A thread was started about WWII movies. Here is my own list. They are not all there, but most of them. I would always be interested in hearing about others that are worth seeing so feel free to email me at
mygaming2002@hotmail.com
I have put them in different categories (classic, traditional, standard, etc.), rated them (Top of the Line, Excellent, etc.) and graded them (A++ down). I did not list any movies I thought were not worth watching, so even the worst ones represented here have their merits and you might like them a lot.
Key Definitions:
Classic – a movie that is good enough that it does not matter when it was made or by whom, or one generally considered a “classic” even if some other films actually rate better over all.
Traditional – This refers to movies that were graded taking into account the style in which they were made, mainly the ones from the 40s and 50s. Expect patriotic speeches, perfect hairdos in the trenches, and heroes that shoot down the enemy with that look that says “bring it on! I actually like this stuff.”
Standard – Your basic war movie, nothing particularly unique, but not bad either.
Different – a film that is not your typical war movie, films set in WWII but actually are more about the people than the events, etc.
Non Combat – a film that is set mainly behind the lines (at a base or headquarters, etc.) or on the home front, or has some combat but the main action of the movie is about other things.
B.E.L – Behind Enemy Lines. This refers to everything from spies to commando operations to eluding capture type movies.
Spy - More specifically about espionage.
49th Parallel (1941) Different, B.E.L. – Good A-
Stranded U-Boat crew, lead by Leslie Howard, trying to escape from Canada to the neutral USA. Strong cast.
A Bridge Too Far (1977) Classic – Good B
Uneven star package. But Anthony Hopkins and the British 1st AB at Arnhem Bridge is worth putting up with the hokey comedy of Elliot Gould and the American sector.
A Guy Named Joe (1943) Non Combat – Good B
Spencer Tracy is a dead airmen assigned as guardian angel to Van Johnson who falls for Tracy’s old girl.
American Guerilla in the Philippines (1950) Traditional – Good B+
Tyrone Power leading resistance after the fall. Directed by Fritz Lang
A Walk In The Sun (1945) Different – Good B
Early psycho-drama take on war being pointless and horrible. Heavy handed in the message department but some good performances.
Action In The North Atlantic (1943) Traditional – Good + A
Unsung Merchant Marine heroes against the U-Boats. Bogart.
Anzio (1968) Standard – So So B-
Uneven. The title implies another Longest Day, but it is really about a reporter who is smarter than the generals – typical Viet Nam era Hollywood thinking. But the scene with the German sniper pinning down the patrol is a great one.
Back To Bataan (1945) Traditional – Good + A
John Wayne against the “Japs”. That’s enough for me.
Band of Brothers (2001) Classic – Top of the Line A++
Technically a mini-series, but a great piece of work all the way around. Company E, 506th Parachute Regiment, 101st Airborn from D-Day to the end of the war.
Battle Of Britain (1969) Classic – Excellent A+
Very accurate star package. The Few defending the skies over England. One must pay attention to remember who is who under those oxygen masks, but one of the best of its kind.
Battleground! (1949) Classic – Top of the Line A++
101st at Bastogne. The first successful attempt get past the clean shaven glamour boy hero loving the excitement of battle. Has it all – the feel of a b/w classic with more grit and strength behind it. Great sound stage sets and the echoing crack of those rifles in the forest is unforgettable.
The Battle of the Bulge (1965) Standard – Solid B –
Some true facts sprinkled in a fantasy that implies it was all about tiger tanks and American gas stations. Still, some good performances from Henry Fonda, Robert Shaw and Telly Savalas. If you want the Bulge see Battleground!
The Best Years Of Our Lives (1946) Classic, Non Combat – Very Good A
Won a lot of Oscars including Best Picture. The vets who came home and tried to start normal lives.
The Big Red One (1980) Standard – So So C+
Uneven and unrealistic. Sam Fuller remembers his WWII like it was some fraternity road trip. (Apparently there was only one rifle squad at Omaha Beach.) But at least the soldiers were the right age for a change. Lee Marvin as the (way too) old sergeant ads some class.
