MegaSack DRAW - This year's winner is user - rgwb
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Well made, clear, well shot. Whats next?
Escape to Victory. Class acting and an almost documentary accuracy in its portrayal of the enormity of war.
Cross of iron
Went to Arnhem 3 weeks ago, worth a visit if you've not been.
Bridge at Remagen
Where Eagles Dare.
Eagle has landed
The Longest Day
The Battle Of Britain
The Dambusters
Saving Private Ryan may have been a bit of fiction based on the D-Day landings but it's still pretty harrowing
And for a bit of light relief, Kelly's Heroes
633 Squadron has a great theme tune but it's fiction. Ditto The Guns Of Navarone
Full,
Metal,
Jacket.
Lawrence, wrong war but serious acting and good filming.
And the book that led to the film, and tells part of the story that was twisted into 'Saving Private Ryan'...
A little B&W gem titled 'Went the Day Well?' (think Eagle has landed)
You have to remember the film was made in 1942 & imagine those watching when only a strip of water separated Britain from invasion.
Band of Brothers - the series. Just utterly brilliant (possibly excepting the effects at the start of episode 2).
Das boat.
Best war film ever
Rich_s - Member
Band of Brothers - the series. Just utterly brilliant (possibly excepting the effects at the start of episode 2).POSTED 7 MINUTES AGO # REPORT-POST
This +1
Mate of mine is heading over there next month for a cycling tour round Arnhem looking at the sites. His dad flew one of the gliders in and has his log book and diaries of the whole show. Heck of a mess.
edit: there's a good book I think he contributed to the research of:
Glider Pilots at Arnhem by Mike Peters & Luuk Buist
Dr. Strangelove. Or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb
Hiroshima mon amour
The Thin Red Line is one of my favourite WW2 films, though certainly marmite. Cross of Iron up there too. Band of Brothers was excellent too, if a little bit melodramatic/schmaltzy/American at times.
Went The Day Well? is bloody marvellous.
In Which We Serve is a cracker if you like that sort of thing, as is Mrs Miniver.
Hora, if you do watch In Which We Serve, let us know if you get any hunches about Noel Coward.
🙂
The Memphis Belle: A Story of a Flying Fortress:
A 1944 documentary film which ostensibly provides an account of the final mission of the crew of the Memphis Belle, a Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress.
Nearly forgot "The Hill". Absolutely riveting drama with a wartime setting.
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Hell in the Pacific, Big Red One and Bridge over the River Kwai certainly deserve a mention too.
Battle of the Bulge is always a cracker:
glad someone mentioned went the day well
If you can find 'Come and See' (Russian film) then get it, but don't expect it to be laugh a minute...
All Quiet on the Western Front 1930 version
Catch-22
The Great Escape
Bridge Over the River Kwai
Das Boot
The Dirty Dozen
Ice Cold in Alex
Possibly Pele's greatest ever war movie 🙂Escape to Victory. Class acting and an almost documentary accuracy in its portrayal of the enormity of war.
More seriously, Enemy at the Gates.
Black Book, Dutch language movie with subtitles, stick with it as it's great.
Ice cold in Alex
Stalingrad
Charlie mopic for something a little different.
Useless Fact / Pub Quiz Game Changer
Richard Todd stood next to himself in The Longest Day. As an actor, Todd would later play Major John Howard in the 1962 film The Longest Day, while Todd himself was played by another actor.
Forget movies and books.
Every brit should visit arnham and njimegan in their life.
It is an eye opener , an education on your ancestors past.
The memorial in the atrium at arnham war museum is sobering.
The number of names scribed onto the stone is beyond belief , there are walls and walls of them.
No one posted The Cruel Sea...?
Band of Brothers is excellent, but the full Das Boot mini series probably still pips it
Aces high, the cruel sea, above us the waves, battle of the river plate.
This.
Ignore the fact it's 'him', it's a great documentary about the Victoria Cross, but with special mention of Major Robert Cain VC. If you haven't seen it don't want to ruin the 'twist' but had me in pieces. in fact, tearing up now thinking of it.
