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....
Louis Malle: Youth and Conflict ( Lacombe Lucien; Au Revoir, Les Enfants ) (1987)
8.3/10
Director: Louis Malle
Starring: Daniel Gelin, Francine Racette, Gaspard Manesse, Raphael Fejto, Pierre Blaise, A...
Louis Malle remains one of the most well-loved, and well-regarded French film makers from the 1960s right through to the 1990s. This double-pack compi... Read more
Love Me Tender (1956)
6.2/10
Director: Robert D Webb
Starring: Richard Egan, Debra Paget, Elvis Presley, Robert Middleton, William Campbell, Ne...
Elvis Presley's film debut is a story set in the civil war about conflicting politics among sons in a Southern family. Read more
Love Story ( A Lady Surrenders ) (1944)
6.9/10
Director: Leslie Arliss
Starring: Margaret Lockwood, Stewart Granger
When concert pianist Lissa Campbell learns that she has a serious heart problem, she vows to enjoy what time she has left. On taking her first holiday... Read more
Lucie Aubrac (1997)
6.7/10
Director: Claude Berri
Starring: Carole Bouquet, Daniel Auteuil
Based on the dramatic true story "Outwitting the Gestapo", this is the nail-biting tale of undying love between a couple who are active members of the... Read more
M*A*S*H: Season 10 (1981)
8.4/10
Starring: Alan Alda, Mike Farrell, Harry Morgan, Loretta Swit, David Ogden Stiers, Jamie F...
Unlike old soldiers, M*A*S*H showed little signs of fading away in its penultimate season. Alan Alda and Loretta Swit were officially saluted with Emm... Read more
M*A*S*H: Season 11 (1982)
8.4/10
Starring: Alan Alda, Mike Farrell, Harry Morgan, Loretta Swit, David Ogden Stiers, Jamie F...
Here's an essential addition to the TV time capsule, M*A*S*H's complete final season, including the historic feature-length final episode, "Goodbye, F... Read more
M*A*S*H: Season 7 (1978)
8.4/10
Starring: Alan Alda, Mike Farrell, Harry Morgan, Loretta Swit, David Ogden Stiers, Gary Bu...
The war in Korea wages on with no end in sight, but the medical corps at the 4077th valiantly battle on against soulless military bureaucracy, tedium,... Read more
MacArthur (1977)
6.6/10
Director: Joseph Sargent
Starring: Gregory Peck, Dan O'Herlihy, Ed Flanders
A solid, absorbing saga of flamboyant military chief General Douglas MacArthur during World War II and the Korean War. Gregory Peck is excellent in th... Read more
Malta Story (1953)
6.6/10
Director: Brian Desmond Hurst
Starring: Alec Guinness, Anthony Steel, Jack Hawkins, Muriel Pavlow
All the danger, excitement and triumph of World War II explodes on the screen in this riveting portrayal of the battle for Malta and the courageous pe... Read more
Man Down (2019)
6/10
Director: Dito Montiel
Starring: Shia LaBeouf, Jai Courtney, Gary Oldman, Kate Mara, Tory Kittles, Clifton Collin...
In a post-apocalyptic America, former U.S. Marine Gabriel Drummer searches desperately for the whereabouts of his son, accompanied by his best friend... Read more