Happy Hour #42 - Top 5 Greatest War Movies (feat. History Bro)

In what's sure to be the most contentious Happy Hour ever, me and History Bro reveal our top 5 favourite war movies of all time.
Subscribe to History Bro: / @historybro

[@wun1gee]

Master & Commander. Not only is it incredibly historically accurate it's a period of history that's seldom touched on.

[@nealsterling8151]

Absolutely!

[@Constantine_IA]

It's so boring

[@noworriesnoproblems6382]

Well no, it was a America ship they should.of been after

[@tfunkhou88]

@@Constantine_IA absolutely agreed…barely watchable

[@robslowinski3085]

If you liked the movie platoon I would recommend you read the 13th valley

[@johndjenssen]

Its not a movie, but "The Pacific" will always be tops on my list of war movies or shows. I think it shows the absolute brutality of war, and the change in the psyche of those involved the best of any movie or show I have ever seen.

[@infiniteflame2374]

I recently just finished watching that one, those scenes in Okinawa...

[@Jadedphuck]

My grandfather was at peleliu and Okinawa and that series have a glimpse of how awful that was. If you want to delve deeper into pacific a dude named Ian w toll wrote a trilogy of books about the whole war in the pacific and Dan Carlin just did a whole series about the pacific war. It is all amazing

[@unknownriderinbound]

I checked "With The Rare Breed" out of the local library shortly after Eugene Sledge passed away, and was surprised to see that he had signed that copy. Made reading it that much more moving.

[@Ganon999]

I've been meaning to watch The Pacific because I'm a huge fan of Band of Brothers. I've seen clips but never watched it from beginning to end.

[@paulvilner2629]

Master and Commander would be on my list purely for historical fiction and being a great movie

[@bigben8502]

Toss in some Horatio Hornblower.

[@scatton61]

I agree.. I love the stories by Partick O'Brian... I have the audio books brilliantly narrated by Patrick Tull

[@ianwright4255]

God I love that movie

[@ianwright4255]

@@scatton61 I need to look that up

[@jasonjansen9831]

Master and Commander has some great historical elements and accuracy but ultimately turns into hollywood cheese at the end which always bothered me.

[@clivetrash9044]

Hey, it's the guy who sometimes appears on the Lotus Eaters.

[@scottmason9804]

I remember watching The Eagle has Landed with my dad a lot, and The Guns of Navarone was another weekend favourite, as for the more modern films, Danger Close about the Australians in Vietnam is also very good

[@robslowinski3085]

Does Danger close have a scene where American an Australian GIs are betting on a fight between a spider and a scorpion ?

[@scottmason9804]

@@robslowinski3085 um nope not in the version i watched 😀

[@charlesswinden2603]

"Glory" is the story of the all black unit from Massachusetts, the battle was " The battle of the crater " which was AFTER Gettysburg...

[@LordCandyDish]

The big battle in Glory is the Battle of Fort Wagner, which was 2 weeks after Gettysburg, the Crater was about a year after those battles.

[@chrislubs1341]

Yes after Gettysburg, but not the Battle of the Crater, - The Battle of Fort Wagner on July 18, 1863, was an unsuccessful assault led by the 54th Massachusetts, an African American infantry, famously depicted in the movie Glory. Fort Wagner is located on Morris Island in the Charleston Harbor, South Carolina. - The Battle of the Crater was a battle of the American Civil War, part of the siege of Petersburg, Virginia.

[@ronaldmcdonald2817]

Battle of the Crater is in Cold Mountain.

[@unquietspirit4232]

Nicely done for including The Duelists! Highly recommend watching and reviewing this one Drinker. More people need to know about and watch this gem!

[@IbogaOfficial]

No mentions of the 1993 Stalingrad eh? Seems not enough people know about it, its probably my favorite

[@budmonkey]

Come And See is an outstanding film. Some of the selections were a little too "Hollywood" and obvious. Great show though

[@Jalide]

Seeing Inglorious Basterds there in the thumbnail as part of a "Greatest War Movies" already made me nauseous.

