The 30 Greatest War Films Of All Time, Ranked

It's hard to reckon with the consequences of war, but great films have explored the devastating impacts of combat since the earliest days of cinema. War footage was shown in early movie houses in the form of newsreels and propaganda films, and the gripping images became etched in the minds of many filmmakers.

Cinema has looked to many historical conflicts for inspiration. Historical epics that told grandiose stories have used large budgets to bring these larger-than-life stories and characters to life. Not every war film aims for accuracy; while some have been praised by historians and veterans as authentic, others aim for a more crowd-pleasing approach, or change historical details for dramatic effect.

Not every war film focuses on soldiers, either. Some explore the effects a conflict has on the civilian population. Others star journalists, politicians, children, or medical personnel. War films have the ability to spotlight stories that are largely unknown, or cover well-known topics from a more diverse perspective. A war film doesn't have to be about a real conflict, either — some imagine entirely fictional events. With all of that being said, here are the 30 best war movies of all time.

Werner Herzog's untraditional approach to filmmaking makes him a fascinating choice to helm a grizzly adventure saga. "Rescue Dawn" tells the true story of German U.S. Navy pilot Dieter Dengler (Christian Bale) during a combat mission in Laos during the thick of the Vietnam War. Dengler's plane is shot down and he is captured by the Liberation Army, who offer him clemency if he renounces the United States. A steadfast idealist, Dengler refuses, and he's brutally tortured by his captors as they try to break his spirit.

Bale is known for his dramatic physical transformations, and over the course of "Rescue Dawn," he's starved and scarred. Dengler's attempts to escape are even more grueling to watch due to Bale's fractured physical state, and Herzog incorporates elements of body horror to make the violence more sickening. Bale has great chemistry with the actors who play his fellow survivors, particularly Steve Zahn as Lieutenant Duane Miller.

A grim survivalist story, "Rescue Dawn” shows Herzog's ability to capture authentic environments, as he shot much of the film in the Thailand jungles. Herzog often tells stories about characters that descend into madness; "Rescue Dawn" does this too, largely through hallucinatory cinematography. A box office disappointment, "Rescue Dawn" is an underrated entry in the canon of great Vietnam movies.

Oliver Stone's personal involvement in Vietnam inspired many of his films, which largely center on anti-war themes. Stone developed a reputation as one of the most politically outspoken filmmakers of the '80s, and he broke boundaries with projects that criticized American policies and questioned the established facts of history. After dabbling in horror early in his career, Stone broke out in 1986 with two incendiary war films. While "Salvador" is a classic in its own right, Stone's Best Picture-winner "Platoon" is one of the definitive accounts of the dehumanizing effects that militarism has on both soldiers and civilians.

Chris Taylor (Charlie Sheen) is a stand-in for Stone himself, as Chris volunteers to join a U.S. Army platoon to gain worldly experience before realizing how extreme war can be. Chris serves under Sergeant Elias (Willem Dafoe), who encourages friendship amongst the men and warns them against harming the native Vietnamese population. Elias' tenderness is a counterpoint to the cynical, brutal tactics of Sergeant Barnes (Tom Berenger), a hardened veteran willing to destroy entire villages and massacre families.

"Platoon" explores how even Chris' friends, who think of themselves as noble, can be spurred into violent action under Berenger's influence. The shocking death of Elias is a heartbreaking moment that solidified Stone's reputation as a storyteller who pulls no punches.

Following the acclaim for "Platoon," Oliver Stone was keen to continue criticizing American involvement in the Vietnam War. With "Born on the Fourth of July," he took a very different approach. While "Platoon" told a fictional story inspired by Stone's experiences, "Born on the Fourth of July" depicts the life of famed antiwar advocate Ron Kovic (Tom Cruise). The film follows Kovic from his childhood and throughout his military service, which left him permanently scarred. A traumatic event in which Kovic witnesses U.S. troops killed by "friendly fire" inspires him to question his dedication to military service for the first time.

In 1989, Cruise was at peak popularity thanks to "Risky Business" and "Top Gun," and "Born on the Fourth of July" showed that he was just as good in weighty, dramatic roles as he was in crowd-pleasing blockbusters. While Cruise seamlessly slips into the role of a Kovic who is beloved by his community in his younger years, he showed his range once Kovic's injuries isolate him. The Vietnam combat sequences are unflinching in their brutality, and Stone uses recurring flashbacks to show Kovic's PTSD.

