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Good War Movie Recommendations!!

Discussion in 'WWII Films & TV' started by SilasCole, Feb 28, 2020.

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  1. SilasCole

    SilasCole New Member

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    Really enjoying films like Inglorious Bastards, Saving Private Ryan, Black Hawk Down, Fury and Hacksaw Ridge.

    Also ‘historic’ war films such as 300, Troy, Braveheart are great so anything like that would be appreciated too.

    Is there any other films in this genre people would recommend?

    Also what do people think of War Machine? Is it worth the watch?

    Thanks in advance.
     
    SilasCole, Feb 28, 2020
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  2. A-58

    A-58 Cool Dude

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    In no certain order of importance of course.

    Hell is For Heroes
    Hell Is for Heroes (1962) - IMDb

    Gettysburg (also read the book it was taken from, Killer Angels)
    Gettysburg (1993) - IMDb

    Pork Chop Hill
    Pork Chop Hill (1959) - IMDb

    Kelly's Heroes
    Kelly's Heroes (1970) - IMDb

    The Dirty Dozen
    The Dirty Dozen (1967) - IMDb

    Apocalypse Now (if you're really bored, watch Apocalypse Now Redux)
    Apocalypse Now (1979) - IMDb

    1941
    1941 (1979) - IMDb

    Paths of Glory
    Paths of Glory (1957) - IMDb

    Dr. Strangelove
    Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964) - IMDb

    They Were Expendable
    They Were Expendable (1945) - IMDb

    That'll get you going for now. I'll be back later with other titles for you to take a gander at. Now stock up on popcorn, Milk Duds and soda pop.
     
    Last edited: Mar 2, 2020
    A-58, Feb 28, 2020
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  3. OpanaPointer

    OpanaPointer I Point at Opana Staff Member WW2|ORG Editor

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    1917.
     
    OpanaPointer, Feb 28, 2020
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  4. MarChant

    MarChant Member

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    Recently saw T34 on Netflix, found it quite enjoyable.
     
    MarChant, Feb 28, 2020
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  5. bronk7

    bronk7 Well-Known Member

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    Battleground -1949...no sex or gore--sorry
     
    bronk7, Feb 28, 2020
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  6. CAC

    CAC Ace of Spades

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    Gallipoli...The light horseman...Danger Close...
     
    CAC, Feb 28, 2020
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  7. OpanaPointer

    OpanaPointer I Point at Opana Staff Member WW2|ORG Editor

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    ...Lighthorsemen...

     
    OpanaPointer, Feb 28, 2020
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  8. Biak

    Biak Boy from Illinois Staff Member

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    Best Years Of Our Lives, Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo, In Harms Way.

    My personal preference are movies made between 1941 and the late 1960's.
     
    Biak, Feb 28, 2020
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  9. CAC

    CAC Ace of Spades

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    Yeah...so that many actors were actually in the war and many of the props are real surplus stuff...
     
    CAC, Feb 28, 2020
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  10. Half Track

    Half Track Well-Known Member

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    The Longest Day
     
    Half Track, Feb 28, 2020
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  11. Biak

    Biak Boy from Illinois Staff Member

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    Thanks Half Track and CAC !
    What I like about the older movies is:
    One; you don't have all the Machismo over the top acting.
    Two; when you see a flight of hundreds of B17's or a squadron of fighter aircraft it's the real deal not some ridiculous CGI. Takes me to a place where I realize what I'm seeing will never happen again.
    Three; Just something about the actors of the era tends to instill a sense of Reality (not today's Reality show BS but the actual truth type. A lot of this IS due to many of the characters are played by those who were there like you mentioned. Who knew Eddie Albert from Green Acres was such a badass!

    Closest thing I will ever come to witnessing something like that was when I watched the return of hundreds (thousands?) of aircraft coming back to the States at the end of the Gulf War in 91'. The sky was literally filled with a Group of B52's, Transports, F15's and more heading West to places like Missouri, Texas, the Dakota's and Nebraska. And most likely other States as well. Watched them go over for nearly an hour stretched out in loose groups. Looked like the Fall bird migration only this was one of Birds of Steel and Destruction.
     
