Please add your favorite war movies to this thread

ReveBM ^ | February 23, 2002 | ReveBM

[RightOnline]

"Zulu is awesome..moreso because it's a very accurate depiction of the battle of Roarke's Drift......but in today's PC world, you couldn't make the film...."

One of my all-time favorites; Michael Caine's first movie, in case you didn't catch that. Absolutely terrific and inspiring war flick. More Victoria Crosses awarded from that battle than any other single engagement in British military history; a simply stunning example of raw courage and devotion to duty.

I saw Caine on Johnny Carson some years ago (well, obviously.......if Johnny was still hosting :)) and they talked about "Zulu". Caine said that when the Zulu tribesmen (yes, they really were Zulus) did the "banging on the shields" thing before attacking, it so terrified their African crewmembers on the set (non-Zulus) that they broke and ran........even though it was just a movie. He said that as powerful as those scenes were in the movie, they paled to actually being there and hearing it.

I must respectfully disagree on one point, though, Ken. I DO think that Zulu is a superb candidate for a remake, and I felt that the movie made the Zulus look like a formidable, "professional", and yes................even honorable.............foe. Political correctness shouldn't stop its making (although I readily admit that I know exactly what scenes you're thinking of when you mention the P.C. forces and how they'd react today......).

[YaYa123]

Thanks RushLake. I think I know just how you feel. My WW2 Dad is dead too. He didn't discuss the war, so except for the movies, the music, and of course photos and the few memories I have of him talking about it, I don't know much either.

My grandson is one year old, and I've just completed his First Year Photo Album by including a few pictures of my husband, his Grand Dad, taken in Viet Nam. I wanted him to know that his "BaBaw" was once a warrior, young, strong, and very brave.

[RushLake]

We often forget that it is boys who do the actual fighting. The boys of 1776 were by in large just that--boys. My dear Dad was 19 years old when he talked his way into the Navy in 1942. He had poor vision and didn't even have to go. I grew up in an extended family where every uncle but one (who was too young) had enlisted (not drafted) and served in the "biggie" as my dad referred to it. Thanks for giving me the opportunity to ramble on. I feel bad that a lefty like Tom Borkaw had to be the one to write the book about what was truly one of "the greatest generations".

[TheCPA]

The Dirty Dozen, The Green Berets

[Axenolith]

Das Boot and one I recently watched by the same director, Stalingrad. Both very well done, there is definitly NO happy endings though.
Also, Enemy at the Gates, One thing that makes all of them good is the use of historically accurate equipment. I never could get around the tanks being the same in Battle of the Bulge but in both Stalingrad and Enemy at the Gates the T-34's and Pzkfw-III's were either real or really good mock ups.
As an aside, if you're looking for an excellent game\educational tool on a second World War battle you can't go wrong with Microsoft's Close Combat - A Bridge To Far (or the other modules which are great but don't have as much added extras) which covers the entirety of Operation Market Garden. The realism is fabulous and it has an encyclopedia of equipment and vehicles attached that ROCKS, even footage of StG 44 in use, which is what the AK-47 was derived from.

[LTCJ]

The Lost Battalion by A&E is now available on DVD. Watched it last night.

[LTCJ]

Michael Caine's first movie, in case you didn't catch that.

Chief Buthelezi's, too, I'd wager. Played his ancestor, Shaka Zulu.

One of my all-time favorites.

[texson66]

BEST YEARS OF OUR LIVES -1945

[dan909]

Just a few that come to mind are:

- The Longest Day. It's already been mentioned plenty, but I especially like it because it's about the best war movie I've seen in giving you a feel for the whole strategic situation. So many movies (like Private Ryan) just give you a bunch of random battles, but Longest Day is great in showing you the whole sweep of the operation and still keeping you focused on the characters. It also is the best movie I've seen for presenting both sides in a really human light- you care almost as much for the Germans as the Americans.

- 60 Seconds over Tokyo. Great thrills and a perfect real life story. What surprised me the most when I saw it was that about half the movie is about the heroics of our Chinese allies- once the pilots do their job, it's up to the chinese resistance to find them, protect them, and get them home. It's a real testament to the bravery & sacrifice of those that fought with us.

- A Winter's Night. I don't know if anyone else has mentioned this interesting little movie- it's from the early 90's, and has Gary Sinise & a young Ethan Hawke. It's a little fable of sorts in the midst of the battle of the bulge, where an American patrol meets a German patrol on christmas eve. Parts are a little hokey, but it's stuck with me a lot more than many other war movies I've seen.

- The Best Years of our Lives. This has been mentioned too, and although it isn't exactly a war movie, it must be one of the most sophisticated and compelling movies Hollywood's ever made relating to war (I'd even say probabley even one of the best Hollywood movies at all).

[ReveBM]

I know it's a sci-fi/fantasy flick and not a real war movie, but do any of you guys have an opinion about "The Final Countdown" with Kirk Douglas?

[ReveBM]

I might as well throw in another ridiculous fantasy flick for your comment...Predator with Arnold Schwarznegger?

[meanspirit77]

"THE WILD BUNCH" Peckinpah's best.