[@chaptermasterpedrokantor1623]

Aye, I'm sure its a good Tarantino movie, if you like him, but as a war movie its an utter failure. If you want to watch alternate reality war movies you might as well watch Soviet war movies of the Stalinist era.

[@strafer8764]

It’s a good movie but yea I wouldn’t go comparing it to Saving Private Ryan.

[@markhill3858]

@@strafer8764 unhistorical it may be .. in fact its about 90% fantasy by weight, no argument :) there WAS a ww2 and there WERE ratzis and they DID have a problem with certain genetic subtypes of humanity, thats about as accurate as you can call it :) .. but Its still a bloody rockin war movie in my book :) Hells Bells you could say the same about Where Eagles Dare couldnt ya?

[@idrathergetaidsthangetwoke9145]

@@strafer8764 SPR has no business in a top 20 as well....

[@strafer8764]

@@idrathergetaidsthangetwoke9145 I guess I haven’t seen the best war ones then.

[@Tenebris_Sint]

All great choices, if you haven’t seen The Captain… see it. True story, very dark, but also very humorous and does a great job portraying the absolute insanity of the twilight of the Nazi regime. I’m a watch geek and I love the true story of the Great Escape where there’s an understanding between the German and British officers that the prisoners are required by Military code to attempt escape, and the Germans are responsible for preventing this, and it’s about respecting your opponent in this cat and mouse game. The Rolex Chronograph owned by the real life British officer (forget who) was recently auctioned. The amazing part was that the Officer ordered the Rolex or had to send it out for repair after getting captured, Rolex delivered the watch, and the German Commandant was so honorable that he let the British SAS Officer keep the watch when he could have kept it for himself. The watch was used to time on one of the tunnels and auctioned at Sotheby’s for 40,000£.

[@LucefieD]

Just watched this the other day because of your recommendation, excellent film. Not gonna lie I laughed my ass off when he brought in the flak gun during the execution. Such dark humor.

[@spacedinosaur8733]

Another great film for that era is the Scarlet & the Black

[@Tenebris_Sint]

@@LucefieD Yeah, that's a oh shit hilarious but gnarly scene. The fact that it's a true story makes it that much more insane.

[@scottjackson1420]

No one will pick this, but I go with "Siege Of Firebase Gloria." Loved getting the viewpoint of both the Marine leader, R. Lee Ermy and his counterpart, the commanding officer of the large NVA force.

[@MrPelzig]

Never gets old watching it to this day. 😀

[@Warraci]

Fucking great movie

[@loganholmberg2295]

I love that movie. 😅😅 Its would definatly suck without R Lee Ermy in it though.

[@mikavirtanen7029]

Gloria director Brian Trenchard-Smith also made 1995 remake of classic Humphrey Bogart war movie Sahara. For a relative low-budget television movie, it's surprisingly good, with James Belushi playing hard-boiled sarge in a rare non-comedic role.

[@fredjones554]

this is a ripper. r lee ermy and wings hauser. fantastic. they pull out every cliche and trope but that's ok.

[@LukeLovesRose]

Europa: The Last Battle But if asked what my favorite Hollywood BS war movies would be.... We Were Soldiers Hacksaw Ridge Saving Private Ryan Black Hawk Down The Longest Day But Hacksaw and We Were Soldiers are totally interchangeable

[@duncani3095]

The great thing about Danny McKnight is that he actually walked around commanding the convoy like that. I've read the book, and multiple witnesses were amazed at the way he walked around, not paying any attention to the gunfire around him. Tom Sizemore did his character a great service in that movie.

[@taylorkeast2656]

When I was doing my infantry training we ended up watching one of the episodes of band of brothers, specifically for the trench clearing, and caping the German 88s

[@Chris-yz7cs]

Same it was a textbook section in attack

[@Warraci]

It was textbook because that was Winter's first time clearing such a position. That it worked so well is still taught in most military academies.

