Posted on 11/26/2008 4:39:25 AM PST by mattstat
Here’s my list.
1. Twelve O’Clock High : Inarguably the best. No show, no false notes, no forced emotion like you see so much nowadays. No political correctness in the sense that there are no directorial heavy-handed “war is evil” sub-tones. No actors posing or posturing. Utterly realistic. This takes place during a time when the outcome of the war was by no means assured. The actors believe it: there is no foreshadowing of ultimate victory here as in so many other movies. A son of a general learns his lesson that even the privileged must do what is expected of them. Gregory Peck is the perfect leader, trying to get “Maximum effort” from his men, giving more of himself than he asks from anybody. 2. Tora! Tora! Tora! : Stays exceptionally close to what is known historically. Brilliant idea to have a Japanese director direct Japanese actors reading lines written by Japanese writers. Increases the sense of realism to a remarkable degree. The “special effects” are astonishing, especially since no computers were involved (Thank God). Gordon Prange (who wrote many Pearl Harbor books) contributed to the script—which is why we never see the emperor Hirohito’s involvement (Prange could never let himself believe that the Showa emperor was what he was). People who know me won’t watch this with me anymore because I like to point out just what did and did not happen at each moment in the movie. 3. The Train ...
(Excerpt) Read more at wmbriggs.com ...
the patriot is great
I got the blu ray for free I think I will watch it over the holiday weekend
Band of Brothers
We Were Soldiers
Black Hawk Down
My list (in order):
The Longest Day
Patton
Hell is for Heroes
The Great Escape
The Enemy Below
300
Fort Apache
Zulu
Paths of Glory
The Bridge on the River Kwai
That is all. Smoke 'em if you got 'em.
Windtalkers: should be in the bottom 10. Nicholas Cage never missed with his .45, even shooting incredible distances one handed while sliding down a hill.
We Were Soldiers: another bottom 10. Sam Elliott casually stands in the brush and shoots the NVA as they run past him. Mel Gibson yells up to the helicopter to follow him as he runs under fire to the alternate LZ. The book is great.
Other great movies: Stalingrad, The Lost Battalion, When Trumpets Fade.
Braveheart, Red Dawn, Patton and the Patton movie documentary on Dvd, 300, We were soldiers once (not a great movie but my Dad’s classmate was there when the SHTF and was portrayed in the movie(Capt. Nadal).
sw
“Aim small, miss small.” ;)
I was surprised at myself; it’s pretty bloody and violent and I usually can’t stand that, but Mel’s OUTRAGE at what was happening to his family and country got me on board right away.
Besides, he’s incredibly easy on the eyes. *WINK*
The Winds of War
Bank of Brothers
Victory at Sea?
One of my personal favorites——with regards to our good Southern brothers and sisters—The Horse Soldiers—with John Wayne and William Holden.......
Yeah, Turner screwed with the truth when it came to Lee and especially Armistead, but it was an inspiring movie.
For the musical score alone!
A little nit-picking. That was "Paths of Glory" and Douglas was actually a Colonel in it. It was an incredible drama about the French General Staff executing three random soldiers for the failure of their poorly planned attack.
Yup, you got the list right...Great Escape and 12 O’Clock high make for a great viewing evening.
When I was a kid, I used to sit at the Legion Hall in Wonewoc, WI and listen to my late Grandpa and his friends from WWI talk about their days. And listen to my late Dad and his friends talk about the second war!
Gettysburg? puhleeeze! Sheen’s Lee was the worst acting job I have ever seen. I don’t believe that Lee actually spoke like that. If a skilled editor could remove Martin Sheen, it might be a good movie.
You are right. “Flyboys” was a terrific movie and really was very close to the actual story!
The Flying Tigers
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