We are not big war buffs, but occasionally we enjoy a great war movie. You might be surprised by our number one pick, but you shouldn’t be. It is worthy of being number one.
These war movies are our favorite for a reason why you should watch them even if you are not that into movies about war.
#10 The Hurt Locker
This is not only a more recent movie, but it is about a recent war as The Hurt Locker takes place during the Iraq War and is about a sergeant assigned to an army bomb squad.
While being in the bomb squad is a very dangerous job on its own, perhaps one of the most dangerous jobs, it gets worse with constant betrayal and the conditions during the Iraq War.
#9 Saving Private Ryan
This is Tom Hanks doing what Tom Hanks does best in Saving Private Ryan as he is the friendly, adorable, loveable one but with that aside, this is a very serious drama about the Normandy Landings and being behind enemy lines on a daring rescue mission.
While Saving Private Ryan is entertaining and a great movie, it is also historically accurate. Of course, the main premise is fiction, but everything else is accurate.
#8 Platoon
Platoon puts the morals of a young soldier into the crosshairs as he is fighting in Vietnam and is facing the horrors of war and the illegal tactics happening in the war. He does not believe everything is fair in love and war as he is pushed over the tipping point when war crimes are committed by killing local villagers.
Excellently written and directed by Oliver Stone, starring Tom Berenger, Willem Dafoe, Forest Whitaker, Kevin Dillion, Keith David, Johnny Depp, and Charlie Sheen.
#7 Born on the Fourth of July
Born on the Fourth of July tells the true story of Ron Kovic, who was paralyzed during the Vietnam War and became an anti-war and pro-human rights activist leader in the anti-war movement.
Ron Kovic also has a complete relationship with his country, the United States, as he feels betrayed by the country he loves. Born on the Fourth of July stars Tom Cruise and is written and directed by Oliver Stone.
#6 Heaven & Earth
This film everyone but Heaven & Earth often overlooks is an excellent war movie as it follows the true story of a girl in a Vietnamese village who survives the horrors and hardship of the Vietnam War. She is forced to become a hustler, prostitute, young mother, and more…
This is the third and final movie written and directed by Oliver Stone about the Vietnam War.
#5 Three Kings
Three Kings is sort of a caper and a war movie making love as after the Persian Gulf War, four soldiers go out in search of gold that was already stolen from Kuwait but run into people that need their help which turns this into a redeeming movie too.
This movie truly has a little of everything and is very good plus, it has a great cast with Mark Wahlberg, George Clooney, Ice Cube, and Jamie Kennedy.
#4 Patton
Patton is an autobiographical telling of General George S Patton JR story as a controversial American general and explorer in detail about what he accomplished during World War II.
Patton is written by Francis Ford Coppola and stars George C. Scott as General Patton. This movie is almost three hours long, and it is not full of action, but it is full of heart and story.
#3 Full Metal Jacket
Now, this is a movie, and it is a war movie that just about every military veteran can relate to and understand. It is 100% true as it is of the violence that occurs in boot camp to beating people on the streets who may look at you funny.
Stanley Kubrick managed to tell the story from the soldier’s perspective with the utmost accuracy and truth. He does not sugarcoat anything in this masterpiece. Vincent D’Onofrio, Adam Baldwin, and Matthew Modine are on it. They are the soldiers they play. You would not believe it if I told you they were just actors after watching Full Metal Jacket.
#2 Apocalypse Now
Apocalypse Now is such an awesome movie. It submersed me when I watched it. This is another war movie that military veterans can understand and see as truly unfolding. I wanted to make this number one, but I had to settle for the number two spot.
Apocalypse Now is about a U.S. Army Captain that is given the task of assassinating a US Colonel. You get to see a very young Laurence Fishburne, Marlon Brando, Robert Duvall, and Martin Sheen.
#1 Schindler’s List
We all know what Schindler’s List is about, and while some may disagree that it is a war movie, it truly is. It is about Poland during World War II when Nazi Germany occupied it, and the Nazis were slowly persecuting the Poland Jewish community.
Steven Spielberg outdid himself with this film, and the cast was terrific with Liam Neeson, Ralph Fiennes, Ben Kingsley, and Caroline Goodall.
Some advice, however, has the tissues ready. This is one sad movie. Even if you are not a person who gets sad at movies, this one might make you tear.