[@captnwinkle]

E Z Company bro!!!

[@Surrey12341]

The Beast of War, or The Beast as it became known in later years for some unknown reason. Very underrated anti war movie set in Afghanistan about a lost Russian tank being hunted by mujahideen. The story is being told from both perspectives. An Amazing forgotten war film.

[@jfb.8746]

9th Company is also very good.

[@johntaylorson7769]

TANK BOOOOOY! Fab film. One of those I stumbled across late at night and it drew me in- now it gets a rewatch from me every few years. Great cinematography, great score, great cast. The beleaguered, claustrophobic tank itself almost feels like a character by the end. That turd Fury could have learned something from The Beast.

[@erikdolnack2737]

Lawrence of Arabia is also one of my all-time favorite movies; a perfect film. History Bro and I completely agree on David Lean's Lawrence as a truly amazing film. The recent UHD-4K release of Lawrence of Arabia looks incredible on my OLED TV! What a truly brilliant film!

[@edwoodsr]

My choice for #1. While Apocalypse Now shows the insanity seen by the MC, Lawrence shows the insanity experienced by the MC.

[@Blackfoxparadox]

Cross of iron. Saving private Ryan Black hawk down Zulu Battle of Britain But there’s still loads of good ones that easily could make a top 5

[@BryanLindenberger]

Neat to see someone mention Cross of Iron. Not in my top 5, but one everyone who loves the genre should see.

[@privatesmith1560]

Try "Paths of Glory" (1950s), "All Quiet on the Western Front (1930s version) and "Cross of Iron" (1960s). The first is still the most realistic WW1 movie ever with a very good script, the second is the best from the perspective of an individual conscript and the third is the most gripping whilst being very realistic (except for any scene with women in it)

[@Fernoll]

What I loved about Apocalypse Now was the huge contrast between Kilgore and the Do Lung bridge. Kilgore and his men were in a Valhalla of sorts - Fighting by day, eating, drinking and surfing by night. Fallen soldiers (and even enemy VC) would be celebrated as heroes, and it's all cemented and tied with the Flight of the Valkyries. The Do Lung bridge, however... Where souls are sent for eternal fighting in the dark, with no real chain of command, no one to look to, accompanied by the constant shootings, explosions and screams. The bridge was Purgatory, Pandemonium and Hell. Those serving there were the doomed and the damned. When the protagonist gets there, those doomed souls beg him to take them from this hell, only to be silently refused.

[@libertyprime6932]

History Bro has some pretty great videos. His discussions with Sargon on Alexander, Phyrrus, Hannibal and Xenophon have been excellent.

[@jonbaxter2254]

Still makes me sad every time I hear about Hannibal

[@markhill3858]

@@jonbaxter2254 yeah well 50% of the commanders in all wars lose what you gonna do eh? nature of the beast .. he did bloody good considering the opponent really couldnt lose .. rather they could lose 1000 times but hannibal couldnt afford to lose once eh?

[@fredgarv79]

The Longest Day has to be in the top 5. so it's not utterly realistic in showing the horrors of war, but it's very realistic in just about every other way.such a well made film. A huge cast of major top flight stars in it, and I loved it that it was in black and white

[@jonbaxter2254]

Funny too. That scene where they just walk part each other because they were both looking up

[@markhill3858]

best part of it was it was made with the assistance of thousands of actual witnesses from both sides, bloody few war films can say that :) its almost a documentary/testimony, its very close to the real thing, best as they could do, and cannot be ignored for anyone studying the real thing

[@fredgarv79]

@@markhill3858 very well said and this movie highlights the huge importance of the british which is largely ignored by us americans. I never get tired of watching it. one thing I was curious about when the germans were defending on top of some hotel, what a realistic scene, they were using some really cool anti aircraft guns. I didn't think the germans had such a thing so I looked it up and sure enough they were american naval anti aircraft guns. they had this cool sound to them. that was about the only thing in the entire movie that wasn't spot on accurate. Also loved the movie "A Bridge too long" oh I mean a Bridge too far. ha. it was a long movie but wow what a great movie again with tons of big stars in it and utterly realistic.

