The Greatest War Film or Films

[Starter Set]

Always liked the Thin Red Line. It's more a movie about war than exactly a war movie though if you see what i mean.

[Jim Kelly]

Cassablanca was way too romantic, the romance overshadowed the war aspect but it definitely could be on the list.

For a romantic movie it had quite the unromantic ending. Unless you're shipping Rick and Louis.

[Castle]

For a romantic movie it had quite the unromantic ending. Unless you're shipping Rick and Louis.

nah, lol. Although I was more into the bromance of Rick and Sam, However it still doesn't change much that Casablanca is first an foremost a romantic film even with the ending, honestly I was one of the few who did not really think the ending was all that tragic, the way it ended for Rick and Ilsa for me was more open, they will always still hook up whenever they meet.

Always liked the Thin Red Line. It's more a movie about war than exactly a war movie though if you see what i mean.

you know I still have not seen this film. it came out the same year as Saving Private Ryan and was overshadowed by it. but again, I am putting Saving Private Ryan as my number 1 war film, so I do expect it to overshadow any other war film that came out in 1998.

[Arsenal]

No love for “We were Soldiers”?

[DrNewGod]

Most of my faves have already been mentioned.

Both versions of Midway were good, although in different ways. I'm particularly fond of the more recent one.

They Were Expendible is another worth watching.

[Kirby101]

Recently watched Bogart's Sahara, maybe not a great war movie, but a damn good one.

[DrNewGod]

Recently watched Bogart's Sahara, maybe not a great war movie, but a damn good one.

Ooooo. That is a good one. It gets pretty deep in the how desperate war is. And it was a very early film to treat an African colonial soldier with respect. Certainly, less than he deserved, but respect nonetheless.

[Kieran_Frost]

Off the top of my head, I'd have assumed 'war films' aren't a genre I particularly care for... BUT... I was looking over my "Top 100" list and was surprised HOW MANY of them are war films. My personal favourite is Apocalypse Now! (1973), though I think All Quiet on the Western Front (1930) is arguably the greatest war film ever made. I doubt anyone will top it.

All the war films in my "Top 100 Greatest Films" list:
https://community.cbr.com/showthread...est-Films-quot
1917 (2019)
the African Queen (1951)
All Quiet on the Western Front (1930)
Apocalypse Now! (1979)
the Bridge on the River Kwai (1957)
Cabaret (1972)
Casablanca (1942)
Full Metal Jacket (1987)
el Laberinto del fauno (2006) ~ Pan’s Labyrinth ~
the Lady Vanishes (1938)
the Life and Death of Colonel Blimp (1943)
M*A*S*H* (1970)
Mrs. Miniver (1942)
Ostre sledované vlaky (1966) ~ Closely Observed Trains ~
Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)
the Third Man (1949)

[DrNewGod]

Off the top of my head, I'd have assumed 'war films' aren't a genre I particularly care for... BUT... I was looking over my "Top 100" list and was surprised HOW MANY of them are war films. My personal favourite is Apocalypse Now! (1973), though I think All Quiet on the Western Front (1930) is arguably the greatest war film ever made. I doubt anyone will top it.

All the war films in my "Top 100 Greatest Films" list:
1917 (2019)
the African Queen (1951)
All Quiet on the Western Front (1930)
Apocalypse Now! (1979)
the Bridge on the River Kwai (1957)
Cabaret (1972)
Casablanca (1942)
Full Metal Jacket (1987)
el Laberinto del fauno (2006) ~ Pan’s Labyrinth ~
the Lady Vanishes (1938)
the Life and Death of Colonel Blimp (1943)
M*A*S*H* (1970)
Mrs. Miniver (1942)
Ostre sledované vlaky (1966) ~ Closely Observed Trains ~
Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)
the Third Man (1949)

Oh my goodness! The African Queen! I never thought of it as a War Movie, but you're 💯 right. Great call.

[Kieran_Frost]

Also huge shout out to Vals Im Bashir (2008) ~ Waltz With Bashir ~ GORGEOUS film.

Cassablanca was way too romantic, the romance overshadowed the war aspect but it definitely could be on the list. I will also add 12'O Clock High (1949).

You can have a romantic war film, the same way you can have a horror war film, or a sci-fi war film. It's still war, just told through a lens of someone not specifically a soldier.

The Guns of Naravone (1961)

Fantastic film! Great journey, cast, directing, such a satisfying showdown; and more ethnically diverse and female empowering than most films that came decades later.

Controversial opinion: Apocalypse Now! is not a war film. Or at least, it's not by the end (the aerial cavalry scene is very obviously a great set-piece of the genre).

What would you say classifies as a 'war film', out of curiosity? I remember when Brokeback Mountain (2005) came out some wanted to not call it a cowboy movie, even though they herd and tend cattle, which is actually a criteria many classic 'westerns' would fail to meet. HA!

Oh my goodness! The African Queen! I never thought of it as a War Movie, but you're �� right. Great call.

Awwwww, thank-you.

I tend to gravitate more towards movies that are decidedly Anti-War. Things like Full Metal Jacket or Paths of Glory. For example, I absolutely can't stand Saving Private Ryan. In fact, Saving Private Ryan is worse to me than some Pro-War movies. SPR is a war movie without any discernible perspective and seems to be more interested in mythologizing warfare than anything else.

Have you seen American Sniper (2014)? That was very anti-war, and I loved it. And I 100% agree with you about Saving Private Ryan (1998). It got so much praise for 'de-glorifying war' and... I was confused? What film did everyone else watch, because this was one giant "what heroes, heroes, heroes, how heroic, heroes, heroes, do heroic-y hero-y things, hero hero hero".

[green_garnish]

Schindler's List unquestionably. It did the best job of showing why war exists, and why they need to be fought on occasion.

[regnak]

A Bridge Too Far.