I'm a consumer of good war movies. Not action movies, per se, but movies in war settings, hopefully from actual battles that were fought. I've seen a heck of a lot of war movies, although by no means every one ever made, so I think I'm somewhat qualified to put out my own list of the top twelve war movies of all time.
There are other movies that people regard as war movies that are nothing of the kind: Kelley's Heroes, which I consider a joke, and The Dirty Dozen, which is a fun movie but historically inaccurate. Fictional history doesn't make the cut here.
My requirements for these movies are that they are based on historical fact, have plenty of battle scenes and don't stray too far into fictionalization. Just because it doesn't make this list does it mean that a particular movie is unwatchable; I just can't put it in what I'd consider the Hall of Fame of War Movies.
In reverse order, then, these are my Top Twelve Movies of All Time (So Far):
12. The Patriot: Yeah, it can be slow at times, but the action scenes are great. And any movie that shows the Brits losing is just fine by me. It's an amalgam of incidents in which Francis Swamp Fox Marion was involved, and it shows just how asymmetrical warfare was first visited on a standing army.
11. Wake Island: For the sheer heroism of the action, this movie gets a place in the rankings. To be honest, no one is quite sure what exactly happened on the island, given how the Nips took care of the captured garrison. Still, it captures what is generally regarded as the official history of what took place on that fated island.
10. Objective: Burma: This is a thinly-veiled story of Merrill's Marauders which, apparently, generated a lot of controversy with the Brits when it was released because (go figure) it didn't brag enough about the Chindits. That issue aside, it's a great action movie.
9. 13 Hours: This isn't really a war movie, but since it involves one heck of a siege and battle scenes, it gets on the list. The story of the assault on our consulate in Benghazi, it shows the resolute defense by a handful of ex-military security forces against a few hundred well-armed thugs who wanted to make a statement on the anniversary of the attacks on September 11.
8. Pork Chop Hill: One of the few movies about the Korean War and one of the even fewer good ones, this shows the absolute insanity of that war at ground level.
7. The Battle of the Bulge: One of the few very good movies about World War II made in the 60's. Interestingly, it almost completely avoids any depiction of the higher-ups, concentrating on the men who actually fought the battle.
6. Sink the Bismarck: Loathe as I am to include a Brit movie, I have to be fair. This is one of the finest depictions of naval warfare ever made.
5. Gettysburg: Martin Sheen's almost gay rendering of Robert E. Lee notwithstanding, this is the best movie about the Civil War for a couple of reasons: It's audacious and largely accurate. That it gives credit to Brigadier General John Buford, who made the crucial decision to locate the line of defense around the town of Gettysburg, is of everlasting credit. And that it was filmed on the actual location is phenomenal. Watching Ted Turner, who financed the movie, get killed in it is also a plus.
4. Platoon: This qualifies -- just barely -- because it's based on Oliver Stone's experiences as an infantryman in the Vietnam War. The gruesome honesty of the battle scenes is almost overwhelming at times. Although it might seem as if some of the actions are exaggerated, my reading suggested that a lot of things were toned down. The killing of Willem Dafoe's character Elias is one of the most chilling in war movie history.
3. Saving Private Ryan: If it weren't for the unevenness of the anti-war messaging contrasted with the full-on battle scenes and some very poor editing (why is Captain Martin heaving heavier mortar rounds when the shot clearly shows lighter hand grenades on his belt?), this would rank higher. The unflinching depiction of the assault on Omaha Beach is classic. The climactic scene defending that bridge is one of the greatest in war movie history. And Adam Goldberg's character's Mellish's struggle and ultimate death is the most frightening in war movie history.
2. Zulu: It pains me to add yet another Brit war movie, but until the arrival of the number one movie on this list, this was the best war movie I'd ever seen. It's a depiction of the gallant stand made by some 150 wayward Brits in Rorke's Drift in South Africa against upwards of 4,000 Zulus who had just decimated another British army at Isandlwana. The action scenes are top-notch and the emotion is palpable. The film is also noteworthy for being the debut of Michael Caine.
1. We Were Soldiers: I can't help it. If this movie comes on TV, I watch it. No matter how many times I've seen it, I'll watch it. Mel Gibson is excellent as Hal Moore, Sam Elliott is perfect as Basil Plumley and the supporting cast is excellent. Even the inclusion of the women on the home front works. The battle scenes are marvelously done and the accuracy to the book on which it's based is superb. The only drawback is that the movie only recounts the first half of the book. After Hal Moore left the battlefield with his troops, the Americans who replaced them were ambushed and slaughtered, just as Moore feared would happen.
Special Mention:
The Pacific and Band of Brothers: The only reason these two productions aren't included above is that they're mini-series. Both are exceptional and deserve to be included.
Honorable Mention:
The Longest Day
Midway
Patton
Wake Island
The Tuskegee Airmen
Glory
(c) 2018 The Truxton Spangler Chronicles