The use of news footage makes the "Born on the Fourth of July" more authentic, and a beautiful John Williams score gives it the feeling of a grand spectacle. While Stone has been accused of being too preachy, "Born on the Fourth of July" doesn't force-feed morals to the audience; its recreations of Kovic's speeches allow the viewer to create their own interpretations.

When most people study World War II, Czechoslovakia is treated as a mere footnote, a piece of land that was used as a bartering chip between Hitler, who could not have made his intentions of conquering all of Europe more clear, and Neville Chamberlain, who wanted to buy time to ready England for war and perhaps put too much trust in the idea of appeasement. 

But one of the most successful resistance plots of the entire war unfolded in former Czechoslovakia, resulting in the assassination of Reinhard Heydrich, Hitler's heir apparent and the so-called "Butcher of Prague." It's this plot, codenamed "Operation Anthropoid," that occupies the majority of "Anthropoid," a faithful exploration of the team who were tasked with this mission. Starring Cillian Murphy and Jamie Dornan as the two leaders of the operation, "Anthropoid," is a tense, heartbreaking production with a real-life emotional resonance that has lost none of its power over the years.

Mel Gibson's gripping war film is a throwback to old-fashioned Hollywood epics, even as it brings the story of Scottish revolutionary William Wallace to the screen for the first time. In addition to directing, Gibson takes the lead role, a Scottish peasant who witnesses the brutal execution of Scottish nobles by the British Army at a young age. Wallace is content to stay out of the conflict, but after a pair of British soldiers murder his secret bride Murron MacClannough (Catherine McCormack) he frees his town from the oppressive rulers.

Wallace amasses a following among the Scottish lords who join his movement, including Robert the Bruce (Angus McFadyen). The cruel King Edward "Longshanks" (Patrick McGoohan) hunts him down, but Wallace develops a surprisingly intimate relationship with the French Princess Isabella (Sophia Merceau). Gibson's massive action sequences are brutal and show the overwhelming odds the Scottish rebels faced; the religious imagery used to depict Wallace's final sacrifice makes the conclusion even more emotional.

"Apocalypse Now" was developed by some of the most important filmmakers of the '70s as a response to the situation in Vietnam. Director Francis Ford Coppola, screenwriter John Milius, and producer George Lucas adapted Joseph Conrad's novella "Heart of Darkness" into an examination of the cult of violence that causes soldiers to abandon reason. Production was notoriously troubled, as the shooting dates were extended and the crew met with technical setbacks; never completely satisfied, Coppola released several director's cuts. Although it may have been "cursed," the chaotic journey nonetheless crafted a harrowing cinematic descent into madness.

U.S. Army Captain Benjamin Willard (Martin Sheen) is a Vietnam veteran sent on a covert mission to assassinate the Special Forces Colonel William Kurtz (Marlon Brando). Kurtz has abandoned his post and leads a rogue army in Cambodia, amassing a loyal following that worships him. Although he suffered a breakdown and had a heart attack during filming, Sheen gives one of his best performances. Willard is initially ambivalent about his task, but gradually begins to shed his values as he travels deeper into the heart of the jungle.

Brando's unveiling during the film's conclusion serves as a nightmarish reflection of the horrors of war. Spewing strained philosophies about the pain of the human condition and praising the Viet Cong for their brutality, Kurtz is one of the most terrifying film characters of all-time.

When released in 1957, "Bridge on the River Kwai" was heralded for its epic scale and thrilling action setpieces. The practical filmmaking is just as impressive today, and the film's themes remain as relevant as ever. "Bridge on the River Kwai" examines the dueling obligations of imprisoned soldiers who want to both serve their country and retain their honor; it's a complex consideration of patriotism that focuses on individual values instead of blind patriotism.

"Bridge on the River Kwai" follows an ensemble of British soldiers who are held as prisoners-of-war at a Japanese camp. They receive orders to surrender, with Colonel Nicholson (Alec Guinness) and Commander Shears (William Holden) reluctantly agreeing to aid their captors in building a railway bridge. As the men work tirelessly to complete construction, Nicholson develops a productive relationship with the Japanese leadership and becomes engaged with the task. He's infuriated when his men intentionally sabotage production, and Shears begins to question Nicholson's leadership.

