Favorite World War II movies (1 Viewer)

[Warrior]

I've come up with a list of my top ten all time favorite World War II movies;

1.) Saving Private Ryan-This movie set the standard by which all future war movies will be measured against. Not only the most powerful war movie I have ever seen, but perhaps the most powerful movie period.

2.) Band of Brothers-Not sure if you could call it a movie as it was actually a series, but awesome in its own right. The third episode was my favorite, from the assault on Carentan to the German counterattack complete with Jadgpanthers, Marder III's and other assault guns. The Arnhem episode involving the German counterattack on the town was my second favorite.

3.) Cross of Iron-Great Eastern Front movie. The Russian attack on the German positions around the factory complex was spectacular, complete with T34's.

4.) A Bridge Too Far-An epic war movie with an all star cast. The German counterattack across the bridge at Arnhem was worth the price of admission.

5.) Stalingrad (1992 version)-Another great Eastern Front movie, brought to the screen by the producers of Das Boot. Great, great movie. The German assault on the Russian factories was top notch and the Russian T34 attack in the snow was about as gruesome as you can get.

6.) The Winter War-This movie is about the Russian attack on Finland and is very well done. Great battle scenes and the early war Russian tanks are a nice touch.

7.) When Trumpets Fade-This is an HBO production about The Battle of the Hurtgen Forest. Very powerful movie about war and the effect it has on the average soldier.

8.) Kelly's Heroes-I'm a huge fan of this movie, not so much a war movie as a comedy/heist yarn, but still a great take. This movie has perhaps the greatest amount of quotable lines in any movie.

9.) Windtalkers-My favorite Pacific Theater movie. The initial assault on the Japanese positions on Saipan was awesome.

10.) Enemy at the Gates-Another great Eastern Front movie. The crossing of the Volga under murderous Stuka attacks and the Russian attack on the German positions was a great opening sequence.

I am sure there are loads more, plus a lot of classics from the 50's and 60's like The Longest Day, The Battle of the Bulge, Battleground, etc, so have at it. One movie I did not mention was "The Brotherhood of War" because it concerns the Korean War. All I can say about this one is it's the SPR of the Korean War...................

 

[Joey]

I certainly love Enemy at the Gates, though it's a very irrealistic movie. Nothing seems right in it (from a historical point of view, that is). The portrayal of Vassili Zaitsev was completely wrong.

But it still is a spectacular movie. So is SPR, but when your compare SPR to Band of Brothers, I'd give the gold medal to Band of Brothers. Warrior is right about those action scenes ( my favorite is the German counterattack at Nuenen, followed by the assault on Foy and the assault on Carentan). The production is rather spectacular, and the series portaysEasy company very well...

 

[Eazy]

I'd like to add to the list

Where Eagles Dare- this is my number 1 war movie. Not sure about realism but it's as exciting as a film can be! Great cast. Great location.

The Guns of Navarone- again a great cast, good characterisations and spectacular locations.

The Battle of Britain. It may be a bit overlong and meandering but the planes really make it. Some great flying and dogfighting sequences with the real aircraft. No CGI here.

The Longest Day. It's overlong. It has a cast of thousands and its a bit corny in places but it's an incredible achievement. So many great scenes- like the Orne river glider assault, St Mere Eglise, Omaha Beach, Pointe du Hoc. Great stuff!

 

[jrsteel]

My top 5:

1. Bridge On The River Kwai
2. Saving Private Ryan
3. Battleground
4. They Were Expendable
5. The Story Of GI Joe (About Ernie Pyle)

 

[desk11desk12]

Well Warrior,

You got 2 right...just kidding. Here's my top 10.

1. Saving Private Ryan
2. Band of Brothers
3. Empire of the Sun (don't know why I like this one so much)
4. Europa Europa (Any one see this one?)
5. Patton
6. Battle Cry
7. Command Decision (so you think being the boss is easy?)
8. Das Boot
9. Midway (How many times have I seen this one)
10. They were Expandable

Gees, I guess Spielberg is the best. I never thought of myself as a big fan of his before.

Honorable mention:
12 O' Clock High, Sahara, Battle of the Bulge and From Here to Eternity, and From Hell to Eternity.

Carlos

 

[Louis Badolato]

I agree with just about everybody, but I have to go with Eazy for my top 2, Where Eagles Dare and the Guns of Navarone, both based on books one of my favorite authors, Allistar MacLean (and on the sequel to the Guns of Navarone, Force 10 from Navarone, the screenplay was co-written by my all time favorite author, George MacDonald Fraser).

 

[OzDigger]

Not to forget the classics 'Waterloo' and 'Tora, Tora, Tora". I bought 'The Desert Fox' and 'The Desert Rats' dvds recently and was impressed with James Mason as Rommel in both, often I forgot it was Mason and not the actual Rommel. Another plus was that both were filmed back in the days when they had enough contemporary equipment to make war films look factual. Unlike those US 'panzers' we all laughed at in 'Patton' etc. Thankfully the 'Saving Private Ryan' and 'Band of Brothers' people went to some length to obtain decent replica's as well as actual vehicles etc to make them more real.

