Subgenre Sampler
Rental > Action/Adventure > War: 196 Films to Rent
Outpost, The (2020)
- Dir. Rod Lurie
Feat. Scott Eastwood, Caleb Landry Jones, Orlando Bloom…
- War movie depicting events during the War in Afghanistan in 2009, when the Taliban attacked a vulnerable US Army outpost called Combat Outpost…
Catch-22 (TV Mini-series) (2019)
- Dir. Grant Heslov, George Clooney
Feat. Christopher Abbott, Kyle Chandler, Daniel David Stewart…
- Updated six–part adaptation of the difficult–to–adapt classic Joseph Heller novel, a WWII satire which was formerly adapted as a…
Danger Close: The Battle of Long Tan (2019)
- Dir. Kriv Stenders
Feat. Travis Fimmel, Luke Bracey, Richard Roxburgh…
- Australian war film set in a Vietnamese rubber plantation in 1966, where 108 inexperienced Australian and New Zealand soldiers are fighting against…
Kill Team, The (2019)
- Dir. Dan Krauss
Feat. Nat Wolff, Adam Long, Osy Ikhile…
- War drama which fictionalises events from the documentary of the same name from 2013, following a morally conflicted US Specialist whose platoon are…
Midway (2019)
- Dir. Roland Emmerich
Feat. Ed Skrein, Patrick Wilson, Woody Harrelson…
- Thrilling war film set during the Battle of Midway, fought during WWII between the American and Japanese armies in the Pacific. Features a strong…
12 Strong (2018)
- Dir. Nicolai Fuglsig
Feat. Chris Hemsworth, Michael Shannon, Michael Pena…
- An American special forces team is deployed to Afghanistan after 9/11 with a mission to track down the Taliban. A rousing tribute to American heroism…
Hurricane (Mission of Honor) (2018)
- Dir. David Blair
Feat. Iwan Rheon, Milo Gibson, Stefanie Martini…
- The tale of a Polish pilot who together with his comrades join the Hurricane Squadron 303 of the British Royal Air Force to fight during the Battle…
Overlord (2018)
- Dir. Julius Avery
Feat. Jovan Adepo, Wyatt Russell, Mathilde Ollivier
- A small group of American soldiers discover secret Nazi experiments after they are dropped behind enemy lines the day before D–day. A gleefully…
Dunkirk (2017)![Recommended Recommended](/img/arorecsm.gif)
- Dir. Christopher Nolan
Feat. Fionn Whitehead, Jack Lowden, Barry Keoghan…
- Christopher Nolan's grandiose staging of the famous evacuation of the French port of Dunkirk in May 1940 is a departure from the fantasy pictures the…
Journey's End (2017)
- Dir. Saul Dibb
Feat. Sam Claflin, Asa Butterfield, Paul Bettany…
- Adaptation of the 1928 play by war veteran R.C. Sheriff, set in the trenches in Aisne during WWI, where British officers face tensions, terror,…
Megan Leavey (Rex) (2017)
- Dir. Gabriela Cowperthwaite
Feat. Kate Mara, Ramon Rodriguez, Tom Felton…
- Heartfelt war drama based on the true events about the eponymous young female US Marine corporal whose unique discipline and bond with a military…
Wall, The (2017)
- Dir. Doug Liman
Feat. Aaron Taylor-Johnson, John Cena, Laith Nakli
- Two American soldiers are trapped by an Iraqi sniper in this deadly psychological thriller. Combining impressive marksmanship with a battle of wits,…
War for the Planet of the Apes (2017)![Recommended Recommended](/img/arorecsm.gif)
- Dir. Matt Reeves
Feat. Andy Serkis, Woody Harrelson, Steve Zahn
- The third and final installment in the excellent Planet of the Apes prequel trilogy, with director Matt Reeves returning to complete the story that…
13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi (2016)
- Dir. Michael Bay
Feat. James Badge Dale, John Krasinski, Max Martini…
- Michael Bay is comparatively restrained as he helms this visceral recreation of the attack on the U.S. compound in Libya.
300: Rise of an Empire (2014)
- Dir. Noam Murro
Feat. Sullivan Stapleton, Eva Green, Lena Headey…
- A second wave of sword and sandal gore, with Greek general Themistokles, outnumbered but determined, leading the charge against another massive…
Fleming: The Man Who Would Be Bond (TV Mini-Series) (2014)
- Dir. Mat Whitecross
Feat. Dominic Cooper, Lara Pulver, Lesley Manville…
- The colourful and perilous adventures of Ian Fleming are liberally brought to life in this wartime spy romp pitched as the making of James Bond.
Fury (2014)![Recommended Recommended](/img/arorecsm.gif)
- Dir. David Ayer
Feat. Brad Pitt, Shia LaBeouf, Logan Lerman…
- An Allied tank on a deadly mission behind enemy lines finds itself outnumbered and outgunned in this heavy duty WWII vehicle for Brad Pitt, more…
Kajaki: Kilo Two Bravo (2014)![Recommended Recommended](/img/arorecsm.gif)
- Dir. Paul Katis
Feat. David Elliot, Mark Stanley, Scott Kyle
- Nerve–wracking thriller, based on a true story, finds a unit of British paratroopers stranded in a minefield left over from the Soviet invasion.
William Kelly's War (2014)
- Dir. Geoff Davis
Feat. Tony Bonner
- Low budget Australian WWI film following two brothers who enlist and are sent to Europe, fighting from the trenches of Gallipoli to the Western…
Lone Survivor (2013)
- Dir. Peter Berg
Feat. Mark Wahlberg, Taylor Kitsch, Emile Hirsch…
- Mark Wahlberg portrays Navy SEAL Marcus Luttrell, the eponymous lone survivor of a covert mission against al–Qaeda gone wrong, in this powerful…
1612 (2012)
- Dir. Vladimir Khotinenko
Feat. Pyotr Kislov
- Bloated Russian 'historical' epic renders the 17th century civil war that ravaged the divided country as a Peter Jackson–esque battle fantasy.…
Into the White (2012)
- Dir. Petter Naess
Feat. Florian Lukas, Rupert Grint, David Kross…
- Gentle anti–war drama with downed German and English pilots taking refuge in the same cabin in snow–bound Norway. Based on a true story.
5 Days Of War (2011)
- Dir. Renny Harlin
Feat. Rupert Friend, Emmanuelle Chriqui, Richard Coyle…
- Mediocre propaganda piece in which an American journalist, his cameraman, and a Georgian native get caught in the crossfire in the war between Russia…
Bomber, The (Ballada o bombere (Ballad Of A Bomber)) (2011)
- Dir. Vitaliy Vorobyov
Feat. Nikita Efremov, Ekaterina Astakhova, Aleksandr Davydov
- Hum–drum war film – originally a television series – has a Russian aircraft crashing in Nazi occupied territory and the three…
Fall of the Innocent (The Butcher of Prague) (2011)
- Dir. Petr Nikolaev
Feat. Karel Roden, Zuzana Fialova, Zuzana Bydzovska
- WWII drama about the Nazi massacre and destruction of the Czech village of Lidice.
