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....
Eye in the Sky (2015)
7.3/10
Director: Gavin Hood
Starring: Alan Rickman, Helen Mirren, Iain Glen, Jeremy Northam, Aaron Paul, Barkhad Abdi
A military officer in command of an operation to capture terrorists in Kenya sees her mission escalate when a girl enters the kill zone triggering an... Read more
13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi (2015)
7.3/10
Director: Michael Bay
Starring: Toby Stephens, John Krasinski, Max Martini, James Badge Dale, Pablo Schreiber
From director Michael Bay 13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi, is the gripping true story of six elite ex-military operations assigned to protec... Read more
Son of Saul (2015)
7.5/10
Director: Laszlo Nemes
Starring: Geza Rohrig, Levente Molnar, Urs Rechn
Saul Ausländer is a Hungarian member of the Sonderkommando, the group of Jewish prisoners isolated from the camp and forced to assist the Nazis in th... Read more
13 Minutes (2015)
7/10
Director: Oliver Hirschbiegel
Starring: Christian Friedel, Katharina Schuttler, Burghart Klaubner
Georg Elser was a man who could have changed world history and saved millions of human lives, if only he had had 13 more minutes. With 13 more minutes... Read more
Foyle's War: Series 9 (2015)
8.4/10
Starring: Michael Kitchen, Honeysuckle Weeks
Michael Kitchen returns to the screen as Detective Chief Superintendent Foyle, a man of scrupulous integrity who, having survived the First World War,... Read more
The Heavy Water War (2015)
Director: Per-Olav Sorensen
Starring: Espen Klouman-Hoiner, Soren Pilmark, Anna Friel, Pip Torrens
Set during World War II, this six part dramatization centers on Germany's secret nuclear project and the Allies' efforts to prevent Hitler from develo... Read more
Testament of Youth (2015)
7.3/10
Director: James Kent
Starring: Kit Harington, Alicia Vikander, Dominic West, Emily Watson, Joanna Scanlan, Mira...
Testament of Youth is a searing story of love, war and remembrance, based on the First World War memoir by Vera Brittain. Vera - irrepressible, intel... Read more
The Admiral: Roaring Currents (2015)
7.2/10
Director: Kim Han-min
Starring: Min-sik Choi, Ryu Seung-ryong, Jinwoong Jo
1597. Joseon Dynasty. Korea has been under relentless Japanese attack for six years. On the eve of the nation's defeat, Admiral Yi Sun-Shin is reappoi... Read more
Gallipoli (Mini-Series) (2015)
7.5/10
Director: Glendyn Ivin
Starring: Kodi Smit-McPhee, Harry Greenwood, Sam Pearson, Tom Budge, James Callis, John Ba...
17-year-old Thomas "Tolly" Johnson exaggerates his age so he may enlist with his brother Bevan (Harry Greenwood) and ends up fighting at Gallipoli in... Read more
New Worlds (2014)
6.2/10
Director: Charles Martin
Starring: Jamie Dornan, Jeremy Northam, Michael Maloney, Freya Mavor, Alice Englert
The 1680s bring a new King, Restoration, and more tyranny. In Massachusetts, a robber's son falls for an anti-monarchist. In England, a young lady fal... Read more