After escaping to the nearby jungle, Shears plots to destroy the bridge but finds himself in contention with Nicholson. Driven mad by his commitment to seeing the bridge completed, Nicholson turns against the soldiers under his command. Guinness does a terrific job with Nicholson's slow descent into unreason; at first, he's only trying to make the best of a bad situation, only realizing the harm he caused during the final siege. "Bridge on the River Kwai" took home seven Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Actor for Guinness.

When a war goes on long enough and the fatalities add up, eventually a country will send boys onto the battlefield. "Land of Mine" takes place in the last days of World War II, when German prisoners of war, often teenagers, were sent to Denmark with a horrifying task. When Germany occupied Denmark, it planted thousands upon thousands of land mines on the shore, and it was the responsibility of these prisoners to remove every last one by hand, a perilous job with a low survival rate. 

Danish sergeant Carl Leopold Rasmussen (Roland Møller) is placed in charge of these operations, and although he is at first brutally committed to the task at hand and cruel to the young German soldiers he commands, it's difficult for him to maintain a cavalier attitude when directly facing their terror and sheer humanity. A tense and nerve-wracking production that shines a light on a lesser-reported aspect of a familiar conflict, "Land of Mine" goes beyond the black-and-white thinking that separates a cold-hearted villain from a teenage boy sent off to war.

Stanley Kubrick's subversive approach to familiar genres was perfectly suited to the Vietnam era, and "Full Metal Jacket" is among the most devastating anti-war films ever made. Using a brilliant bifurcated structure, Kubrick brought the dehumanizing effects of militarism to the screen, incorporating shocking imagery and dark humor to show how seemingly honorable people can develop an aptitude for violence.

The first half of "Full Metal Jacket" focuses on the brutal training process that a squad of new recruits endure under their strict drill sergeant, Gunnery Sergeant Hartman (Lee Ermey). Hartman subjects the men to rigorous physical tasks and demeans them with cruel insults. Gradually, the initially empathetic Private Joker (Matthew Modine) grows hardened and begins to emulate his superior's behavior. Vincent D'Onofrio delivers the film's most powerful performance as the sensitive Private Lawrence, who is singled out by Hartman and relentlessly bullied. Lawrence's breakdown is difficult to watch, and when his squad is unwilling to aid him, it marks a key moment in the loss of the soldiers' humanity. Joker grapples with his instincts to care for Lawrence, who he knows will struggle in actual combat.

The second half of the movie follows the soldiers during the early stages of the Tet Offensive, during which Joker is assigned to a war correspondent position. The battles themselves are fraught and confusing, as it's unclear to the soldiers which Vietnamese militias are allied with or against them. The film concludes with the striking image of soldiers singing the "Mickey Mouse March" on their patrol.

Whether it's an action-packed adventure movie or a gripping historical epic, few filmmakers create spectacles like Steven Spielberg. Spielberg had longed to tell the story of the Normandy Invasion as a tribute to his father's service in World War II, and while he had told World War II stories with "1941," "Empire of the Sun," and "Schindler's List," "Saving Private Ryan" is the first of his films that took place in the thick of combat. The opening sequence in which American soldiers storm Omaha Beach is one of the most gripping, violent, and emotional combat sequences ever committed to film.

"Saving Private Ryan" asks complex questions about the value of individual lives in a war that takes thousands. Captain John Miller (Tom Hanks) and his squad are ordered to travel deep into enemy territory in order to rescue Private James Ryan (Matt Damon); all three of Ryan's brothers were killed in action. Miller is reluctant to take the mission, skeptical about its importance and wary of the threat it poses to his men. Hanks is phenomenal, showing Miller's reluctance, despite his empathy for Ryan. Damon is equally powerful, as Ryan commits to stay at his post even after he learns the terrible news about his family.

"Saving Private Ryan" is undeniably patriotic, but it doesn't disrespect veterans with overblown sentiment. The framing device, in which an older Ryan reflects on his experiences with Miller, creates a profound statement about how the lasting wounds of war don't heal.

It's impossible to be objective here: It simply doesn't get any cooler than Steve McQueen in "The Great Escape." The film explores life in a German prisoner-of-war camp where English and American soldiers are kept on a tight leash, consigned to hard labor as the war passes them by. The men in the camp may not be actively fighting, but they do have one military duty left: When captured, it's their responsibility to attempt to escape as frequently as possible to force the Germans to use valuable resources to keep them confined. Hence, "The Great Escape." 

