It's not surprising that war has been one of the most frequently occurring subjects of movies throughout cinematic history. After all, man has been waging war since the beginning of time. And fortunately for military movie lovers, Hollywood has always found a profit in the shortsightedness of political leaders and the distorted visions of angry little short men with funny mustaches.
In compiling a list of our favorite war movies, it quickly became evident that with such a well-represented genre, it would make more sense to break it into separate categories. Following is a list of the best War/Military movies of all time arranged in groups according to specific military campaigns.
Although the idea of what makes a war movie is subjective, for the purposes of this list it will be defined as a movie that involves soldiers, fighting with military weapons or machinery, military strategy or events that directly lead up to or result from a military-type battle.
American Revolutionary War 1. The Patriot
2. The Crossing
3. The American Revolution Boxed DVD Set (A&E)
American Civil War 1. Glory
2. Dances With Wolves
3. Gettysburgh
4. Cold Mountain
5. Gone With the Wind
6. Andersonville
7. The Hunley
8. Ironclads
9. Birth of a Nation
10. Ken Burns' Civil War
World War I 1. Sergeant York
2. A Very Long Engagement 3. Gallipoli
4. The Lost Battalion
5. African Queen
6. Wings
7. All Quiet on the Western Front
8.A Farewell to Arms
9. The Dawn Patrol
10. Flyboys
11. Joyeux Noël
World War II
The European Front 1. Saving Private Ryan
2. Band of Brothers
3. Schindler's List
4. The Longest Day
5. Patton
6. Das Boot
7. Casablanca
8. Where Eagles Dare
9. The Great Escape
10. The Guns of Navarone
11. Days of Glory (Indigenes)
The Pacific Theater 1. Letters From Iwo Jima
2. Tora! Tora! Tora!
3. Empire of the Sun
4. From Here to Eternity
5. The Great Raid
6. The Thin Red Line
7. The Bridge On the River Kwai
8. 30 Seconds Over Tokyo
9. Midway
10. Flags of Our Fathers
Korea 1. M*A*S*H
2. Macarthur
3. Manchurian Candidate
4. Pork Chop Hill
5. The Bridges at Toko-Ri
Viet Nam 1. Platoon
2. Full Metal Jacket
3. The Deer Hunter
4. Apocalypse Now
5. The Quiet American
6. Born on the Fourth of July
7. Good Morning Vietnam
8. We Were Soldiers
9. Gardens of Stone
10. Birdy
Various Wars, Conflicts and Peacetime Battles 1. Braveheart
2. Black Hawk Down
3. No Man's Land
4. Three Kings
5. Pan's Labyrinth
6. Ben Hur
7. The Sand Pebbles
8. Star Wars
9. Gladiator
10. Lawrence of Arabia
11. 300
Have some movies to add to this list? Don't agree with the ones we've included? Read or post comments about this list on the