[@markhill3858]

@@fredgarv79 I like to point to that one for "See Hopkins didnt start as Hannibal Lector he was a star for a long time :)"

[@doctormarazanvose4373]

It was actually shot in colour and displayed in black and white. There was a special edition VHS in colour that is hard to come by.

[@NHinPA]

Point of contention, Patton’s pistols weren’t Pearl Handled, they were Ivory Handled. He once corrected a reporter who asked him about his Pearl Handled pistols, and Payton replied, “only a pimp in a New Orleans cathouse uses a Pearl Handled pistol, mine are God F@$king Ivory Handled!”

[@snoopstp4189]

yea they cleaned it up a bit for the movie.

[@DaveE7492]

My top 5 1.) Saving Private Ryan 2.) Letters From Iwo Jima 3.) Black Hawk Down 4.) Platoon 5.) Apocalypse Now

[@Kirill_Beresta]

Yeah because "Come and See" is not a War movie and not a Great one either.

[@SpartyCubsFan]

I absolutely think Letters is a wonderful film - it has everything that Flags of our Fathers is lacking. Not that Flags is a terrible movie, but I find myself disappointed every time I do watch it

[@idrathergetaidsthangetwoke9145]

Apocalypse now isn't necessarily a war movie that's grounded in any reality. Although a good watch its still Heart of Darkness in SE Asia rather than in Africa. Saving Ryan's Privates is Spielbergian Schmaltz.... Made amazingly but all craft, no substance. BHD is very good ... Nothing epic, groundbreaking or novel though... Besides Hoot letting us know what's important. Platoon is a solid effort that was ruined by Stone's pathetic propaganda and fictional bias against the man and the mindset required to persevere in that conflict .... Barnes is Reality.

[@GojiraRising]

Black Hawk Down The Outpost Saving Private Ryan We Were Soldiers A Bridge Too Far Are my top 5 war movies.

[@cajunboi4888]

The Outpost is one of the best war films in a while,it’s easily the best War In Afghanistan movie.

[@LoneWolfRanging]

A lot of people challenged Jake tappers narrative

[@sandman_says_runrunner4701]

It was good, but I liked "Lone Survivor", "Hyena Road", & "American Sniper" more.

[@cajunboi4888]

@@LoneWolfRanging I don’t give a shit about him I just enjoyed the film for what it was.

[@abc-oq7dt]

I thought you meant Outpost the horror film haha

[@warrickterry4742]

The beast 1988

[@PaulMclauchlin]

The Duellists is definitely one of the best movies I've ever seen, it's a must see.

[@Flying_Orb]

Proper film. Easy to appreciate actors who have spent time learning how to fence instead of tippy tap each others sword.

[@MrBlurredOut]

Good call dude really good call a hit from hit and miss Ridley Scott

[@jaybee1061]

Lawrence of Arabia (1962) Spartacus (1960) The Great Escape (1963) Twelve O'Clock High (1949) The Dirty Dozen (1967)

[@andrewkessinger5966]

Something I loved about We Were Soldiers, which is one of my top 5 military films, was that it explored what the wives and families went through throughout those early battles as the military was not prepared for what happened.

[@WMFilms25]

Yes!

[@BoondockRoberts]

The movie got me interested in the real Hal Moore which in turn became a personal hero. His principles for leadership are outstanding.