The Bridge On The River Kwai (1957) Classic, Prison Camp – Excellent A+
Japanese POW camp vs commandos. Alec Guinness, Bill Holden. The only thing the movie had in common with the true story was the name of the river, but a great movie none the less.
Casablanca (1942) Classic, Non Combat - Top of the Line A++
Bogart as the pre-war expatriate American who finally takes sides to help the head of the Resistance escape the Nazi’s in North Africa. Best Picture Oscar and earned it.
Catch-22 (1970) Different, Non Combat – Very Good + A+
From the book about base life of US bomber crews on Malta, caught up in the insanity of red tape during wartime. But the film has more to do with the contemporary insanity of Viet Nam. Cool and quirky movie. There are few like it.
The Cockleshell Heroes (1959) Standard – Solid B
British commandos kayak up a river to sink some ships. Trevor Howard and Jose Ferrer.
The Cross Of Lorraine (1943) Classic, Prison Camp – Very Good A
Very tough film (for its age) about a German prison camp. Very good.
Darby's Rangers (1958) Standard – Better than Average B+
A young James Gardner forming the original Ranger battalion. I remember this from my childhood and loved it then. Not seen it since though.
Das Boot (1981) Classic – Top of the Line A++
Inside a U-Boat after the tied has turned. One of my favorite movies of all time in all categories. Watch it with the lights off. Very claustrophobic. Won the Oscar for best foreign film, if I recall. The subtitled version only recently came out on video, but even the dubbed version is great.
Destination Tokyo (1943) Classic – Solid B
Gung ho propaganda film made during the dark days. Cary Grant skippers a US sub in Tokyo bay. Worth it if you can find it.
The Dam Busters (1954) Traditional – Solid A
Holds up well after all these years. Low level bombers hit Nazi hydro-electric dams, based on a true story.
The Desert Fox (1951) Standard – Solid B+
James Mason as Erwin Rommel. Flattering portrayal that colored future generations opinion of the Field Marshall.
The Desert Rats (1953) Standard, B.E. L. – Solid B
Welshman Richard Burton playing a Scot who leads a bunch Aussies as Rommel tries to take Trobruk.
The Dirty Dozen (1967) Classic – Solid A
Very 60s in its flavor. But very popular. The antiestablishment guys beat the system and the odds. Except for the 80% who get killed of course. But a lot of fun with a strong cast.
The Eagle Has Landed (1976) Standard – Good + A
German commandos try to get Churchill. Very good cast lead by Michael Cane, Bob Duvall, Donald Southerland
The Enemy Below (1957) Standard - Solid B
Destroyer vs submarine cat and mouse. Kurt Jurgens is always good.
Father Goose (1964) Different, Non Combat - Very Good A
South Pacific beach bum Cary Grant forced into being a coast watcher against the Japanese, then rescues the pretty teacher and a gaggle of school girls. One of his last movies and a good one.
Five Graves To Cairo (1943) Classic, B. E. L - Very Good + A+
Set in a desert hotel during Rommel’s reign. Intrigue and all that. Part spy film part war film. One of the most unique films made during WWII and many think one of the best. Billy Wilder dir.
Flying Leathernecks (1951) Traditional – Solid B
John Wayne in a plane. Tough as ever.
Flying Tigers (1942) Traditional – Solid B
Ditto, only younger.
Foreign Correspondent (1940) Classic, Spy – Very Good + A++
One of the greats, from Hitchcock
From Here to Eternity (1953) Classic, Non Combat – Very Good A
More about the interpersonal relationships than about Pearl Harbor. But a classic none the less.