The main protagonist is a man from the village who is sent to…
Front Line, The (2011)
- Dir. Hun Jang
Feat. Ha-kyun Shin, Soo Go
- Big battles clash with big themes in this sizable war epic set during the last days of the Korean war, where soldiers from both the North and South…
My Way (2011)
- Dir. Kang Je-Gyu
Feat. Jang Dong-Gun, Joe Odagiri, Bingbing Fan
- The director of BROTHERHOOD OF WAR raises the stakes with this louder, bloodier, more spectacular WWII epic, centred on the true story of rival…
Sinking of the Laconia, The (TV Mini-Series) (2011)
- Dir. Uwe Janson
Feat. Andrew Buchan, Brian Cox, Franke Potente
- Gripping reenactment of the events surrounding the ill–fated Laconia, a British ocean liner crippled by a German U–boat, who in turn…
Beneath Hill 60 (2010)
- Dir. Jeremy Sims
Feat. Brendan Cowell, Gyton Grantley, Harrison Gilbertson…
- Gripping, untold story of Australian daring beneath the trenches of WWI concerns a group of rag–tag engineers charged with sabotaging the…
Green Zone (2010)![Recommended Recommended](/img/arorecsm.gif)
- Dir. Paul Greengrass
Feat. Matt Damon, Amy Ryan, Brendan Gleeson…
- Action ace Paul Greengrass deploys Bourne leading man Matt Damon in this frenetic, politically pointed thriller focused on the hunt for Weapons of…
Pacific, The (TV Series) (2010)![Recommended Recommended](/img/arorecsm.gif)
- Feat. Joseph Mazzello, James Badge Dale, John Seda…
- Searing, no–expense–spared follow–up to the Tom Hanks/Steven Spielberg–produced BAND OF BROTHERS shifts its epic perspective…
Strike Back (TV Series) (2010-2017)
- Feat. Andrew Lincoln, Richard Armitage, Michelle Lukes…
- An high–octane action series centred on the intersecting operations of an SAS Sergeant (Armitage) and an SIS Agent (Lincoln) over the course of…
Attack on Leningrad (2009)
- Dir. Aleksandr Buravsky
Feat. Gabriel Byrne, Mira Sorvino, Armin Mueller-Stahl
- A soaring, action–packed journey of heroism and sacrifice as one crusading journalist desperately fights to uncover the horrors buried within…
Betrayal (2009)
- Dir. Hakon Gunderson
Feat. Lene Nystrøm, Götz Otto, Kåre Conradi
- Deceit and opportunism are the currencies traded in this passable wartime thriller, recommended for fans of MAX MANUS. Lene Nystrøm (of 90’s pop…
Inglourious Basterds (Inglorious Bastards) (2009)![Recommended Recommended](/img/arorecsm.gif)
- Dir. Quentin Tarantino
Feat. Brad Pitt, Mélanie Laurent, Eli Roth…
- A cocky, revisionist war epic channeling spaghetti westerns and the Dirty Dozen, Quentin Tarantino’s long–time pet project is perhaps his…
Defiance (2008)
- Dir. Edward Zwick
Feat. Daniel Craig, Liev Schreiber, Jamie Bell…
- Edward Zwick (GLORY) delivers big, earnest moments in this true story of four brothers who launch an all–Jewish resistance against the Nazis…
Female Agents (Les femmes de l'ombre) (2008)![Aro Favourite Aro Favourite](/img/arofavsm.gif)
- Dir. Jean-Paul Salome
Feat. Sophie Marceau, Julie Depardieu, Marie Gillain…
- Substantial, exciting WWII espionage thriller following an all–female commando unit of the French Resistance recruited to rescue a British…
Max Manus: Man of War (2008)![Recommended Recommended](/img/arorecsm.gif)
- Dir. Joachim Roenning, Espen Sandberg
Feat. Aksel Hennie, Agnes Kittelsen, Nicolai Cleve Broch…
- Rousing wartime actioner chronicles the exploits of irrepressible Norwegian resistance hero Max Manus, whose sabotaging of the Nazi’s stampede…
Miracle at St. Anna (2008)
- Dir. Spike Lee
Feat. Derek Luke, John Turturro, Joseph Gordon-Levitt…
- A messily formed, though nonetheless vital piece of corrective history, with Spike Lee directing this recreation of the feats of the…
Rambo: Reloaded (2008)
- Dir. Sylvester Stallone
Feat. Sylvester Stallone, Julie Benz, Matthew Marsden…
- Rambunctious, ultra–violent Sylvester Stallone–directed actioner sees Sly reprising his ammo–strapped role (this time in…
Red Baron, The (Der rote Baron) (2008)
- Dir. Nikolai Müllerschön
Feat. Maxim Mehmet, Til Schweiger, Joseph Fiennes…
- Biographical melodrama focused around Baron Manfred von Richthofen, the celebrated showboating WW1 pilot. Thrilling airborne set–pieces make up…
Tropic Thunder (2008)![Aro Favourite Aro Favourite](/img/arofavsm.gif)
- Dir. Ben Stiller
Feat. Ben Stiller, Robert Downey Jnr., Jack Black…
- Ferociously funny action comedy from actor–director Ben Stiller, following a group of pretentious actors on a mission to create the biggest…
Tunnel Rats (2008)
- Dir. Uwe Boll
Feat. Wilson Bethel, Michael Pare, Mitch Eakins
- Inept Vietnam War pic with U.S Special Forces sent into an elaborate underground maze to kill the Vietcong.