[@Brantlins]

My mom always says that she has customers who were in nam who say that movie is incredibly realistic

[@martinjohn9904]

The napalm attack is harrowing and really well done

[@fredjones554]

the book is outstanding. there is a scene were a wounded air cav soldier is waiting as the NVA are going thru the bodies and executing them. just as he is about to get killed, a ground attack jet wipes out the NVA. the soldier was quoted 'god bless all airmen'

[@ghostlightx9005]

Mt list before watching.... 1. Apocalypse Now 2. All Quiet on the Western Front (1931) 3. Saving Private Ryan 4. Cross of Iron 5. Paths of Glory Honourable mentions to Kelly's Heroes, The Dirty Dozen, Dambusters and The Great Escape.

[@marcusmaher-triskellionfil5158]

No 'Come and See' arguably the greatest war film

[@wazzamagoodiddlydoo]

@@marcusmaher-triskellionfil5158 Oh man, I struggled with that one... sorry

[@johnplatt8565]

Another WW2 film that I really enjoy watching is Von Ryan's Express starring old Blue eyes Frank Sinatra along with a stellar cast of actors.🤩😎💯👌👍

[@The_Feud]

Run Von Ryan!

[@barry3045]

Black Hawk Down is currently my fave

[@captnwinkle]

This is our War, not yours...

[@kwazhims3lf]

“You can’t pick who falls from a chopper, who gets hit. It’s just war” Hoot, and the other delta force sergeant who fought with Steele constantly were GOAT.. oh Gordy, and randy too, went in to save their friend knowing they were prob going to die anyway. And knight, he never flinched, genius, he just reacted and did what needed to be done, ignored everything else... twambles and Nelson, going deaf

[@Chris-yz7cs]

5.Fury 4.Kellys Heros 3.The Great Escape ( shut up it is) 2.Saving Private Ryan 1.Platoon Honorable mentions go to, Black Hawk Down, A Bridge Too Far, Sink the Bismark! and 1917. Plus a spooky mention goes to Deathwatch starting Jamie Bell and Andy Serkis

[@guitarjacob1237]

Fury is absolute dog shit. Das Boot should be n1

[@MajorVanBloodnok]

@@guitarjacob1237 Fury is basically a chore to get through.

[@guitarjacob1237]

@@MajorVanBloodnok Yea. If you like more logical and com bat realistic action, watch "unknwown soldier". The finns have all done their conscription, so they have a good idea on how things works.

[@AcidifiedMammoth]

Dunkirk anyone?

[@PhilWare1]

Any chance of a Band of Brothers series review? I've watch it every 3 or 4 years and I'm still blown away and enthralled by the quality.

[@Brownie-ms6sv]

The companion series The Pacific is worth a look too if you like BoB that much.

[@Loose89]

@@Brownie-ms6sv The Pacific, while good, doesn't stack up to BoB. Everything from the visuals of BoB, being mostly practical effects to the series following the same group of characters for the length of the series make it an easier to follow and more enjoyable experience, with it also looking more gritty and realistic, as well as the characters and actors being more believable in their roles. Despite The Pacific having more gore it came off as cartoony at times with the CG and with the way some of the characters are portrayed and how they look even and focus mid-series it breaks the continuity which BoB had. Both are very good, but BoB is among, if not the greatest mini-series of all time IMO.

[@Brownie-ms6sv]

@@Loose89 I agree it's not up to the same level as BoB, few tv shows are, but it's still worth watching imo.

[@SpartyCubsFan]

@@Brownie-ms6sv I go back and forth on it. I’m glad I’ve seen The Pacific but don’t need to ever again, really. It lacks the story and structure of BoB, in addition to the mentioned quality and CGI issues

[@walshy3533]

Drinker, have you seen "the Hill" with Sean Connery? Brilliant film. It takes place during WWII in a British military prison in N Africa. One of Connery's best performances.

[@jhnshep]

Oh I forgot about that, looks like I have something to watch on bank holiday Monday

[@noway4879]

I don't know that one, ill give it a go.

[@somebloke757]

Probably Connery’s best film in my view.