The Fighting Seabees (1944) Traditional – OK B
More John Wayne vs. Tojo and company
The Great Escape (1963) Classic, Prison Camp – Top of the Line A++
Based on the true story of the Germans stupidly putting all the best escape men in one camp. Steve McQueen, Charles Bronson, Richard Attenborough, etc. etc. On my Short List
The Guns Of Navarone (1961) Classic, B.E.L – Excellent A++
Commandos blow the big guns in Greece. Gregory Peck. One of the great action adventure flicks.
Guadalcanal Diary (1943) Classic – Very Good A+
Based on the book by and about the real guys. Dated, but one of the classics. I personally think it is better than Sands of Iwo Jima.
Hanover Street (1979) Different, Non Combat – Good B
Harrison Ford as the American pilot romancing a married woman in London. He ends up behind enemy lines with her husband, Christopher Plumber.
Hell is for Heroes (1962) Standard – Very Good A
Steve McQueen in a rifle squad that is menaced by a German machine gun position. Small, tight plot. Quite gritty for its day.
Hope And Glory (1986) Different, Non Combat – Good B+
A London family in the blitz. Very well made.
In Harm’s Way (1965) Traditional, Solid A
John Wayne in navy whites, leading a task force. Everybody dies, or loses a limb. But he still gets the girl.
In Which We Server (1942) Different - Very Good A
Very unusual movie written and directed by Noel Coward. The story of a British destroyer ultimately sunk in the Mediterranean, told via flashbacks while the crew is stranded in life boats. Coward is the Captain. Richard Attenborogh is the coward. Um, if you follow me.
The Longest Day (1962) Classic – Very Good + A+
Staring everybody over the age of twenty. Full of gung ho language and picturesque Hollywood death scenes. But a mammoth undertaking that is still exciting to see after all these years. The Germans are the best actors, compared to the hammy, Hollywood Americans. The British at Pegasus Bridge is my favorite sequence (Richard Todd really was a Red Beret on D-Day!) And that French starlet, oo la la. This one makes “cliché” a good thing!
Memphis Belle (1990) Standard – Solid + B+
VERY loosely based on the true story. But the in flight stuff is as good a depiction of B-17s as you will see.
Merrill’s Marauders (1962) Traditional – OK B
Gung Ho G.I.s, deep in the jungles of Burma.
Mister Roberts (1955) Different, Non Combat – Very Good A+
Very well made movie from John Ford and Mervyn LeRoy. Semi-comedy with serious overtones, set on a supply ship behind the lines and great performances from Henry Fonda, Jack Lemmon, Jimmy Cagney and William Powell.
The Man Who Never Was (1956) Different, Spy – Good B
The plot to fool the Nazis into thinking the 1942 attack would be in Greece rather than Sicily. Very historically accurate for an old movie.
O.S.S. (1946) Traditional, Spy – Good + A
Gritty and dark story of the men and women who dropped in to help the resistance. Unusually good for a relatively unknown movie.
Objective, Burma! (1945) Classic – Good + A
Americans in Burma, led by Errol Flynn. Dated but if you like the old John Wayne type movies this is a really good one.
Patton (1970) Classic – Excellent A+
Scott’s performance dominates and more than makes up for the small amount of combat. “From this day forward, any officer found not wearing a necktie will be skinned.” Gotta love it.
Pimpernel Smith (1941) Different, Spy – Good B+
Oldie but goodie. Not exactly a spy, an archeologist and his students help political prisoners escape the Nazis early in the war. Produced and directed by its star, Leslie Howard. He had starred in the Scarlet Pimpernel and so he updated the story from the French Revolution to modern times. He was also the only major star to be killed during the war – some say while on a secret mission in Spain.
Pursuit of The Graf Spee (1957) Standard – Solid + A
Good one if you like battle ships and strategy.
Run Silent, Run Deep (1958) Standard – Solid B
Moby Dick, only it is a U.S. sub commander hunting a certain Japanese ship. With Clark Gable and Burt Lancaster.
Sahara (1943) Traditional - Solid B+ Bogart with broke down British tank in the desert. But less sappy than others of its time.
