War and Anti-War Films
"War and Anti-War Films" often acknowledge the horror and heartbreak of war, letting the actual combat fighting or conflict (against nations or humankind) provide the primary plot or background for the action of the film. Typical elements in the action-oriented war plots include POW camp experiences and escapes, submarine warfare, espionage, personal heroism, "war is hell" brutalities, air dogfights, tough trench/infantry experiences, or male-bonding buddy adventures during wartime. Themes explored in war films include combat, survivor and escape stories, tales of gallant sacrifice and struggle, studies of the futility and inhumanity of battle, the effects of war on society, and intelligent and profound explorations of the moral and human issues.
Listed below are all the very best of this genre. Scroll yer heart out....
Charlotte Gray (2001)
6.4/10
Director: Gillian Armstrong
Starring: Cate Blanchett, Billy Crudup, Michael Gambon, Rupert Penry-Jones
In this stirring WWII drama, Cate Blanchett is the title character, a Scotswoman whose boyfriend has been shot down while flying a mission over France... Read more
Zelary (2003)
7.7/10
Director: Ondrej Trojan
Starring: Ana Geislerova, Gyorgy Cserhalmi, Ivan Trojan, Miroslav Donutil
Based on Kveta Legatova's novella about Eliska (Ana Geislerova) a nurse involved in the Czech resistance movement in Prague. When forced to flee into... Read more
Jarhead (2005)
7/10
Director: Sam Mendes
Starring: Jake Gyllenhaal, Peter Sarsgaard, Lucas Black, Chris Cooper, Jamie Foxx, Jacob V...
When Anthony Swofford (Jake Gyllenhaal) followed family tradition into the Marines he wasn't counting on the 1991 Gulf War. Trained as a sniper with... Read more
The Sea Wolves (1980)
6.3/10
Director: Andrew V McLaglen
Starring: Gregory Peck, Roger Moore, David Niven
A true story about a retired British cavalry unit undertaking an espionage operation in World War II. The target is a German radio transmitter on a sh... Read more
Hornblower 8: Duty (2003)
Director: Andrew Grieve
Starring: Ioan Gruffudd, Robert Lindsay, Julia Sawalha, Paul McGann, Lorcan Cranitch, Barb...
Hornblower is filled with trepidation on his wedding day, but he has given his word - how could he dishonour his bride Maria and live with himself? Ad... Read more
Hornblower 4: The Frogs and the Lobsters (1999)
Director: Andrew Grieve
Starring: Ioan Gruffudd, Robert Lindsay, Antony Sher, John Shrapnel, Samuel West, Peter Va...
AKA 'The Wrong War'. Hornblower's ship, the Indefatigable, together with three other ships carrying French emigre troops (the Frogs) and British Infan... Read more
Turtles Can Fly (2004)
8.1/10
Director: Bahman Ghobadi
Starring: Soran Ebrahim, Hirsh Feyssal, Avaz Latif
On the border of Iraq and Turkey, in the days leading up to the second US-led war, a young technology-obsessed boy nicknamed Satellite convinces the v... Read more
White Material (2009)
7/10
Director: Claire Denis
Starring: Christopher Lambert, Isabelle Huppert, Michel Subor, Isaach De Bankole
Isabelle Huppert delivers an intense performance in this gripping drama about a French woman who refuses to abandon her family's African coffee planta... Read more
A Courageous Heart (2009)
Director: John Kent Harrison
Starring: Anna Paquin, Marcia Gay Harden, Goran Visnjic
Aka 'The Courageous Heart of Irena Sendler'. Anna Paquin stars in this inspiring true story as Irena Sendler who was one of the most remarkable, and u... Read more
A Thousand Times Good Night (2013)
Director: Erik Poppe
Starring: Juliette Binoche, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Larry Mullen Jr, Maria Doyle Kennedy
A Thousand Times Good Night is an Irish-Norwegian produced English language 2013 drama film directed by Erik Poppe, and starring Juliette Binoche, Nik... Read more