[@jeanlove8510]

@@somebloke757 Yes, agreed, with "The Offence" as well but that's off topic for this video.

[@rewarwik8188]

Yesh

[@orarinnsnorrason4614]

Great discussion. Just wanted to say I highly recommend you check out The Operations Room. They show missions and operations from history and break it down from top-down view. The reason I mention this is because of Black Hawk Down. They did a fantastic 2 part overview of the mission and how it went down. Highly recommend to any one to check it out.

[@Moparmutt1976]

Not a real contender for "The Greatest", For Me Gallipoli is always top 3 brilliant, brilliant film

[@mustardnbiscuits5338]

If you're including Aliens you have to throw "Starship Troopers" in there.

[@prince-solomon]

Drinker was too drunk to pick DAS BOOT (WW2), my favorite & the most authentic (uboat) war movie of all time. Followed by Joyeux Noel (WW1). Now i'm too drunk to pick more...

[@ChimpRiot]

My favourite is The Wild Geese with Roger Moore, Richard Burton, Hardy Krüger and Richard Harris. It would probably be cancelled nowadays though since it deals with an African civil war and uses colourful language.

[@thehopperhopes6365]

Interesting thing it also had one of Mad Mike's mercenaries Ian Yule in the movie.

[@topi85]

You should watch Finnish war movie Unkown Soldier(the newest one)... Yes they speak other language then english but there is subtitles.

[@maxmax5054]

When I was a kid I loved The Alamo. I don't even remember that movie, but my father had it on VHS, so I watched it like 2-3 times a day, until he had enough and recorded some other movie over it XD

[@frankie3041]

The Cruel Sea (1953). The perfect British WWII naval movie. Shows the quiet, stoic courage of the British navy.

[@spitfiremark1a768]

A great film. Quite brutal and realistic for its time. Especially when Compass Rose gets sunk and the crew endure the freezing conditions.

[@mikavirtanen7029]

British movie industry made shitload of great war movies in the 1950's. The Cruel Sea, Ice Cold in Alex, The Battle of the River Plate, The Dam Busters and The One That Got Away just to name a few...no graphic violence or F-bombs, but good storylines, solid acting and great characters.

[@frankie3041]

@@mikavirtanen7029 All true. Also Dunkirk from 1958 with John Mills. Tells the real story of an army unit stuck in France and getting the order to retreat to Dunkirk. No fanciful nonsense added in like in the recent version.

[@somebloke757]

John Mills won WWII, pretty much shows up on every front. Ice Cold in Alex is the best of those movies in my view, the scene where they are reverse cranking the ambulance up the sand dune is epic.

[@rev68]

So I just watched Where Eagles Dare for the first time. It was a good movie, if not a bit too long. I do think that it being a British production probably biases you a bit, as I don't think it's anywhere near a top 5.

[@ChrisisisB]

I hated it the first time, can live with it now. Way too cartoonish. Clint Eastwood fires a gun, 2 germans fall down dead. Clint Eastwood throws a grenade out the window, 3 german armored cars explode. IMO it fails as a war movie, but it's a fun adventure movie.

[@simmo1024]

I'd recommend 'heartbreak ridge'. Basically the Clint take on Full Metal Jacket. Great film.

[@EmpireFanatic]

My top 5: 1: Master and Commander 2: Black Hawk Down 3: A Bridge Too Far (Edit: Remembered this one too late, easily top 3 :)) 4: Letters of Iwo Jima 5: Glory If I had to go on, the following would be in a top 20: Force 10 of Navaronne, Kellys Heroes, Where Eagles Dare, Troy (extended), All Quiet on the Western front, Saving Private Ryan, The last of the Mohicans, Kingdom of Heaven (extended), Hacksaw Ridge, Braveheart, Waterloo, Max Manus, Den 12 Mann, Kongens Nei, The Patriot. Lots of other hounourable mentions though ;)

[@newcreatureinchrist5087]

The Longest Day remains my favorite war movie…had all the stars of the day in it, give it a watch if you haven’t! I also love Full Metal Jacket!