Sands Of Iwo Jima (1949) Classic – Good A
John Wayne as the tough sarge who they hate till they learn why he is so hard. It really is a patriotic propaganda fest - especially once you read Flags of Our Fathers. But as old war movies go it is one of the classics.
Saving Private Ryan (1998) Classic – Top of the Line A++
Despite some bumps and overt Spielbergisms, one of the few movies I ever saw more than twice in the theater.
Schindler’s List (1993) Classic, Non Combat – Excellent A+
Unique story based in outwitting the Nazis during the Holocaust. Helps to remind one how easy it is for humans to dehumanize others and then do the most horrible things.
Since You Went Away (1944) Different, Non Combat – Very Good A
Home front family drama via David O. Selznick. Kind of the American “Hope and Glory”, only made during the war, not 40 years later.
Sink The Bismark! (1960) Standard – Solid B
And they sunk it!
Soldier Of Orange (1977) Different – Very Good A
True story of the Dutch war hero Erik Hazelhoff Roelfzema, and the Nazi occupation of the Netherlands. The best version of this picture is the original version, in Dutch, German and English, with literally-translated subtitles. The dubbed one is bad.
Stalag 17 (1953) Classic, Prison Camp – Very Good A
The best POW movie until the Great Escape.
Stalingrad (1993) Different – Very Good A
German film. They compared it to Platoon in the publicity. But it is very different. Patriotic German riflemen lose their innocence and then everything else in the frozen madhouse of Stalingrad.
The Sea Shall Not Have Them (1954) Traditional – Solid B
British Air Sea Rescue teams saving downed pilots. Unusual and interesting.
The Story Of G.I. Joe (1945) Traditional – Very Good A
Uber correspondent Ernie Pyle joins an infantry company in Italy. Not a lot of the typical patriotic stuff, more about the daily lives of soldiers. Well worth seeing.
They Were Expendable (1945) Classic – Very Good A
PT boat squadrons being sacrificed to slow the Japanese advances in the Philippines. Would make a great modern special effects feast today.
Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo (1944) Classic – Good A
Spencer Tracy as Doolittle. Should be seen by anyone with an interest in bombers or the Pacific Theater movies.
To Be or Not to Be (1942) Different, Non Combat – Good A
Troupe of actors in occupied Poland outwit the Nazis. The old Jack Benny version is better than the Mel Brooks remake.
To Hell And Back (1946) Traditional – Good B +
Even though it is Audie Murphy playing himself, it was made ten years after the fact and still pretty standard stuff.
Tobruk (1967) Standard – OK B
Rock Hudson in the desert against the Korps. Not bad, not memorable.
Tora! Tora! Tora! (1972) Classic – Very Good A+
Well made, historical, the one to see about Dec. 7th.
Twelve O'Clock High (1949) Classic – Excellent A++
Airforce general Gregory Peck has to get his beleaguered wing to fight again. Just an all around great movie.
Von Ryan’s Express (1965) Standard, Prison Camp/B.E.L – Good A
Frank Sinatra leads British POWs out of Italy, far fetched but fun.
Wake Island (1942) Traditional – Solid B
The doomed Marines on Wake Island die with their boots on.
Where Eagles Dare (1969) Standard, B.E.L. – Very Good A
Richard Burton and Clint Eastwood lead commando assassins in the Alps. Sort of the Guns of Navarone in the snow. I loved this when I first saw it as a kid and still like it now.
Yank in the R.A.F. (1941) Traditional – Good A
Tyrone Power and Betty Grable have a romance during the dark days in England. But good if you like Spitfires and all that!
The Young Lions (1958) Different – Very Good A
The lives of three soldiers come together in the final days of the war, the German being Marlon Brando, the Yanks being Dean Martin and Montgomery Clift.
P.S.
And yes, I typed all this out myself.
[This message has been edited by LordLovat (edited January 14, 2002).]
01-14-2002, 01:54 AM
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