By consensus this is Boll's "best"…
Assembly (2007)
- Dir. Feng Xiaoning
Feat. Hanyu Zhang
- Searing Chinese war drama set during the country's last days of Civil war, in which a courageous army captain fights tooth and nail to stave off a…
Black Belt (Kuro-obi) (2007)
- Dir. Shunichi Nagasaki
Feat. Akihito Yagi, Tatsuya Naka
- Defence meets attack in this measured martial arts drama set in 1930s Japan, in which two karate experts (played by real–life karate pros) take…
Hunting Party, The (2007)
- Dir. Richard Shepard
Feat. Richard Gere, Terrence Howard, James Brolin…
- Action–packed serio–comic political thriller in the spirit of THREE KINGS centres on the shaggy dog story of an intrepid trio of…
Last Legion, The (2007)
- Dir. Doug Lefler
Feat. Colin Firth, Ben Kingsley, Aishwarya Rai
- CGI fantasy dramatising the plight of Rome's last emperor, the child Romulus Augustus, and his protectors – Firth, Kingsley, and Bollywood star…
Mark of Cain, The (2007)
- Dir. Marc Munden
Feat. Leo Gregory, Matthew McNulty, Gerard Kearns…
- Based on real first–person accounts, this fictional British war drama explores the effects of the Iraq conflict on two young soldiers who can…
Mongol (2007)![Recommended Recommended](/img/arorecsm.gif)
- Dir. Sergei Bodrov
Feat. Tadanobu Asano
- A fiercely–mounted early history of Genghis Khan, from the Mongol leader’s childhood years through to his all–conquering warpath across…
300 (2006)
- Dir. Zack Snyder
Feat. Gerard Butler, Lena Headey, Dominic West…
- Brawny, unapologetic war mongering from the imagination of Frank Miller (SIN CITY), this ancient warrior epic indulges heavily in CGI effects and a…
Above and Beyond (TV Mini-Series) (2006)
- Dir. Sturla Gunnarsson
Feat. Jason Priestley, Joss Ackland, Kenneth Welsh…
- Commendable mini–series based on the true story of the Atlantic Ferry Operation in WW2 – a last–ditch aerial attack from Canada's…
Black Book (Zwartboek) (2006)![Recommended Recommended](/img/arorecsm.gif)
- Dir. Paul Verhoeven
Feat. Carice Van Houten, Sebastian Koch, Thom Hoffman
- A Jewish singer goes deep undercover for the Dutch resistance in this splashy, larger–than–life WWII yarn set in Nazi–occupied…
Flyboys (2006)
- Dir. Tony Bill
Feat. James Franco, Martin Henderson, Jean Reno
- Soaring, occasionally hokey aviation adventure recalling the true–life exploits of the Lafayette Escadrille, a French fighter squadron patched…
Rescue Dawn (2006)![Aro Favourite Aro Favourite](/img/arofavsm.gif)
- Dir. Werner Herzog
Feat. Christian Bale, Steve Zahn, Jeremy Davies
- In dramatizing the unforgettable true story of Dieter Dengler – heroic subject matter of doco LITTLE DIETER NEEDS TO FLY – Werner Herzog…
Great Raid, The (2005)
- Dir. John Dahl
Feat. Benjamin Bratt, James Franco, Connie Nielsen…
- Forthright retell of one of WWII's most daring missions, where a group of US Army Rangers plotted to rescue 511 American POWs from a Japanese prison…
Kokoda (2005)
- Dir. Alister Grierson
Feat. Jack Finsterer, Simon Stone, Travis McMahon…
- Visceral, against–the–odds WWII flick revisits the legendary story of inexperienced Aussie battlers taking on the mighty Japanese army in…
Last Drop, The (2005)
- Dir. Colin Teague
Feat. Billy Zane, Michael Madsen, Sean Pertwee…
- Competent, if not exactly scintillating, suspenser in which a group of allied soldiers are airdropped into Europe to steal gold and other treasures…
Lord Of War (2005)
- Dir. Andrew Niccol
Feat. Nicolas Cage, Jared Leto, Bridget Moynahan…
- A thoughtful though heavy–handed thriller about an intelligently amoral Ukrainian–American (Cage), who dedicates himself to the world…
Over There (TV Series) (2005)
- Feat. Josh Henderson, Luke MacFarlane, Erik Palladino
- Demanding Iraqi War excursion from Steven Bochco (NYPD BLUE) focuses on a US army unit’s dispatch to Iraq. Light on politics, this nevertheless…
Brotherhood of War (Tae Guk Gi) (2004)![Recommended Recommended](/img/arorecsm.gif)
- Dir. Kang Je-Gyu
Feat. Jang Dong-Gun, Won Bin, Lee Eun-Joo
- Deemed as one of the most graphic and violent war films ever made, this tells the story of two South Korean brothers (Bin and Dong–Gun) who…
Ike: Countdown to D-Day (2004)
- Dir. Robert Harmon
Feat. Tom Selleck, James Remar, Timothy Bottoms…
- Historical war dramatization of the three months leading up to Operation Overlord, the Allied invasion of Normandy, and how General Dwight Eisenhower…
Troy (2004)
- Dir. Wolfgang Petersen
Feat. Brad Pitt, Eric Bana, Orlando Bloom…
- Homer's epic is cranked up to full fury in this Hollywood CGI–ed adaptation, depicting the seige of Troy by the vengeful Greek army and the…
Master and Commander - The Far Side of the World (2003)![Recommended Recommended](/img/arorecsm.gif)
- Dir. Peter Weir
Feat. Russell Crowe, Paul Bettany, James D'Arcy
- Vivid sea–chase yarn, set during the Napoleonic Wars, with Crowe commanding the screen as the sympathetic captain of a British frigate…
Napoleon (TV Mini-series) (2003)
- Dir. Yves Simoneau
Feat. Christian Clavier, Gerard Depardieu, John Malkovich…
- A handsomely staged French (though English language) production of the life of Napoleon Bonaparte (Clavier) from his youthful antics, military…
Four Feathers, The (2002)
- Dir. Shekhar Kapur
Feat. Heath Ledger, Wes Bentley, Kate Hudson
- The British Army copes with an uprising in Sudan in 1875, while one officer must redeem himself from a charge of cowardice – which earned him…
Gods and Generals (2002)
- Dir. Ronald F. Maxwell
Feat. Jeff Daniels, Stephen Lang, Robert Duvall…
- Prequel to GETTYSBURG, this American Civil War drama follows the career of Confederate general 'Stonewall' Jackson.
Filled with the same epic…
K19 - Widowmaker (2002)
- Dir. Kathryn Bigelow
Feat. Harrison Ford, Liam Neeson
- Solid actioner revisits the long–censored account of a Russian super–submarine which had a disastrous reactor meltdown…
We Were Soldiers (2002)![Recommended Recommended](/img/arorecsm.gif)
- Dir. Randall Wallace
Feat. Mel Gibson, Greg Kinnear, Chris Klein…
- Big–budget, lavish re–enactment of America’s curtain–raiser in the Vietnam War, the fierce battle of la Drang, with an…
Windtalkers (2002)
- Dir. John Woo
Feat. Nicolas Cage, Christian Slater, Adam Beach…
- Based on a little–known chapter of WWII – the use by the US army of Navajo Indians for their ‘unbreakable’ language to help…
Band of Brothers (TV Series) (2001)![Recommended Recommended](/img/arorecsm.gif)
- Dir. Phil Alden Robinson, Richard Loncraine, Mikael Salomon
Feat. David Schwimmer, Ron Livingston
- The brainchild of Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg, this excellently–produced WWII mini–series follows the fortunes of ‘Easy Company’,…
Behind Enemy Lines (2001)
- Dir. Jason Moore
Feat. Owen Wilson, Gene Hackman
- Beyond–credibility gungho actioner which has fighter–pilot Owen Wilson shot down over Bosnia because he’s witnessed a Serb…
Black Hawk Down (2001)![Recommended Recommended](/img/arorecsm.gif)
- Dir. Ridley Scott
Feat. Sam Shepard, Ewan McGregor, Josh Hartnett…
- Intense, eardrum–battering re–enactment of a street–battle during the US campaign in Mogadishu, Somalia in 1993, painting the…
Enemy at the Gates (2001)![Recommended Recommended](/img/arorecsm.gif)
- Dir. Jean-Jacques Annaud
Feat. Jude Law, Ed Harris, Rachel Weisz…
- A big–budget recreation of the crucial WWII battle of Stalingrad, in which Germans and Russians fought it out till there was a toll of over 1…
Pearl Harbour (2001)
- Dir. Michael Bay
Feat. Ben Affleck, Kate Beckinsale, Josh Hartnett…
- Overblown, but technically impressive rendition of the 1941 Japanese surprise–attack on Pearl Harbour in which a sizable proportion of the US…
Tigerland (2001)
- Dir. Joel Schumacher
Feat. Colin Farrell, Clifton Collins Jr., Matthew Davis…
- The dir. of recent Hollywood gloss forsakes stars for a gritty, admired character piece set in a Vietnam War–bootcamp in Louisiana, 1971.…
Uprising (2001)
- Dir. Jon Avnet
Feat. Leelee Sobieski, Hank Azaria, David Schwimmer…
- An above–par telemovie that depicts the clearing of the Warsaw Ghetto during WWII by the Nazis.
