The Best War Movies Ever Made

Freepers who know their war flicks | June 25, 2002 | wimpycat

[wimpycat]

As a companion to http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/705904/posts' The Worst War Movies Ever Made thread, I offer you the best war movies ever made, and I wanted to get mine in first. Here's my list, in no particular order.

1. Battleground (love James Whitmore in this!)

2. Full Metal Jacket (love the DI, R. Lee Ermey. "Hard core, man! F***ing Hard core!")

3. Glory (even though it's not quite historically accurate and it's about Yankees, it's a very moving film, IMHO. Great musical score, too.)

4. The Boys in Company C (same DI as in Full Metal Jacket. Made very soon after Vietnam, but it's still pretty good.)

5. Tora! Tora! Tora! (forget Pearl Harbor, the movie, this is the definitive Pearl Harbor movie)

6. Das Boot (definitely one of the all time great war films--great camera work, great sound effects, it makes you feel claustrophobic. Best viewed on DVD with SurroundSound system. Make sure you watch it in German, with the subtitles, not dubbed! Awesome!)

[Non-Sequitur]

It's not a war movie other than the setting in which it occurs (during the Boer War), but Breaker Morant is one of the best movies I've ever seen.

As well as being one of the best courtroom dramas known to man. Anyone who has seen it will remember the following seen...

Major Thomas: "And it must have been...it must have been very difficult to maintain discipline under these sort of conditions."
Witness: "It was with the Australians."
Major Thomas: "But you tried."
Witness: "Aye."
Major Thomas: "Like when you reprimanded Leftenant Hancock (one of the defendants) here for placing prisoners in carriages in front of train engines."
Witness: "I told him we didn't do that sort of thing." Major Thomas: "But in the Carbineers, well, you were doing a lot of things that you had never done before."
Witness: "Well, that's right, but there's a limit."
Major Thomas: "What was Leftenant Hancocks reason for placing the Boer prisoners in the carriages of prisoners in front of the trains?"
Witness: "Well, the Boers had been mining the lines and blowing up a lot of trains. He thought it might stop them."
Major Thomas: "Well, did it?"

And at that moment, the court changes, Major Thomas (who had appeared a bit of a bumbler prior to this) suddenly seems to grow 10 feet, the prosecuting attorney realizes he is in for the fight of his life, and the three defendants begin to feel that they might have a chance. By far one of the best moments in film history.

[Arioch7]

I will say that I am not familiar with the actual historical details of the film but I would like to add that evil is often in the eye of the beholder.

LAst night, I watched a Law and Order episode that was loosely based on the Pinochet trial in Europe.Actually, it was more tight then loose but... :)

In this TV episode they made it sound like Castro, Che, and International Communists that came to destroy Chile were great people. I have to comment that although Pinochet WAS brutal, he was no more brutal then his opponents.

My take on it was that if the Communists were ruthless psychos that were evil incarnate, it was OK; but the Reactionary forces of Pinochet were evil.

Did they do bad things? Of course. Do I agree with all of them? No. However, that view does not take into account the brutality of the "Revolution" camp.

Its funny, but I was reading about Ceausescus rule in Romania at the time and I hate to admit it but I would use ANY means neccesary to prevent such a human hell from surfacing.

I am just mentioning this to illustrate the point that there are two sides to every story. In the example I posted, the LEft ignores such MONSTROUS people and the Right is seen as the root of all evil.

Knowing nothing of the history of Breaker Morant, this could be seen as a Vanity post but I just figured I would add my perception the modern media. I have had a few! :D

[tophat9000]

Well I don’t know if this is the right place to post but I found this on the web some time back

At the link below is REAL Luftwaffe 1944 gun camera footage

...its very sobering to watch...

http://81.19.238.131/demo/

[PJ-Comix]

Where Eagles Dare lost all credibilty for me when I saw that scene of a German helicopter landing. What dopey technical advisor did that film hire?

[tabsternager]

I haven't seen Spartacus since I was a little kid, and I've forgotten it. I'll have to see that again, then.