The Hill
If memory serves that'll be the film Sean Connery actually acted in
Went across Nijmegen bridge with pipers playing as part of the British military contingent at the Nijmegen marches. Had watched bridge too far the previous week. Hair tingling stuff.
9th company. Its on youtube. Russian film in Afghan. Great film
Oh What a Lovely War.
Absolutely don't miss cross of iron.
Tora!Tora!Tora ! ,much better than the dross that is Pearl Harbour.
Another one for the Cruel Sea, the book is a great read as well, they left the more graphic bits out of the film.
pirahna - MemberThe Great Escape
Bridge Over the River Kwai
I only got around to watching this recently (having seen everything else on this thread, over the years.
The Bridge On The River Kwai is laughably bad, considering it's thought of as a classic must-see film. There is so much wrong with it it's difficult to know where to start.
I tried watching Fury yesterday - it made me remember how good Band of Brother was. (And The Pacific to a lesser extent.)
'Battle of Midway' (the Charlton Heston one) is pretty close to being a documentary with the battles and planning beforehand.
Well worth watching.
Debbie does Dallas?
"The Bridge on the River Kwai" is based on a work of fiction, written by a Frenchman, who was given the screenwriting credit for film too for political reasons.
My father served in the Bocage of Normandy and then was part of the liberation forces of Arnhem etc. He loved a good war film which would not have been the case if they had been even remotely reminiscent of his own experience.
Edric 64 - Membermuch better than the dross that is Pearl Harbour.
If there was a "none of the bullshit" edit of Pearl Harbour, I'd definitely watch it again- the actual raid recreation is phenomenal in places. It's just that it's surrounded by terrible.
A bit more modern- Jarhead
Obscure one- The Odd Angry Shot
Aces High
Cross of Iron
Das Boot
That one about the Russian tank in Afghanistan
All quiet on the western Front
The bridge at Remagen
Cross of Iron is stunning. Classic 70's cinema.
The Bridge On The River Kwai is laughably bad, considering it's thought of as a classic must-see film. There is so much wrong with it it's difficult to know where to start.
it destroyed the reputation of a decent man
"Contact" not a film but BBC TV which is a good depiction of counterinsurgency warfare
The Russian tank in Afghanistan. The beast. A great film that i must watch again.
I'm surprised to see "The odd angry shot" mentioned here - its possibly one of the worst films in my collection!
"Appointment in London" is one of the most underrated war films but for modern stuff the "The Hurt Locker" is rather good.
+1 Full Metal Jacket, Jarhead.
On a different tack, not really a war film but a great film (depending ontoo your taste) with a war setting, Inglorious Basterds.
Has anyone seen Kajiki yet?
It's on my list.
Das Boot is good.
Planning a cycling trip around Holland when I retire, Arnhem/Nijmegen are definitely on the list.
Rockhopper - Member
I'm surprised to see "The odd angry shot" mentioned here - its possibly one of the worst films in my collection!
"Appointment in London" is one of the most underrated war films but for modern stuff the "The Hurt Locker" is rather good.
I had to laugh at the way you describe a film as one of the worst in your collection before going on to say The Hurt Locker is quite good! 😀
That was a terrible film which should have been a straight to video release but somehow managed to not only gain a reputation for being a gritty, realistic portrayal of the 2nd war in Iraq but also won awards on the back of it.
I can only guess that it was a combination of the name of the director carrying a bit of weight and it being the right time for a mainstream 2nd Iraq war film to be made.
Rantette finished!
That was a terrible film which should have been a straight to video release but somehow managed to not only gain a reputation for being a gritty, realistic portrayal of the 2nd war in Iraq but also won awards on the back of it.
I disagree, I thought it was very good. It gave an interesting view on how men react to war.
I mentioned earlier in the thread that I was watching Fury, well I finished it last night. This was a film desperately trying to show how men are brutalized by combat - the director really should have taken lessons from The Hurt Locker, not Sven Hassel. A dreadful, cliched film.
If you want chlostrophobic in tank action check out Lebanon (May still be on Netflix).
Thanks razorrazoo, I'll have a look.