Treading similiar territory to SCHINDLER'S…
Patriot, The (2000)
- Dir. Roland Emmerich
Feat. Mel Gibson, Heath Ledger, Joely Richardson…
- Mel Gibson transplants the patriotic, anti–English fervour of BRAVEHEART into an American Revolutionary setting, playing real–life…
Rules of Engagement (2000)
- Dir. William Friedkin
Feat. Samuel L. Jackson, Tommy Lee Jones, Guy Pearce…
- Colonel Samuel L. Jackson interprets the 'rules' when the US Embassy in Yemen is attacked by terrorists.
But after the smoke has cleared 83…
U-571 (2000)
- Dir. Jonathan Mostow
Feat. Matthew McConaughey, Harvey Keitel, Bill Paxton…
- World War 2: Matthew McConaughey and his submarine crew snatch a vital German spy machine, then find themselves trapped on a U–boat where all…
Crossing, The (1999)
- Dir. Robert Harmon
Feat. Jeff Daniels, Roger Rees, Sebastian Roche
- Acclaimed telemovie recreation of George Washington's crossing of the Delaware during the American War of Independence. Jeff Daniels lives up to the…
Emperor and the Assassin, The (Jing Ke Ci Qin Wang) (1999)
- Dir. Chen Kaige
Feat. Gong Li, Zhang Fenyi
- Vast, gilded historical spectacle set in the 3rd Century BC, centred on China's legendary first Qin emperor's struggle to consolidate a unified…
Three Kings (1999)![Aro Favourite Aro Favourite](/img/arofavsm.gif)
- Dir. David O. Russell
Feat. George Clooney, Mark Wahlberg, Ice-Cube…
- A refreshingly irreverent view of the US Military translated into a box–office hit for this unpredictable black–comedy that puts a…
Trench, The (1999)
- Dir. William Boyd
Feat. Paul Nicholls, Daniel Craig, Danny Dyer…
- WWI film set in the 48 hours leading up to the Battle of the Somme, in which the British Army lost the greatest number of soldiers in a single day of…
Hornblower (TV Series) (1998-2003)
- Feat. Ioan Gruffudd
- Lavish, high–end production of C. S. Forester's legendary Horatio Hornblower, with Ioan Gruffudd staunchly portraying the British Naval…
Saving Private Ryan (1998)![Recommended Recommended](/img/arorecsm.gif)
- Dir. Steven Spielberg
Feat. Tom Hanks, Tom Sizemore, Edward Burns…
- Tom Hanks commands a squad assigned to retrieving a single man from behind German lines in WWII France.
With 'sacrifice' the key theme,…
Soldier (1998)
- Dir. Paul Anderson
Feat. Kurt Russell, Gary Busey, Jason Scott Lee
- Military sci–fi adventure wherein Kurt Russell utters terse words as an out–moded fighting machine grasping at a few straws of humanity…
Thin Red Line, The (1998)![Aro Favourite Aro Favourite](/img/arofavsm.gif)
- Dir. Terrence Malick
Feat. Nick Nolte, Sean Penn, Elias Koteas…
- A studiously arthouse rendition of WWII, isolating a crucial battle of the Pacific campaign (Guadacanal) as a minutely observed microcosm of humanity…
GI Jane (1997)
- Dir. Ridley Scott
Feat. Demi Moore, Viggo Mortensen, Anne Bancroft
- A staunch, suede–headed Demi Moore is enlisted in a US Army commando squad in a call for equal–opportunity by stylist dir. Ridley Scott. …
Andersonville (TV Mini-series) (1996)
- Dir. John Frankenheimer
Feat. Frederic Forrest, Ted Marcoux, Jarrod Emick
- TV western set during the American Civil War, about a group of Union soldiers who are sent to a Confederate prison camp near Andersonville, Georgia…
Blade, The (1996)
- Dir. Tsui Hark
Feat. Xin Xin Xiong, Moses Chan, Man Cheuk Chiu
- Honour and retribution are the key themes in this densely–plotted, straight–faced actioner set in a mythic–historical setting.…
Gettysburg (1993)
- Dir. Ronald F. Maxwell
Feat. Jeff Daniels, Tom Berenger, Martin Sheen
- A truly epic screen version of the three–day American Civil War battle of 1863. The director's decade–long obsession is rich in military…
Stalingrad (1992)![Recommended Recommended](/img/arorecsm.gif)
- Dir. Joseph Vilsmaier
Feat. Dominique Horwitz, Thomas Kretschmann, Jochen Nickel
- Superlative evocation of WW2 tragedy from a German perspective. A unit of soldiers are posted to the front line in the merciless Russian winter to…
Bullet in the Head (1990)![Aro Favourite Aro Favourite](/img/arofavsm.gif)
- Dir. John Woo
Feat. Tony Leung (Chiu-wai), Jacky Cheung, Waise Lee
- John Woo's indictment of war as raw and visceral as its title. Three friends flee Hong Kong and find themselves knee deep in the corruption and…
Fourth War, The (1990)
- Dir. John Frankenheimer
Feat. Roy Scheider, Jurgen Prochnow, Harry Dean Stanton
- Cold War thriller set during the early days of detente has Scheider and Prochnow as two border commanders whose friendly rivalry on the…
Memphis Belle (1990)
- Dir. Michael Caton-Jones
Feat. Matthew Modine, Eric Stoltz, Tate Donovan…
- A likeable modern war drama with a well–known, fresh–faced male cast who make up the crew of the title B–17 bomber about to…
Night of the Fox (TV Mini-series) (1990)
- Dir. Charles Jarrott
Feat. Michael York, George Peppard, Deborah Raffin…
- An American officer is captured on German soil during WWII and a daring plot is hatched by the allies to rescue him. based on the novel by Jack…
Born On the Fourth of July (1989)
- Dir. Oliver Stone
Feat. Tom Cruise
- Tom Cruise gives an exhilarating performance as Ron Kovic, the teenage patriot who became an embittered, paralysed Vietnam vet, to finally emerge as…
Casualties of War (1989)
- Dir. Brian De Palma
Feat. Sean Penn, Michael J. Fox, John Leguizamo…
- A squad of soldiers become caught in the moral dilemma of wartime Vietnam. Platoon leader Sean Penn goes beyond the call of duty while Michael J.…
Farewell to the King (1989)
- Dir. John Milius
Feat. Nick Nolte, Nigel Havers, Frank McRae…
- Half–successful attempt to fashion a mythic tale from the Japanese invasion of Borneo in WW2, with a US Army deserter (Nolte) and a British…
Glory (1989)
- Dir. Edward Zwick
Feat. Denzel Washington, Matthew Broderick, Cary Elwes…
- Time and place is perfectly re–created in this moving account of the plight of Negro soldiers during the American civil war.