[Reaganwuzthebest]

Lot of people like "Gettysburg", but for me there was too much talk and not enough action. They should have cut in half, and focused more on the fighting part.

[Hillarys Gate Cult]

Add to the list, "The Odd Angry Shot" (1979) a dark war story about a unit of Australians in the Vietnam War.

"The Siege of Firebase Gloria" (1989), was also a good one.

[max61]

No particular order here;

We Were Soldiers
Saving Private Ryan
When Trumpets Fade
Twelve O'Clock High
The Band Of Brother HBO series
Battleground
Kelly's Heroes
The Lost Battalion

---max

[Rocko]

Dr. Strangelove.

Gladiator.

[PhilDragoo]

We Were Soldiers

The depiction of Joe Galloway was a pc abomination. The film shows a disgust for his M-16 which was the reverse of the truth. The reporter travelled with his own personal M-16. He's shown in the February 2002 Proceedings with his Swedish K submachinegun at Danang in August 1965.

The film is generally accurate with the exception of the final attack and subsequent NV command post being moved.

Ironically the same month November 1965 LBJ lost the war at a fifteen-minute conference at the White House, cursing at the joint chiefs for their request for permission to bomb Hanoi and mine Haiphong. The meeting is described by the Marine officer present as aide to the chiefs in "The Day It Became the Longest War" May 1996 Proceedings.

LBJ's sanitation of target lists gave rise to Flight of the Intruder pilots risking lives to bomb "truck parks" which were valueless jungle.

[Sam Cree]

"Where Eagles Dare lost all credibilty "

I agree that it has no credibility. I just like it anyway.

[Alberta's Child]

That's why I gave more credence to what the Australian guy had to say. Breaker Morant was a hardened criminal and a "remittance man," the term that was given to those Australians who fled to Africa to avoid paying their debts in Australia. He was a very creative man (the movie goes into some detail about his artistic talents), but was known to have a violent personality that bordered on the pathological.

[Saturnalia]

Kelly's Heros. Oddball is just so farking cool.
Bridge on the River Kwai.
Glory. Harlem Boy's Choir gives this one bonus points
Patton. Just because
To Hell And Back. Simply because Audie Murphy is so farking cool.

And for those who don't know who Audie Murphy is, check the official site to learn about one HELL of a hero.

This guy stood on top of a burning tank destroyer, using the machine gun to kill germans
WHILE calling down artillery fire ON HIS POSITION.

[Alberta's Child]

You're right-- that was a great scene. And the truth is, that movie was more of a courtroom drama than a war movie anyway. It was also very much an anti-war movie in a positive sense, since it attacked the whole idea of having a ruling class that sent soldiers to war while deals were being made behind their backs.

[max61]

Interesting notes on the role of Joe Galloway, although it would not surprise me. I just ordered the book after seeing the movie a few weeks back (have also ordered the DVD of the movie). I thought the movie to be quite good, hence my interest in reading the book.

---max

[jackbill]

Almost forgot "Play Misty For Me" and "Dirty Harry". Great movies.

What war were those movies about?

[Tailback]

"The Lost Battalion" was an awfully acted, poorly directed, low budget, ridiculous piece of trash. Unfortunately it was an incredible true story of heroism under impossible odds. The producers, screenwriters, and director should be hung.

[max61]

Kelly's Heros. Oddball is just so farking cool.

On my list, have the DVD. Used to have a dog named "Oddball". Took off one day and never came back.

---max

[stumpy]

A number of years ago, I was told by an army Col. as he was presenting a small bust of a large statue in front of a V.A. hospital in Texas that the movie "To Hell and Back", was toned down. He said that no one would have believed the movie if all of the truly heroic things Audie Murphy had done had been depicted. He estimated the movie only reflected about one quarter of Major Murphy's actions.

[redbaiter]

The Wild Bunch (an allegory about Viet Nam. Insanely violent but riveting.)
Doctor Zhivago