[u]A Midnight Clear[/u]
GIs on lookout duty in the middle of nowhere are spotted by huge German division on the move.
[u]Enemy At The Gates[/u]
Russian sniper vs German Sniper in the ruins of Stalingrad.
[u]Letters From Iwo Jima[/u]
Clint Eastwood directs the Japanese telling of the storming of Iwo Jima, and it's miles better than the sister film "Flags Of Our Fathers".
Enemy at the Gates was great.
Tora Tora Tora is brilliant.
+1 for Lebanon. A superb movie.
Has anyone seen Kajiki yet?
Yes,
Very good IMO
Little Dieter needs to fly.
An amazing documentary about a POW escape in Vietnam.
+1 for Lebanon. A superb movie.
really? It's thought it was beyond terrible - I know it was supposedly written by a tank commander but the holes in the plot are even bigger than the impossibly big tardis like interior of their (Centurion/Ben-Gurion) tank, which seems to have enough room for dead bodies, prisoners, and anyone else who wants to drop in for a cuppa!
Das Boot,but it would have to be the full TV version
Lebanon is a superb piece of cinema
Is it supposed to be a Merkarva not a Ben_Gurion not seen the film but you could get a tea party in a Merkava.
Nah, it's a regular tank, it just that there's a bit of artistic licence. It's not a war film, it's a film about war.
I watched Battle of the Bulge next. Gawd it was awful compared to a Bridge too far. The scale models/mocked up scenes, the ham acting, the lot. Terrible compared to the performances, rawness, etc etc of a Bridge too far. Plus did the Yanks fancy the Germans back then?! Its almost homo-erotic.
I thought the Hurt Locker was excellent, in my top 10 war films.
Obviously it's all subjective etc etc and I'm not arguing but... why?
Is it supposed to be a Merkarva not a Ben_Gurion not seen the film but you could get a tea party in a Merkava.
Only if you leave all the ammo behind...
No, it was defo a Centurion/BG -
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Plus the visitors seemed to all be coming in via the conning tower (yes, it really was that big, biggest tank interior since Best Defense) rather than a rear door
With the old films you have to remember that when they were made the effects etc were state of the art (at that time!) so its perhaps not fair to say they are rubbish based on that.
I like the Hurt Locker, probably one of my favourite modern war films, I'm not saying its an accurate portrayal buts it a fairly gripping film in places, although how me manages to hit the running guy with the Barrett then gets the next shot six feet away from the window is beyond me 🙂
Downfall is my favourite film concerning WW2 amazing performances and shows the madness of the last weeks of the Reich.
All Quiet On The Western Front
Went the Day Well
The Blue Max
Winter War
Cross of Iron
The Longest Day,but the book "warriors for the working day" is better.
Absolutely hate "battle of the bulge" wrong tanks, wrong tactics, vague history and the real life David Niven is not only not in the film but his role in the actual battle is performed by an American.
I've just looked up David Niven on wiki.( I'm aware of his acting but wanted to know more about his ear record.)
😆About to lead his men into action, Niven eased their nervousness by telling them, "Look, you chaps only have to do this once. But I'll have to do it all over again in Hollywood with Errol Flynn!" Asked by suspicious American sentries during the Battle of the Bulge who had won the World Series in 1943, he answered "Haven't the foggiest idea ... but I did co-star with Ginger Rogers in Bachelor Mother!"[citation needed] On another occasion, asked how he felt about serving with the British army in Europe, he allegedly said 'Well on the whole, I would rather be tickling Ginger Rogers' tits'.
Wow, thanks for that. Never knew that about him.
Another one worthy of note was Anthony Quayle (baddie in Ice Cold in Alex & CO in Guns of Navarone) who served training the Auxiliary Units in the UK, before going on to SOE later in the war and parachuting into Albania, where he trained and led resistance fighters!
And, of course, the great Lee Marvin.
Another one worthy of note was Anthony Quayle (baddie in Ice Cold in Alex & CO in Guns of Navarone)
I've swum at Anthony QUINN Bay, Rhodes. Apparently he owned it, but had no wartime record. His father dud ride with Pancho Villa though!