Bat 21 (1988)
- Dir. Peter Markle
Feat. Gene Hackman, Danny Glover, Jerry Reed…
- Gene Hackman is shot down over enemy lines deep in war–torn Vietnam; Danny Glover is the Air Force pilot charged with saving his skin. Expect…
Beast, The (the Beast Of War) (1988)
- Dir. Kevin Reynolds
Feat. George Dzundza, Jason Patric, Stephen Baldwin…
- Laying aside the usual sympathies, this American war–drama pursues a tense running–battle between a Soviet tank–crew and Afghani…
Rambo 3 (1988)
- Dir. Peter MacDonald
Feat. Sylvester Stallone, Richard Crenna
- The belated finale to the RAMBO series sees the human battletank John Rambo (Stallone) dropped into Afghanistan to rescue his mentor (Crenna).
In…
Escape From Sobibor (1987)
- Dir. Jack Gold
Feat. Rutger Hauer, Alan Arkin, Joanna Pacula
- An unsettling and chilling account of an attempt by Jews to escape the Sobibor concentration camp in Eastern Poland in 1944.
Originally made for…
Full Metal Jacket (1987)![Recommended Recommended](/img/arorecsm.gif)
- Dir. Stanley Kubrick
Feat. Matthew Modine, Adam Baldwin, Vincent D'Onofrio…
- Disturbing account of the recruitment, training and combat of young Americans in Vietnam. A powerful indictment of the senselessness of war, superbly…
Hamburger Hill (1987)
- Dir. John Irvin
Feat. Anthony Barrile, Don Cheadle, Courtney B. Vance…
- Matter–of–fact depiction of a particularly costly battle of the Vietnam War, in which US troops repeatedly tried to capture 'Hill 937' in…
Lighthorsemen, The (1987)
- Dir. Simon Wincer
Feat. Peter Phelps, Jon Blake, Sigrid Thornton…
- Gung–ho and melodrama collide in this WWI adventure of Australian–mounted infantry (and a few Gallipoli veterans) in Palestine. The tone…
Platoon (1986)![Recommended Recommended](/img/arorecsm.gif)
- Dir. Oliver Stone
Feat. Tom Berenger, Willem Dafoe, Charlie Sheen
- This film won the Best Picture Oscar for its compelling and sincere account of the Vietnam, also ushering the era of 1980s film reappraisals of the…
Rambo 2 (1985)
- Dir. George Pan Cosmatos
Feat. Sylvester Stallone, Richard Crenna, Charles Napier
- Iconic actioner in which traumatised commando John Rambo (Stallone) returns to Vietnam to rescue imprisoned G.I.s. Simplistic and violent, but a key…
Missing in Action (1984)
- Dir. Joseph Zito
Feat. Chuck Norris, M. Emmet Walsh
- Simplistic but iconic 80s actioner, with Norris as a RAMBO–figure, a Vietnam Vet who returns to liberate POWs from their jungle hellholes.…
Red Dawn (1984)
- Dir. John Milius
Feat. Patrick Swayze, Jennifer Grey, Harry Dean Stanton…
- Playing out the US fear/fantasy of Commie invasion, this sees a high–school football team (led by Patrick Swayze) make for the hills and wage…
Hong Kong 1941 (Dang doi lai ming) (1983)
- Dir. Po-Chi Leong
Feat. Chow Yun-Fat, Alex Man, Kien Shih…
- One of Chow Yun–Fat's early classics, this portrays the disturbing invasion of Hong Kong by the Japanese in 1941, which disrupts the dreams and…
Uncommon Valor (1983)
- Dir. Ted Kotcheff
Feat. Gene Hackman, Fred Ward, Reb Brown…
- Gene Hackman plays an American marine who believes his son is still being held in Laos in the aftermath of The Vietnam War. From the director of the…
Under Fire (1983)![Recommended Recommended](/img/arorecsm.gif)
- Dir. Roger Spottiswoode
Feat. Nick Nolte, Joanna Cassidy, Gene Hackman…
- A sterling drama concerning journalistic ethics in the mire of the Nicaraguan civil war.
Nick Nolte is a photographer who is tempted into taking…
1915 (TV Mini-series) (1982)
- Feat. Scott Burgess, Scott McGregor, Lorraine Bayly…
- A solid recreation of the Great War era, this TV mini–series charts the experiences of several young men leaving the home–front in…
Attack Force Z (1982)
- Dir. Tim Burstall
Feat. Mel Gibson, Sam Neill, Chris Haywood
- Manly, gung–ho war vehicle stars fresh–faced Australasians Mel Gibson and Sam Neill as commandos dispatched to rescue survivors of a…
Das Boot (The Boat) (1981)![Aro Favourite Aro Favourite](/img/arofavsm.gif)
- Dir. Wolfgang Petersen
Feat. Jurgen Prochnow
- Nail biting, meticulous and realistic account of a German U–boat's prowlings through the North Atlantic. The most expensive German film to…
Victory (Escape to Victory) (1981)![Recommended Recommended](/img/arorecsm.gif)
- Dir. John Huston
Feat. Sylvester Stallone, Michael Caine, Max von Sydow
- Implausible yet jolly entertaining WWII story has a soccer team of assorted POWs attempting to escape a Paris stadium during a match against the Nazi…
Big Red One, The (1980)![Recommended Recommended](/img/arorecsm.gif)
- Dir. Samuel Fuller
Feat. Lee Marvin
- The best role in years for Lee Marvin, who plays the intrepid squadron leader of director Sam Fuller's WWII memoirs. Distinctive war film is…
Dogs of War, The (1980)
- Dir. John Irvin
Feat. Christopher Walken, Colin Blakely, Tom Berenger
- Frederick Forsyth's best–seller gets reasonably good treatment here, Christopher Walken playing a hard bastard mercenary hired by Big Business…
Kagemusha (1980)
- Dir. Akira Kurosawa
Feat. Tatsuya Nakadai, Tsutomu Yamazaki, Kenichi Hagiwara
- A majestic 16th century saga about a petty thief who ascends to tribal leadership on account of his resemblance to a dying warlord. Shared the top…
Lion of the Desert (1980)
- Dir. Moustapha Akkad
Feat. Anthony Quinn, Oliver Reed, John Gielgud…
- An epic account of the 'David and Goliath' battle on the Libyan desert between Mussolini's all–powerful army and the Bedouin, circa 1930.
