porking-nurses show, but only to laugh at, and I can’t think of too many others. I did accidently watch Dywizjon 303 thinking it was Hurricane. Now that was pretty bloody awful and 90 minutes I’ll never get back….

Favourite War Films? What have I re-watched – and by that I don’t mean because it’s on telly, but because I actively set out to want to re-watch a film (I guess that is as good a test as any)?

Well on that basis I suppose a top 10 would be:

Schindler’s List
Conspiracy
Battle of Britain
Operation Daybreak
Waterloo
Das Boot
Downfall
Gallipoli
Tora Tora Tora
Zulu

I never saw some of those. Schindler's List was put in as a school assignment for one student. The student received an "A."

I liked Das Boot, then I saw it again with the crew speaking English. Who would have thunk that a German U-Boat crew would be speaking in English?

Zulu is one of those where they mangled some people and mushed them together, invented things to make it "better." But I did like it.[;)]

Mephis Belle was made much worse than it really was for the last mission. You should see the documentary on it.

Waterloo, isn't that an ABBA song? You liked the video?

But no Operation Petticoat with a pink submarine? No movie about sinking the Bismark? How about the Guns at Batasi?

warspite1

Waterloo is FANTASTIC!!

Napoleon commits the Guard.

"Now Maitland! Now's your time!!!" [&o][&o]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1oLflPilcMc

[Bo Rearguard]

ORIGINAL: warspite1

Waterloo is FANTASTIC!!

Napoleon commits the Guard.

"Now Maitland! Now's your time!!!" [&o][&o]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1oLflPilcMc

How could you not love a movie where at the height of the Cold War, the Soviet Army ended up lending 15,000 of own its men to play Napoleonic era soldiers? And then they were trained for weeks to give them authentic Napoleonic drills and manners while the other 2,000 had a more intensive training since they were required to load and fire muskets for the cameras.

[Rebel Yell]

Unbroken was pretty good for one that hasn't been mentioned.

[RangerJoe]

How about Patton for the mild language?

How about Hamburger Hill for the music?

How about To Hell and Back which caused a PTSD flashback for one of the actors? He is one of those who testified before the US Congress to do something about PTSD?

How about The Lost Battalion with Rick Shroeder? Now you see the Sergeant, now you see his helmet rolling by? If I recall correctly, the actor was an Englishman. An African portrays an Texan.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0287535/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i1YfEPxLh2w

How about The Horse Soldiers based a a true raid during the American Civil War?


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i1YfEPxLh2w

[RangerJoe]

ORIGINAL: Bo Rearguard

ORIGINAL: warspite1

Waterloo is FANTASTIC!!

Napoleon commits the Guard.

"Now Maitland! Now's your time!!!" [&o][&o]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1oLflPilcMc

How could you not love a movie where at the height of the Cold War, the Soviet Army ended up lending 15,000 of own its men to play Napoleonic era soldiers? And then they were trained for weeks to give them authentic Napoleonic drills and manners while the other 2,000 had a more intensive training since they were required to load and fire muskets for the cameras.

"Give me night or give me Blucher." He did not get the night but his prayer was answered.

The Soviet union got a lot of money for that movie then. I don't know about the Soviet Army but the Polish Army did field exercises when the men harvested potatoes.

In the 1950's, Americans helped the Soviet agriculture sector. Iowa farmer Roswell Garst "It would be dangerous for the world to have a Russia that is both hungry and has the H-bomb." Krushchev even toured the US and visited with him.

[Bo Rearguard]

ORIGINAL: RangerJoe

Krushchev even toured the US and visited with him.

That reminds me of my favorite east-west photo op. In 1973, Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev visited the US. While here he met with his favorite TV star, Chuck Connors of 'The Rifleman', who presented him with a matched pair of Colt .45s. Later, as Brezhnev embraced him, Connors (six-foot-six) lifted him off the ground in return.



I'm not sure how Brezhnev caught the T.V. show, but I doubt Soviet audiences did.

[Zorch]

So far this has been pretty much an Anglo-American list...not that there's anything wrong with that. Allow me to introduce you to 3 excellent non-English films...

Days of Glory, a 2006 French film about unsung WWII Arab soldiers. It was nominated for an Oscar for Best Foreign Film. After French Premier Jacques Chirac saw the film, he agreed to compensate all North Africans who fought in World War II.

The Legend of Suriyothai (2001), the 16th century Thailand - Burmese war, etc. A sweeping epic with war elephants, based on the life of Queen Suriyothai. Presented by Francis Ford Coppola. Try to see the 3 hour version.

Kanal (1957), Andrzej Wajda's acclaimed film about war in the sewers during the Warsaw Uprising. The middle film in his WWII trilogy.

[RangerJoe]

That Queen looks like she would be worth seeing.

Das Boot is German.

Tora Tora Tora is a joint American-Japanese film.

Flags of our Fathers and Letter to Iwo Jima are also joint American-Japanese films. Both are very good.

The Seven Samari, which not set in a war per se, is a good Japanese film as well. Remakes have been made from it.

I did like Hurricane, which is about a Polish fighter unit in the RAF, with one crazy Czech plus one dual Swiss-Polish pilot.

The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit are also both good.

I have yet to see Pearl Harbor. I should buy a copy so I can see how 2 out of the 9 admitted American fighter pilots in the RAF wiped out the German Luftwaffe, then shot down the entire Kibo Butai strike force, and then took off from and American aircraft carrier and bombed Japan so it sank. [:D] At least, that is what I heard about the movie.

[OldSarge]

ORIGINAL: RangerJoe

The Seven Samari, which not set in a war per se, is a good Japanese film as well. Remakes have been made from it.

Akira Kurosawa did that one, he also did an interpretation of King Lear, Japanese style in his excellent movie Ran.

[RangerJoe]

Before the history channel caved to the UFO people, they did some good historical movies.

[OldSarge]

Someone mentioned Mel Gibson before, he can't shake the Mad Max reputation. He did at least one war movie that is on my short list of good movies about the war in Vietnam, We were soldiers.

[demyansk]

Oh yeah, we were soldiers and the one guy in the battle, Rescora I think died on 9/11 as head of security and went back into the buildings to help. I hope I got the name right