Our Top Ten . . . War Movies Of All Time
By Bob and Aaron 7/13/08
Continuing in our series of top ten genre films, we move forward to War. While many great war films have been made over the years, there have also been many great films that have war surrounding their story. For our purposes, war films are films about the soldiers in combat situations and the horrors that they witness.
These can be pro or anti-war films that feature conflicts ranging from World War I through the Persian Gulf War. The list features acclaimed directors including Spielberg, Malick, Coppola, Stone, and Kubrick, and iconic actors from several generations. Here then, are our top ten war movies of all time.
10) The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957)
The bridge represents so many things all related to war’s grasp on a man’s mind: how individual pride can consume a man and turn his “loyalties” while they remain the same. While this man leads POWs in their construction of the bridge, another group sets out to destroy it, for to them, the bridge is just one more step for the enemy. -AWV
9) The Deer Hunter (1978)
The Deer Hunter is a long movie that spans the lives of a group of friends pre-war, during war, post-war to show how war changes man. In particular it uses an incident in a POW camp to show the different effects on three friends and how they each deal with the horrors of war. -AWV
8) The Great Escape (1963)
Probably the film with the least amount of actual fighting on this list, The Great Escape proves to be a classic film about the planning and execution of a truly great escape from a WWII POW camp. The film includes an all-star cast of characters (Steve McQueen, James Garner, Richard Attenborough, Charles Bronson, and James Coburn) that each contribute their unique talents to help in the escape. It also features the iconic Elmer Bernstein theme song that can be whistled anytime. -RCK
7) The Thin Red Line (1998)
Other movies on this list depict war, or its effects (POWs, veterans, peace movements) but TRL is a movie that is simply about war. The movie uses the battle of Guadalcanal to show the underlying ideology of war with blunt questions, narration, and by abandoning every other war-movie cliché. -AWV
6) Three Kings (1999)
David O. Russell’s film is usually known for its slickness and revolutionary interior body shots but it is also an entertaining look at the aftermath of the first Gulf War. The movie depicts the chaotic disorganization in both militaries, probes the motives for war with the protagonist’s search for gold, and satirizes the press’ fetishization of war and catastrophe contrasted with the real catastrophes of refugees. -AWV
5) Apocalypse Now (1979)
Francis Ford Coppola’s epic adaptation of Heart of Darkness is a psychological tour deep into Vietnam featuring Martin Sheen’s Captain Willard traveling deep Cambodia on a mission to track down and assassinate the renegande Colonel Kurtz (Marlon Brando). Not only is the film notable for it’s psychological take on the conflict, but it is most memorable for its musical choices throughout, including “Flight of the Valkyries” and The Doors’ “The End”. -RCK
4) Full Metal Jacket (1987)
The two acts of this film follow US Marines through the Vietnam War. In the first act, drill instructor Hartman (R. Lee Ermey) physically and psychological trains his recruits, especially recruit Gomer Pyle (Vincent D’Onofrio). The second act of the film follows recruit Joker who becomes a Marine Combat correspondent following the urban warfare in Vietnam. Kubrick’s stunning masterpiece also focuses on the psychological impact the war has on its soldiers. -RCK
3) All Quiet on the Western Front (1930)
The oldest film on this list, All Quiet is a movie that occupies itself entirely with the concept of war – how wars start, who fights in them, and what is lost in war. It is a movie is a powerful anti-war movie that combines realistic battle scenes (even back in 1930) and powerful moments underlying the paradox of war. –AWV
2) Saving Private Ryan (1999)
Steven Spielberg’s masterpiece not only reinvigorated American interest in the second World War, but it is probably most notable for featuring what is probably the greatest battle sequence ever put to film. Spielberg pioneered filming techniques ranging from the first-person camera perspective to the bleached film look that has been utilized in many subsequent war films. -RCK
1) Platoon (1986)
The most recent Best Picture winners on this list, and the film that made Oliver Stone famous, is also our favorite war film of all time. Featuring Charlie Sheen, Willem Dafoe, and Tom Berenger (as the ruthless Sergeant Barnes), the film is the most brutal depiction of warfare, especially guerilla war, on this list. Its mixture of intense action and psychological impact gives it an intensity matched by no other film. -RCK