Sea Wolves, The (1980)
- Dir. Andrew McLagen
Feat. Gregory Peck, Roger Moore, David Niven…
- Salty War drama based on a real covert mission during World War II in which a group of middle–aged civilian ex–soldiers are sent by the…
Apocalypse Now (1979)![Aro Favourite Aro Favourite](/img/arofavsm.gif)
- Dir. Francis Ford Coppola
Feat. Martin Sheen, Marlon Brando, Robert Duvall…
- A harrowing account of a soldier's hazardous river journey, his mission to assasinate a renegade colonel who has gone mad in the depths of the…
Apocalypse Now Redux (1979)![Aro Favourite Aro Favourite](/img/arofavsm.gif)
- Dir. Francis Ford Coppola
Feat. Martin Sheen, Marlon Brando, Robert Duvall…
- Twenty years after its release, dir. Coppola’s expressionist epic of the Vietnam War, is ‘healed’ (redux in Latin) by the re–inclusion of…
From Hell to Victory (1979)
- Dir. Umberto Lenzi
Feat. George Peppard, George Hamilton, Horst Buchholz…
- Italian exploitation hack Umberto Lenzi directs this serviceable WWII epic, about six friends who vow to reunite despite going their separate ways…
G.I. Samurai (Sengoku jieitai; Time Slip) (1979)
- Dir. Mitsumasa Saito
Feat. Sonny Chiba, Jun Eto
- A squadron of Japanese soldiers, together with their weaponry, helicopter and gunboat, are accidentally caught in a 'time slip' and transported back…
Boys in Company C, The (1978)
- Dir. Sidney J. Furie
Feat. Stan Shaw, Andrew Stevens, R. Lee Ermey…
- A rugged and absurdist action film about young soldiers scarred by the horrors and blunders of war. Faintly critical of America’s involvement, this…
Deer Hunter, The (1978)![Recommended Recommended](/img/arorecsm.gif)
- Dir. Michael Cimino
Feat. Robert De Niro, Christopher Walken, Meryl Streep
- A grimly realistic portrait of how the atrocities of the Vietnam war have an effect on a group of friends. Robert De Niro heads a virtuoso cast in…
Bridge Too Far, A (1977)
- Dir. Richard Attenborough
Feat. Dirk Bogarde, Robert Redford, Sean Connery…
- Perhaps a battle–scene too far for some, but for afficiandos this epic account of an abortive Allied invasion of Holland is sure to provide…
Cross of Iron (1977)![Recommended Recommended](/img/arorecsm.gif)
- Dir. Sam Peckinpah
Feat. James Coburn, Maximilian Schell, James Mason…
- A doomed German platoon facing annihilation at Russian hands find their instinct for personal glory greater than their instinct for…
Eagle Has Landed, The (1977)
- Dir. John Sturges
Feat. Michael Caine, Donald Sutherland, Robert Duvall
- German commandos plot to assasinate Winston Churchill in this suspenseful thriller, apparently based on fact. Michael Caine, strangely plausible as a…
Last Remake of Beau Geste, The (1977)
- Dir. Marty Feldman
Feat. Marty Feldman, Michael York, Ann-Margret…
- Marty Feldman directs and co–writes this star–studded satire loosely based on the novel Beau Geste, a frequently–filmed story of…
MacArthur (1977)
- Dir. Joseph Sargent
Feat. Gregory Peck
- A well–mounted political biography of the WW2 General during the Pacific wars.
Battle of Midway (1976)
- Dir. John Smight
Feat. Henry Fonda, Charlton Heston
- A large–scale re–enactment of this decisive WWII naval battle. A huge all–star cast, scrap it out.
Conduct Unbecoming (1975)
- Dir. Michael Anderson
Feat. Michael York, Richard Attenborough, Trevor Howard
- Well–made, though somewhat old–fashioned version of Barry England's play about misbehaviour among the British Army in India. The stars…
A Fistful of Dynamite (Duck, You Sucker!) (1971)![Recommended Recommended](/img/arorecsm.gif)
- Dir. Sergio Leone
Feat. Rod Steiger, James Coburn, Romolo Valli
- Leone’s final spaghetti–western is a sprawling adventure set in the Mexican revolution, with fistfuls of action and comedy aplenty to rival…
Last Valley, The (1971)
- Dir. James Clavell
Feat. Michael Caine, Omar Sharif, Brian Blessed
- Epically framed, though a little ponderous, this action vehicle for Michael Caine is set in the final decade of the 17th century 'Thirty Years War'.…
Murphy's War (1971)
- Dir. Peter Yates
Feat. Peter O'Toole, Sian Phillips, Philippe Noiret
- Shipwrecked off the coast of Venezuala by a U–Boat near the end of WWII, Peter O'Toole decides to recuperate a derelict seaplane and mount a…
Raid on Rommel (1971)
- Dir. Henry Hathaway
Feat. Richard Burton, John Colicos, Wolfgang Preiss
- In 1942 Libya, a German–speaking British Intelligence officer uses former British POWs, some dressed in German uniforms, to fulfill a secret…
McKenzie Break, The (Escape) (1970)![Recommended Recommended](/img/arorecsm.gif)
- Dir. Lamont Johnson
Feat. Brian Keith, Helmut Griem, Ian Hendry
- Mostly engrossing, and certainly unusual and authentic, this is a WWII POW escape yarn with a difference – here, it's Germans attempting to…
Too Late The Hero (Suicide Run) (1970)
- Dir. Robert Aldrich
Feat. Michael Caine, Cliff Robertson, Ian Bannen…
- An impressive WW2 actioner from one of the experts, dir. Aldrich (ATTACK) investing a dangerous mission in the Pacific with a certain moral…
Battle of Britain (1969)
- Dir. Guy Hamilton
Feat. Michael Caine, Laurence Olivier, Trevor Howard…
- Michael Caine and Laurence Olivier head an ensemble cast of British old boys for this extravagant re–enactment of the famous aerial battle that…
Bridge at Remagen, The (1969)
- Dir. John Guillermin
Feat. George Segal, Robert Vaughn, Ben Gazzara…
- One of the tougher, smaller 60s Hollywood depictions of war in a period otherwise dominated by epic clunkers. In the later stages of WW2, George…
Probability Zero (1969)
- Dir. Maurizio Lucidi
Feat. Henry Silva
-
Anzio (1968)
- Dir. Edward Dmytryk, Duilio Coletti
Feat. Robert Mitchum, Peter Falk, Arthur Kennedy…
- Robert Mitchum and Peter Falk lead an international cast for this ropey war epic – an Italian–American co–production about…
Charge of the Light Brigade (1968)
- Dir. Tony Richardson
Feat. Trevor Howard, John Gielgud, David Hemmings
- Updated version of the Mid–Victorian battle made in the sardonic spirit of the swinging sixties. Trevor Howard, John Gielgud and David Hemmings…
Devil's Brigade, The (1968)
- Dir. Andrew V. McLaglen
Feat. William Holden, Cliff Robertson, Vince Edwards…
- Efficient actioner with an American colonel tasked with creating a special forces unit from Canadian troops and a ragtag group of American misfits.
