Number 10
platoon somebody once wrote hell is the
impossibility of reason that's what this
the place feels like hell war is hell and
very few films captured the realism of
frantic combat better than Oliver
Stone's platoon
Charlie Sheen Tom Berenger and Willem
Dafoe stars soldiers stationed during
the Vietnam conflict in a platoon full
of widely varied personalities and
levels of morality stones purpose in
writing the film was to offer a stark
contrast to Vietnam portrayed in
1968 the Green Berets starring John
Wayne is too precious out here due
the process as a bullet in fact platoon
utilized the directors own first-hand
experiences as an infantryman for
inspiration
the results are harrowing and haunting
making platoon one of the finest war
movies ever made
 
Number 9a bridge
too far
you don't look at him right now he's
gonna die this world war ii era film
follows the failed allied military
the campaign is known as Operation Market
Garden a tactical maneuver that was
originally designed to end the war
quickly before Christmas of 1944 they
both film as I do but when the field
marshals plan succeeded which paired to
end the war by Christmas in less than
100 days a bridge too far stars James
Caan Sean Connery Michael Caine and more
as they form a very impressive ensemble
cast and features some splendid
performances from everyone involved
quite frankly this kind of things that
have been attempted before this makes
the film a captivating watch even for
those well aware of how the original
operation Market Garden watched its
attempts to take over key bridge points
in the German-occupied Netherlands fine
even better but an apology

Number 8 the
Bridge on the River Kwai
this British American co-production has
not only garnered praise for more film
buffs since its original release back in
1957 but also from the National Film
registry which selected The Bridge on
the River Kwai for preservation for its
cultural significance in the Library of
Congress in 1997 director David Lean
Helms a story of British prisoners of
war who are assigned to a Japanese
prison camp in Burma and are put to work
constructing a bridge connecting Bangkok
and Rangoon with Reeves and Hughes and
we're not going to finish the bridge on
time we're just having the manpower
that's all I've asked the officers to
lend a hand and they've agreed but even
that won't do it this despite Geneva
Convention stating that officers are
exempt from such work I suppose if I
were you I'd have to kill myself the
the result is a film full of world-class
acting and memorable set pieces
 
Number 7 All Quiet on the Western
Front when it comes to dying for your
the country's better not to die at all
the late 70s television adaptation of
Erich Maria Remarque Snite 28th novel
was successful in depicting many of its
source materials themes we remember the
awful sights in the hospital the gas
patients proved suffocating Koff up
their burnt lungs in clots however it in
no way compares to 1930 pre-code
the effort from director Lewis milestone
this black and white epic was considered
quite faithful to what the First World
War was like but also didn't shy away
from putting any disturbing or traumatic
experiences on the big screen

 
Number 6 The Hurt Locker
were you going
we'll be back up Kathryn Bigelow became
the first woman ever to win a Best
Director Oscar thanks to her efforts on
the war film The Hurt Locker
there wasn't an insurgent here the hell
is now Bigelow's action thriller follows
a bomb disposal unit stationed in Iraq
during the Iraq war and the smoldering
tensions that arise between new squad
leader William James and his crew we
don't have time we got to get out of
here Jeremy Renner leads the cast as
James and it's the performances of
Renner and his co-stars Anthony Mackie
and Brian Geraghty
that really make the Hurt Locker shine
as one of the best war films in recent
memory this box is full of stuff that
almost killed me
 
Number 5 The Great Escape even if you've
never seen 1963 is the Great Escape it's
more than likely you've heard or hummed
the movie's main theme a jaunty and
infectious March composed by Elmer
Bernstein
Steve McQueen stars as the leader of a
group of World War two POWs who are
intent on digging an escape tunnel from
their German concentration camp prison
bent McQueen's charisma is undeniable
here as is the impressive stunt work on
display in the film particularly during
a death-defying motorcycle scene
this sequence has gone on to become the
the stuff of war movie legend and has earned
the Great Escape a spot on our list I
know the exact information you need
going out tonight
 
 Number 4
das boat fans might remember seeing this
film as either a theatrical release or a
TV mini-series
depending on where they lived but das
the boat has continued to earn fans on home
video over the years
the film was directed by Wolfgang
Petersen and follows the crew of a
German u-boat during World War two
das boat was notable for capturing not
only the thrill in danger of battle but
also, the dullness that can come to
define the often long stretches of
downtime in between the sporadic conflict
it's by the avidity add to this a
memorable score by Klaus dole dinger and
you have one unique war film for the
ages
 
 Number 3 halves of glory ready
to kill more Germans filmmaker Stanley
Kubrick may be known among his fans for
his infamous 1987 Vietnam era picture
Full Metal Jacket but the director
actually worked in the war movie genre
much earlier with this 1957 tale of a
French battalion during World War one or
the 75 s to commence flowering in our
own positions captain do you fail to
comprehend the meaning of my order Kirk
Douglas stars as the troops commanding
the officer who attempts to defend his men
against charges of cowardice due to
their failure in what was essentially a
suicide mission revealing my true
feelings I apologize sir for not telling
you sooner that you're a degenerate
sadistic old man and you can go to hell
before I apologize to you now or ever
again
 
Number 2 Apocalypse Now the word epic
doesn't even begin to describe this
massive film from director Francis Ford
Coppola and Co screenwriter John Milius
Apocalypse Now is dark and violent
a thrill ride that follows Martin Sheen as
Captain Benjamin Willard a detached
military man in search of a mission I'm
still in Saigon that mission turns out
to be an assassination attempt on a
reclusive renegade colonel by the name
of Kurtz a Marlon Brando's 

Number 1 Saving Private Ryan realistic
violence is a staple of war films but
not everyone was ready for the
the astonishing level of grit director
Steven Spielberg put on-screen in Saving
Private Ryan the Films opening sequence
alone which details the invasion of
Normandy on June 6th, 1944 is a visceral
gut check that places the audience
directly in the middle of combat