    Biak, Feb 29, 2020
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  12. OpanaPointer

    OpanaPointer I Point at Opana Staff Member WW2|ORG Editor

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    Guns of Navarone.
     
    OpanaPointer, Mar 1, 2020
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  13. Jack B

    Jack B Active Member

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    Enemy at the Gates makes for a good action/drama film.

    I enjoyed Rob Roy more than Braveheart.

    One film that might be hard to find is Al Pacino in Revolution, an improbable story of the American war for independence, but a good tale anyway.

    Breaker Morant is an oldie, but a goodie. Not exactly a 'war' movie, but really a 'must see' in my mind.

    I don't see that anybody has mentioned a perennial favorite: Das Boot.

    Staying in the nautical genre, Master and Commander is a fun one.

    For a good resistance film, Defiance gets a plug from me.

    Save Joyeux Noël for Christmas time!
     
    Jack B, Mar 1, 2020
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  14. OpanaPointer

    OpanaPointer I Point at Opana Staff Member WW2|ORG Editor

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    Master and Commander for 18th/19th C. sailing eye candy.
     
    OpanaPointer, Mar 1, 2020
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  15. Slipdigit

    Slipdigit Good Ol' Boy Staff Member WW2|ORG Editor

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    My favorite war movies have no actual "war" in them.

    Mister Roberts
    Mister Roberts (1955) - IMDb

    The Caine Mutiny
    The Caine Mutiny (1954) - IMDb

    Both have some issues (e.g.- 40-50 yo actors portraying characters who would have been in their 20s-30s and Lt. Willy's needless side story in The Caine Mutiny), but overall are outstanding films with paramount cast (ages of the cast notwithstanding). Bogey was at his best as Captain Queeg tried to explain away his command issues at the trial and Fonda's Doug Roberts demonstrated how to lead men.

    Another good movie from the era is Von Ryan's Express
    Von Ryan's Express (1965) - IMDb

    Trevor Howard vs Frank Sinatra in his comeback role.

    None of these actually portray an historical occurrences in the war; they are great for their cast, the story, and the cinematography.
     
    Slipdigit, Mar 1, 2020
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  16. Jack B

    Jack B Active Member

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    I had hoped they would make a sequel....or two.

    Patrick O'Brien wrote....a 'dozen' volumes in the Aubrey-Maturin series. (I've got 'em on my shelf.)
     
    Jack B, Mar 1, 2020
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  17. OpanaPointer

    OpanaPointer I Point at Opana Staff Member WW2|ORG Editor

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    So, O'Brien or Forester?
     
    OpanaPointer, Mar 1, 2020
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  18. Jack B

    Jack B Active Member

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    :mad::_wtf:

    You're a damned heathen! You are!

    [​IMG]
     
    Jack B, Mar 1, 2020
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  19. CAC

    CAC Ace of Spades

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    If you like that stuff, I would recommend "Hornblower" - Follows Horatio Hornblower and his sea adventures...British period tv show...they are the masters of period peices. Great acting, nice stories that will keep you watching...

    [​IMG]

    Hornblower is the umbrella title of a series of British historical fiction war television films based on three of C. S. Forester's ten novels about the fictional character Horatio Hornblower, a Royal Navy officer during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars.

    The series ran from 7 October 1998 until 6 January 2003, with Ioan Gruffudd in the title role. It was produced by the British broadcaster ITV Meridian, and was shown on ITV in the UK and A&E in the US. It is often repeated on ITV4 - Wiki
     
    CAC, Mar 1, 2020
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  20. OpanaPointer

    OpanaPointer I Point at Opana Staff Member WW2|ORG Editor

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    I read Captain Hornblower, the combined first three books (in publication order), when I was a teen. Needed help from the librarians, nautical lingo, British Empire, Napoleonic Wars, and general geopolitics of the early 1800s.
     
    OpanaPointer, Mar 1, 2020
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