Play Dirty (1968)
- Dir. Andre De Toth
Feat. Michael Caine, Nigel Davenport, Nigel Green
- During the Desert War in North Africa, a group of British commandos disguised in Italian soldiers must travel behind enemy lines and destroy a vital…
Villa Rides (1968)
- Dir. Buzz Kulik
Feat. Yul Brynner, Robert Mitchum, Herbert Lom…
- Violent western set during the Mexican revolution, with Robert Mitchum playing a corrupt Texas gunrunner and pilot who joins Pancho Villa (Yul…
Dirty Dozen, The (1967)![Recommended Recommended](/img/arorecsm.gif)
- Dir. Robert Aldrich
Feat. Lee Marvin, Ernest Borgnine, Charles Bronson…
- A group of hardened criminals redeem themselves when recruited for a suicide mission during World War 2. An exciting adventure classic.
Night of the Generals, The (1967)
- Dir. Anatole Litvak
Feat. Peter O'Toole, Omar Sharif, Tom Courtenay…
- WWII crime thriller concerning the prolonged investigation of the murder of a Polish prostitute and German agent that implicates three generals, and…
Blue Max, The (1966)
- Dir. John Guillermin
Feat. George Peppard, Anton Diffring, James Mason…
- Impressively staged, this WW1 actioner concerns the career of ace German combat pilot Bruno Stachel (Peppard). Although the human drama is fairly…
Is Paris Burning? (Paris brûle-t-il?) (1966)
- Dir. Rene Clement
Feat. Jean-Paul Belmondo, Charles Boyer, Leslie Caron…
- An international cast grace this lengthy war drama, set in 1944 Paris as the retreating Germans prepared to burn the city to the ground on Hitler's…
Tobruk (1966)
- Dir. Arthur Hiller
Feat. Rock Hudson, George Peppard, Guy Stockwell…
- This WW2 desert actioner is about the activities of the Long Range Desert Group (LRDG), who ran commando raids against Rommel and his Afrika…
Triple Cross (1966)
- Dir. Terence Young
Feat. Christopher Plummer, Romy Schneider, Trevor Howard…
- Minor curio concerns the real–life adventures of English safe–cracker Eddie Chapman (Plummer) who was in prison on Jersey when the Nazis…
Battle of the Bulge (1965)
- Dir. Ken Annakin
Feat. Henry Fonda, Robert Shaw, Robert Ryan…
- Admirable and far from simplistic recreation of the Nazi's WW2 counter–offensive in the Ardennes in 1944, which led to a series of bitter…
Cast a Giant Shadow (1965)
- Dir. Melville Shavelson
Feat. Kirk Douglas, Senta Berger, Angie Dickinson…
- Spectacular epic concerning the Israeli War of Independence in 1947–8, that like EXODUS somewhat romanticises events. Weaves a romance around…
Heroes of Telemark, The (1965)
- Dir. Anthony Mann
Feat. Kirk Douglas, Richard Harris, Ulla Jacobsson…
- Douglas and Harris are bickering leaders of an allied attempt to destroy a Nazi atom–bomb factory in the snowy wastes of Norway. Predictably…
In Harm's Way (1965)
- Dir. Otto Preminger
Feat. John Wayne, Kirk Douglas, Patricia Neal…
- Epic and stately treatment of the aftermath of Japan's WW2 attack on Pearl Harbour, with Wayne playing a sidelined Admiral who tries to claw back…
Morituri (1965)
- Dir. Bernhard Wicki
Feat. Marlon Brando, Yul Brynner, Trevor Howard…
- Unusual WW2 adventure features Brando as an anti–Nazi German who tries to persuade a German freighter plying the Pacific to defect to the…
Weekend at Dunkirk (1964)
- Dir. Henri Verneuil
Feat. Jean-Paul Belmondo, Catherine Spaak, Georges Geret…
- The decimation of French and English troops who retreated to the coastal settlement of Dunkirk in 1940 is the sobering subject of this otherwise…
Great Escape, The (1963)![Recommended Recommended](/img/arorecsm.gif)
- Dir. John Sturges
Feat. Steve McQueen, James Garner, Richard Attenborough…
- McQueen heads a star–studded international cast in this superb drama based on a true account of an escape from a German POW camp by a group of…
Hell Is For Heroes (1962)![Recommended Recommended](/img/arorecsm.gif)
- Dir. Don Siegel
Feat. Steve McQueen, Bobby Darin, Fess Parker…
- An expertly written and delivered WWII adventure, where a small squad of US soldiers, headed by Steve McQueen, must hold off an advancing German…
War Lover, The (1962)
- Dir. Philip Leacock
Feat. Steve McQueen, Robert Wagner, Shirley Anne Field…
- WW2 drama involving two Yankee pilots in England who form a deadly duo in the air, and two sides of a love triangle on the ground. Slow–moving,…
On the Double (1961)
- Dir. Melville Shavelson
Feat. Danny Kaye, Dana Wynter, Wilfrid Hyde-White
- Zany action–comedy set during the Invasion of Normandy, where an American soldier and talented mimic (Danny Kaye) impersonates a British high…
Long and the Short and the Tall, The (1960)
- Dir. Leslie Norman
Feat. Richard Todd, Laurence Harvey, Richard Harris…
- A taut WW2 drama, based on a stageplay, set around a dysfunctional British patrol caught out behind enemy lines in Burma.
Hinging on the treatment…
Sink the Bismarck (1960)
- Dir. Lewis Gilbert
Feat. Kenneth More, Dana Wynter, Laurence Naismith…
- A no–nonsense depiction of the WW2 hunt by the British navy to destroy the German super–warship Bismarck.