It's a cleverly written action-adventure film with a talented ensemble cast and some fantastic set pieces, but make no mistake, everyone's just orbiting McQueen as he proves himself to be one of the decade's greatest superstars. It functions as a war film all on its own, but is also notable for the influence it had on other movies and television shows — you can see parodies and copycats in everything from "Chicken Run" to "The Simpsons."

Charlie Chaplin is one of the greatest comedians in Hollywood history, and his groundbreaking directorial projects changed the perception of slapstick with their brilliant stunt work and satirical themes. While he was known for his unparalleled physical comedy, Chaplin would explore more serious topics with his later works, all without losing his unique comedic lens. "The Great Dictator" was a brave film that tackled fascism and antisemitism during the early days of World War II; showing these current issues through a comedy of errors allowed Chaplin's message to reach a broad audience.

In "The Great Dictator," Chaplin plays two roles. One is an unnamed barber from a poor Jewish community who is haunted by his service in World War I and has lost many memories. The barber bears a striking resemblance to Chaplin's other character, the fascist dictator Adenoid Hynkel. Hynkel is clearly modeled after Adolf Hitler, and leads the persecution of the Jewish ghettos. In order to protect his home, the barber disguises himself as Hynkel and finds a peaceful way to end his regime.

Watching the goofy barber inadvertently impact global events is often hilarious, especially the film's most iconic moment, in which he dances with a globe in Hynkel's office. "The Great Dictator" was Chaplin's first sound film, and it concludes with a stirring monologue criticizing prejudice and hate.

Only 12 years after World War II ended, "Kanal" took a raw look at the devastation of street combat. It's the first film to depict the 1944 Warsaw Uprising, one of the few examples of widespread armed rebellion in occupied Poland. By the time we meet the brave resistance fighters, however, they're on their last legs. Only a few have survived, and they have no choice but to retreat to the sewers of Warsaw in order to avoid being massacred by German forces.

They're living on borrowed time, though — this solution can only last for so long before they have to emerge to the surface and face the music. The mood darkens the longer they spend underground; Everyone seems to know that the end is near, but no one is willing to admit it. "Kanal" was well-received by critics — except, ironically, in Poland itself. For Polish audiences, the Warsaw Uprising was still a fresh memory, and seeing their idealized freedom fighters hiding in the sewers was understandably unappealing.

"Patton" deserves a spot on this list for its opening sequence alone. You know the one: George C. Scott, playing the legendary general, gives a no-holds-barred motivational speech to the troops against a backdrop of a gigantic American flag. It's the beginning of one of the quintessential military biopics, depicting Patton as a gruff, often brutally unsympathetic war hero who nonetheless captivates us. 

Since this film came to us during the height of the Vietnam War, when audiences were not exactly eager to sit through a bunch of pro-war propaganda, there's a touch of a cynical anti-hero in Patton. Scott's portrayal of the man never shies away from the more famous general's more controversial aspects, and it is the film's approach to the character that makes it such a success. "Patton" took home seven Academy Awards, including one for Scott, although he refused to accept it, citing his lack of interest in competing against other actors.

"The Deer Hunter" tells a comprehensive story about what soldiers experience before, during, and after their service in Vietnam, conveyed through the changing relationships between a group of lifelong friends. At over three hours, "The Deer Hunter" takes the time to develop its characters, noting how their personalities change as they accumulate emotional scars. The film was a breakthrough for its sensitive handling of PTSD, and its sequences of torture are often difficult to watch.

Pennsylvania steelworkers Mike Vronsky (Robert De Niro), Steven Pushkov (John Savage), and Nick Chevotarevich (Christopher Walken) celebrate Steven's wedding before heading to Vietnam. Nick takes the opportunity to propose to his girlfriend Linda (Meryl Streep), and bonds with Mike as they promise to protect each other overseas. The ceremonies conclude with a deer hunt, a recurring symbol that represents the men's affinity for their simple hometown.

In the film's most famous sequence, Mike, Steven, and Nick are held hostage by the Viet Cong and forced to play a game of Russian Roulette. Once they return home, their near-death experiences make it impossible for the men to re-integrate with their community, and cast a shadow over their deer hunts. It's impossible to enjoy their favorite activity when any violence sparks disturbing memories. Walken depicts Nick's obsession with Russian Roulette in heartbreaking detail, and De Niro gives one of his most sensitive performances as Mike tries to help his friends cope.