But let's not delve too deeply into a study of film. Rather, just opine as to which you like best, and why.
I'm going to list my five top choices. Not ranking them, because they're not comparable, yet ALL tell a their story well.
"Twelve O'Clock High". Great cast, great story on two levels. The broad effort to make daylight precision bombing effective, and the study of the effects of war, the cost, on human lives. And not ONE female in the entire cast, even as an extra. Remember the scene where the adjutant and the doc are caught after having returned from going along on a bombing raid? When threatened with a court martial for disobeying orders if they do it again, , the two culprits innocently ask if the prohibition extends to the chaplain also, because he's been going along as well, and last mission he shot down a German fighter...
Note: As great as the film is, if you can find a copy of the novel, which is long out of print, buy it and read it.. "They Were Expendable"..stirring portrayal of the PT boats in the South Pacific. Shows how the issue of the fall of Corregidor, and MacArthur's bug-out to Australia, was presented to the war-time American public.
"A Walk in the Sun"..a rarely seen ( don't know why) "slice of war" film about an American platoon tasked to capture an enemy farmhouse. The first of the "all-American" type war films, where each member of the unit is a different ethnic American stereotype, and, oh, that great title song..
" The Bridge on the River Kwai". On all levels, spectacular. The "Colonel Bogie" theme music. The depiction of the brutalization of the POWs by the Japanese is an interesting contrast to those pics coming out of the Iraqi prison today. And Alec Guiness' portrayal of the Brit officer's descent into madness, without judging him, is superb.
"30 seconds over Tokyo"..As wartime propagana, to rally an American homefront that had been receiving nothing but bad news for months, this was a superb effort. Worth watching alone for the unforgettable scene of the bomber diving under the Golden Gate bridge, against that superb theme music.
"The Battle of Britain" ..My choice of all the "docu-drama war films, far better, I think, than "The Longest Day", or "A bridge too Far"..because of the superb aerial photography.
"The Best Years of Our Lives". Nothing to be said, except that one could make the argument that it really isn't a "war" film, in the classic definition. It's a study of the effects of war, but the viewer's mind makes the connection. There are several superb scenes int he movie. The shot from the nose of the bomber, as it flies over thousands of now-grounded planes, is the first hint, though it wasn't intended that way, of what post-war America would become. And of course, the scene where Homer finally allows his fiance to help him remove his prostheses; it served to remind Americans that many who came back, came back far different than when then left.
Note: The movie is based on MacKinlay Kantor's novella "Glory for Me"..alas, long out of print, but if you can find it, well worth the read. Kantor is one of our finest American writers; sadly few today know who he is.
Last thoughts. As we today bemoan "Hollywood", as exemplified by Michael Moore, Barbra Streisand, and countless others, it's almost hard to believe that not too long ago, there was time when the motion picture industry represented all that was good about this country.
There are four WWII Movies I must watch when they are shown on TV (Drives the Mrs nuts!)
Patton
The Big Red One
Kelly's Heroes
In Harm's Way
They all just grab my attention every time I find them on.
In Harm's Way
Kelly's Heroes
Guadacanal Diary and They Were Expendable.
Red Dawn