Conveying both the allied…
Hidden Fortress (1958)
- Dir. Akira Kurosawa
Feat. Toshiro Mifune
- Toshiro Mifune displays astounding skill with horse and sword as the ultimate warrior in this innovative amalgam of fairy–tale and Samurai…
Ice Cold In Alex (1958)![Recommended Recommended](/img/arorecsm.gif)
- Dir. J. Lee-Thompson
Feat. John Mills, Anthony Quayle
- After a hurried retreat from the siege of Tobruk, a band of medics and nurses in an ambulance, attempt an arduous crossing of the Libyan Sahara…
Men in War (1958)
- Dir. Anthony Mann
Feat. Aldo Ray, Robert Ryan, Vic Morrow…
- Robert Ryan and Aldo Ray play the leaders of a small detachment of American soldiers cut off and desperately trying to rejoin their division over a…
China Gate (1957)
- Dir. Samuel Fuller
Feat. Gene Barry, Angie Dickinson
- In 1954, during the French Indochina War, an Eurasian female smuggler and a group of French Foreign Legion mercenaries, infiltrate the enemy…
Pride and the Passion, The (1957)
- Dir. Stanley Kramer
Feat. Cary Grant, Frank Sinatra, Sophia Loren…
- A solemn epic set around Napoleon's campaign in Spain in the early 19th century – the cast doing their sincere best with a fairly passionless…
Throne of Blood (1957)
- Dir. Akira Kurosawa
Feat. Toshiro Mifune, Isuzu Yamada, Takashi Shimura
- Kurosawa transposes MacBeth into a Samurai setting and the result justifies his reputation. Nothing short of an awesome spectacle Shakespeare himself…
D-Day - The Sixth of June (1956)
- Dir. Henry Koster
Feat. Robert Taylor, Richard Todd, Edmond O'Brien…
- Well–executed enactment of the Normandy landings in WW2, with some extravagent action scenes and solid dramatics.
Battle Cry (1955)
- Dir. Raoul Walsh
Feat. Van Heflin, Raymond Massey, Aldo Ray…
- Entertaining WWII yarn concerning a squad of American marines romancing and training (in Paekakariki, New Zealand!) before heading off to action in…
Purple Plain, The (1954)
- Dir. Robert Parrish
Feat. Gregory Peck, Win Min Than, Bernard Lee…
- Strong psychological drama, shot in lush Technicolor, with Peck as a shell–shocked pilot stuck with wounded comrades behind enemy lines in the…
Malta Story (1953)
- Dir. Brian Desmond Hurst
Feat. Alec Guinness, Jack Hawkins, Anthony Steel
- A taut wee adventure set among the special forces of the British Air Force defending the island of Malta during WW2. Real–life locations and a…
Angels One Five (1952)
- Dir. George More O'Ferrall
Feat. Jack Hawkins, Michael Denison, Dulcie Gray…
- British war film following the experience of a young fighter pilot in the Battle of Britain during WWII. Based on the book "What Are Your Angels…
Mutiny (1952)
- Dir. Edward Dmytryk
Feat. Angela Lansbury, Mark Stevens
- Adventure movie set during the War of 1812, where a captain collecting a war loan of gold finds that his crew have plotted a mutiny to try to obtain…
Desert Fox, The (1951)
- Dir. Henry Hathaway
Feat. James Mason, Jessica Tandy, Sir Cedric Hardwicke…
- James Mason gives a definitive performance as Nazi General Rommel (which he repeated for THE DESERT RATS), whose troubles proved overwhelming despite…
Red Badge of Courage, The (1951)![Recommended Recommended](/img/arorecsm.gif)
- Dir. John Huston
Feat. Audie Murphy, Royal Dano, Arthur Hunnicutt
- A classic film version of the classic American Civil War novel by Stephen Crane, which depicts the line between courage and cowardice in the Yankee…
Halls of Montezuma (1950)
- Dir. Lewis Milestone
Feat. Richard Widmark, Jack Palance, Karl Malden…
- Unflashy and well–cast war film, that follows the US Marines into action on a Pacific island. Makes a fairly gung–ho contrast to dir.…
Battleground (1949)
- Dir. William A. Wellman
Feat. Van Johnson, John Hodiak, Ricardo Montalban…
- A tough depiction of WW2 combat set among an American squad during the gruelling Battle of the Bulge, that stands as something of an early classic.…
Sands of Iwo Jima (1949)
- Dir. Allan Dwan
Feat. John Wayne
- Popular WWII saga with John Wayne as a tough Sarg, spurring his troops on in the Pacific.
13 Rue Madeleine (1947)
- Dir. Henry Hathaway
Feat. James Cagney, Annabella, Richard Conte…
- A group of OSS operatives penetrate behind German lines in this rough–edged WWII thriller. Seeking a secret missile site, they must also…
Theirs is the Glory (Men of Arnhem) (1946)
- Dir. Brian Desmond Hurst
Feat. Stanley Maxted
- British war movie depicting the 1st Airborne Division's involvement in the 1944 Battle of Arnhem, a battle which was also the subject of A BRIDGE TOO…
Henry V (1944)![Recommended Recommended](/img/arorecsm.gif)
- Dir. Laurence Olivier
Feat. Laurence Olivier, Robert Newton, Leslie Banks
- Brimming with zest, this Shakespeare adaption became an instant classic when released, featuring Laurence Olivier in full sail as the youthful…
Purple Heart, The (1944)
- Dir. Lewis Milestone
Feat. Dana Andrews, Richard Conte, Farley Granger…
- Watchable flag–waver from WW2 depicts the show trial of a crew of American airmen (led by Andrews) who are shot down over Tokyo in 1944. Has…
Rats of Tobruk, The (The Fighting Rats of Tobruk) (1944)
- Dir. Charles Chauvel
Feat. Chips Rafferty, Peter Finch
- Aussie battler Chips Rafferty fight hard in the Battle of Rommel in this chest–thumping follow–up to FORTY THOUSAND HORSEMEN.
Guadalcanal Diary (1943)
- Dir. Lewis Seiler
Feat. Anthony Quinn, Lloyd Nolan, Preston Foster…
- Filmed just after US victory in the Solomon Islands during WW2, this standard issue war–film is a reasonably solid account of a grueling…
We Dive at Dawn (1943)
- Dir. Anthony Asquith
Feat. John Mills, Eric Portman, Niall MacGinnis
- Sturdy WWII actioner has a British sub sent out to sink a heavily–armed Nazi battleship with the help of three German sailors, but getting into…
One of Our Aircraft is Missing (1942)
- Dir. Michael Powell, Emeric Pressburger
Feat. Eric Portman, Bernard Miles, Hugh Williams
- Brisk war–thriller about how a six man British aircrew must find their way back to England across the Occupied Netherlands. Raised above the…
Forty Thousand Horsemen (40,000 Horsemen) (1940)
- Dir. Charles Chauvel
Feat. Chips Rafferty
- This rollicking war romp depicts the deeds of the Australian Light Horse cavalry during WWI. Stars the archetypal Aussie bushman, Chips Rafferty.
Lives of a Bengal Lancer, The (1935)
- Dir. Henry Hathaway
Feat. Gary Cooper, Franchot Tone, Richard Cromwell
- Set in India during the British Raj, this rousing literary adaptation follows a British regiment struggling to retain it's stronghold in the…
Hell's Angels (1930)![Recommended Recommended](/img/arorecsm.gif)
- Dir. Howard Hughes
Feat. James Hall, Jean Harlow, Ben Lyon…
- Still highly watchable, this early sound feature financed and 'directed' by the notorious Howard Hughes, boosts its melodramatic story of WWI heroics…