 

[jazzeum]

Having seen Downfall a few months ago I'd rate that near the top. But the best war movie ever made, hands down (in my opinion), is Paths of Glory, the Kubrick anti war movie.

I don't really have a top 10 but the ones I like are Desert Rats, Where Eagles Dare, Bridge Too Far, Von Ryan's Express, the one with the Burt Lancaster about the paintings (can't remember the name), Longest Day (esp for Pegasus) and Band of Brothers. Based on the recommendations here I recently purchased Cross of Iron although I haven't seen it yet.

How about the Blue Max that's a good one.

Interesting thing about two of the choices, Bridge on the River Kwai and Patton. I recently saw the episode in the BBC's History of the World War II about the Pacific War and veterans of Burma slammed the River Kwai movie. With respect to Patton, in the Armchair General articles that Oz posted about Monty, the alleged rivalry between Monty and Patton in Sicily (including being the first to arrive in Palermo (I think) was all fictional and Monty went out of his way to compliment Patton.

 

[binder001]

Well here goes some of mine (these are in no particular order as my mood dictates what I want to see);

"NAVY THEMED":
- THE ENEMY BELOW - classic DE vs sub, good acting, nice DE shots! Still a personal favorite!
- MR ROBERTS - everyone has worked for someone like the captain!
- TASK FORCE - Gary Cooper started carrier aviation? Still a nice classic from the old days.
- THE CAINE MUTINY - powerful story, excellent actors and good destroyer fooptage to boot!
- SINK THE BISMARCK - close to history, nice models, easy to watch
- AWAY ALL BOATS - who would have thought they could make an APA interesting? Jeff Chandler made a fine captain.
- DAS BOOT - have to respect what the U Boat crews went through.
- SAILOR OF THE KING - not on video, but a fine British movie with good stories and acting.

"AIR FORCE" THEMED:
- FIGHTER SQUADRON - another of my favorite films even if the story is thin. I wish this were out on DVD
- BATTLE OF BRITAIN - great movie! What else can you say?
- AIR FORCE - pure WW2 hokum but a cute story with likeable characters
- MEMPHIS BELLE - I enjoy both the 1943 documentary and the 1990s Hollywood "action" version.
- THE WAR LOVER - great B17 sequences
- COMMAND DECISION - Clark Gable used his wartime experiences to god effect
- TWELVE O'CLOCK HIGH - a bomber war classic. Peck was a great actor.

"ARMY" THEMED:
- BAND OF BROTHERS - it's not a movie, it's an experience!
- SAVING PRIVATE RYAN - so it ain't "perfect", it's a powerful tribute to our veterans.
- BATTLEGROUND - until SPR it was one of the best movies about the infantry
- THE TANKS ARE COMING - silly story, but filmed with REAL SHERMANS!
- BATTLE OF THE BULGE - again, the story is goofy, but I love watching the Spanish Army's collection of armor run around.
- IS PARIS BURNING - dramatized, but generally fact based. Good armor including WW2 types.
- A BRIDGE TOO FAR - not bad at condensing a large complex battle. A true "epic"
- BRIDGE AT REMAGEN - plays fast and loose with the facts, but the armor is WW2 vinatge and the location has the right terrain.
- SAHARA - Bogart and an M3 "Lee" tank - need I say more?

"Micellaneous" THEMES:
- THE TRAIN - Burt Lancaster got to destroy real trains in this French flic!
- STALAG 17 - my favorite POW movie
- THE GUNS OF NAVARONE - David Lean did justice to Allistair McLaine's story, a real thriller. Love the big guns!

 

[sceic2]

My own personal opinion about "Tora Tora Tora," is that this movie is a total waste of time. The models used for the ships were so amateurish that they look like they were made by a five year old. For the amount of money spent on that movie, the scenes of the naval battles were really bad.

My standard for war movies is pretty high. I think that Das Boot, the long version is one of the best movies made. I especially like "Johnny Got His Gun" and both versions of "All's Quite on the Western Front."

I think I've seen "Cross of Iron," and if I remember properly, it too was a great movie. SPR had two very good scenes that make it one of my favorite, the invasion and the bridge battle.

Most war movies have such phony special effects in place of doing some good movie making and doing realistic battle scenes. "The Lost Battalion” with Ricky Schroeder was excellent. He did a great job as the young officer in the battle for his men’s lives.

When Trumpets Fade, A Walk in the Sun, Memphis Belle, and Stalingrad round out my top eleven movies. But my all time favorite war series is Band of Brothers. It’s not really a movie but that’s OK because it so damned good.

Just remember, the best novel is yet-to-be written, the best song is yet-to-be sung, the best speech is yet-to-be given and the best movie is yet-to-be made. We humans have great potential if we can manage to survive ourselves.

That’s my two bits.

Michael

 

[wadepat]

Gentle Friends,

I know the title of this thread is "Favorite World War II Movies." However, some of you have listed movies concerning other conflicts (WW I, etc.) If I may expand beyond the wonderful movies already listed to "Favorite War Movies," I would also include: Gettysburg and Blackhawk Down. I almost never tire of these two movies.

Warm regards,

Pat

 

[desk11desk12]

My own personal opinion about "Tora Tora Tora," is that this movie is a total waste of time. The models used for the ships were so amateurish that they look like they were made by a five year old. For the amount of money spent on that movie, the scenes of the naval battles were really bad.

My standard for war movies is pretty high. I think that Das Boot, the long version is one of the best movies made. I especially like "Johnny Got His Gun" and both versions of "All's Quite on the Western Front."

I think I've seen "Cross of Iron," and if I remember properly, it too was a great movie. SPR had two very good scenes that make it one of my favorite, the invasion and the bridge battle.

Most war movies have such phony special effects in place of doing some good movie making and doing realistic battle scenes. "The Lost Battalion” with Ricky Schroeder was excellent. He did a great job as the young officer in the battle for his men’s lives.

When Trumpets Fade, A Walk in the Sun, Memphis Belle, and Stalingrad round out my top eleven movies. But my all time favorite war series is Band of Brothers. It’s not really a movie but that’s OK because it so damned good.

Just remember, the best novel is yet-to-be written, the best song is yet-to-be sung, the best speech is yet-to-be given and the best movie is yet-to-be made. We humans have great potential if we can manage to survive ourselves.

That’s my two bits.

Michael

Great synopsis Michael:

“Johnny Got His Gun"! Oh man, I almost forgotten about that movie. I saw that way back some 35 years ago! It was a horrifying movie as I remembered. Without giving away the plot it was truly an anti-war movie, talk about being a prisoner in your on mind and without the ability to be touched.

That is what I remembered most about that movie. It really the shot the hell out of my found memories of John Wayne type movies.

Carlos

 

[OzDigger]

True that Pat, Blackhawk Down was a ripper in all respects.

sceic2, I like Das Boot as well but some of their models weren't much better than those in Tora Tora Tora

 

[Pierre]

Three movies come to my mind:

1- Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence.
2- Schindler's List.
3- Downfall.

And the greatest war movie: Lawrence of Arabia.

Pierre.

 

[Fubar]

Started out as favorite WW2 movies. I can remember some from my youth , one comes to mind" First to Fight" but it's been 35 years since I saw it.Perhaps it wasn't that great but I do recall Chad Everett mowing down rows of Japanese trying to cross the Tenaru river. I haven't found it ever on tape or DVD.

What did you guys think of " The Great Raid" ?
The youngGal that took my ticket stub { all of perhaps 18 years old} said she saw it and had no idea of the Atrocities commited , or much about the war at all but it had sparked her interest in recent History.

I have high hopes for the Flags of our Fathers film .

FubaR

 

[Eazy]

Though its not World War 2

Zulu - with Stanley Baker and Michael Caine. Possibly the best war film ever. IMO. Incredible battle scenes and that great moment where the 24th sing Men of Harlech. Even though at that time I think the 24th was a Warwickshire regiment with only a few Welshmen in it.

Also for battle scenes I really like the opening of Gladiator. It's not a massive scene like we see in Lord of the Rings but it has a gritty real look about it.

 

[vandilay]

Hi Eazy
Still its pretty hard to beat the scene when the rohirman [i,m sure i spelt that wrong ]charge the orcs in the return of the king.

 

[maddadicus]

Where do I start? I own almost 40 dvd's/videos that are just war related. No particular order...( WW2 )Saving Private Ryan, Kelly's Heroes, Band of Brothers, The Longest Day, The Train, Is Paris Burning? ,Sands of Imo Jima, Sahara, Bataan, Battle of Britain, Bridge Too Far, Lion of the Desert.( greatest array of early war Italian vehicles and armor being blown up )...( Korean War )Pork Chop Hill, ( U.S.Indian Wars )Son of Morning Star ( WW1 )Lost Batallion ( Euro Stuff )Any Sharpes Rifles, Waterloo, Zulu Dawn, Zulu, Darn ,let's just say everything I own.....Michael

 

[Eazy]

Hi Eazy
Still its pretty hard to beat the scene when the rohirman [i,m sure i spelt that wrong ]charge the orcs in the return of the king.

You are absolutely right. When i saw the Rohirrim charging on their horses against the giant Mumakil on the cinema screen it was like nothing i'd seen before.

 

[Warrior]

Jazzeum,
The movie with Burt Lancaster in it was called "Castle Keep". I liked the movie very much, but the T34's as German tanks killed it for me. In fact, any movie that used US or Soviet tanks for German tanks doesn't make the cut for me, except for A Bridge Too Far, which used modern German tanks as Panthers. Funny how they got all the British and US tanks and support vehicles spot on, but screwed up the German tanks. They got just about all of the German support vehicles right in the assault across the bridge. Go figure.

Some others that did not make my top ten include Anzio, The Downfall, Hell is for Heroes, The Bridge (EXCELLENT German movie about young German soldiers holding a bridge against the Americans), The Halls of Montezuma and A Walk in the Sun. I recently heard about a Russian film called "Liberation" that is a Band of Brothers type Russian story about the war on the Eastern Front; 12 hours long and a price tag of $300.00, ouch...........