[@The_Feud]

Love it. Henry Fonda as Teddy Roosevelt Jr. really hits home, and The Duke is great as always, even on a cart.

[@joethemig1522]

All of these are trumped by Band of Brothers. Just rewatched, and it's just so incredible, especially given that it's all true. Honorable mention tho goes to Greyhound. Great film that really captured the chaos of the convoy strategy against the wolf packs.

[@Jackaljkljkl]

For Medieval battle scenes, Branagh's Henry V really nails the brutality of it all, and the panning post-battle shot is a classic.

[@georgeedward1226]

My non WW2 list would be: 1.Black Hawk Down 2.Gettysburg (1993 with Martin Sheen) 3. Zulu 4. The Crossing 5. Master and Commander

[@ironcladnomad5639]

Master & Commander is such an underrated movie.

[@georgeedward1226]

Not sure it's really a "war movie" but the battle scenes are brilliant. Saw it in a movie theater and it sounded like the cannon balls were zooming over my head.

[@lokenontherange]

@@georgeedward1226 It is a war movie.

[@cypherdiaz8260]

I havent seen the crossing to my recollection, but based on my agree entirely with you list I should.

[@yoshiforpm]

I was waiting to see someone else mention Gettysburg. A brilliant film that couldn’t be made today.

[@effinjamieTT]

The Hill starring Sean Connery, set in a WW2 Army prison camp. Amazing performances by everyone involved.

[@marcusmaher-triskellionfil5158]

Come and See...one of the greatest war films ever...sadly our chaps as much as i think they're great need to take off their English speaking glasses and watch a real film...forget your hacks like Tarantino...oh Paths of Glory is up there

[@bigben8502]

Agreed.

[@kickintheeyevideos]

Come and See is art whereas War movies are entertainment

[@Sonofdonald2024]

agreed. I havn't watched all of the stream but many of my favourite war movies are foreign language. Stalingrad (the German original) Land of Mine,TV series Generation War. So many to pick

[@heraldofwar]

Greatest war movies should have their own categories such as fantasy or historical war movies. Otherwise LOTR Return of the king, 300, Kingdom of heaven or Last Samurai as some mentions. Still good picks from both Drinker and History Bro.

[@reflections6996]

Kingdom of heaven is fucking brilliant, such a criminally underrated masterpiece

[@ruthsaunders9507]

@@reflections6996 Director's Cut.

[@jkfozul2316]

@@ruthsaunders9507 I thought Ridley Scott was all weird about director's cuts

[@reflections6996]

@@ruthsaunders9507yes of course

[@ruthsaunders9507]

@@jkfozul2316 He may be. The theatrical release was chopped up so bad that it didn't really make sense and didn't do as well as he'd hoped in the box office. His directors cut is the movie he intended to release.

[@Destro7000]

Tears of the Sun aint a bad one. Behind enemy lines too.

[@chainsawsubtlety9828]

Tears of the Sun was a great movie. Probably would have done better without the art-house title, though.

[@erikdolnack2737]

Apocalypse Now is, in my opinion, THE greatest war movie ever made. It may in fact be the best movie ever made, of any genre. It would easily make my top-three of favorite movies of all-time.

[@xpatriatedtexan2122]

Loved when Drinker was talking about how movies like the Deer Hunter couldn't be made today. But then I remember movies like the Road and No Country for Old Men have been made recently. I still have some hope.

[@WrathDrago]

Will I mean No Country for Old Men was made 14 years ago and The Road 12 years ago. The political and social climate was different back then than it is now, so I can see where the Drinker is coming from.

[@MFitz12]

I suppose my favorite list would be very fluid, changing with time and mood. Currently it would read roughly as follows; April 9th (or 9 April I suppose depending on ones side of the pond); the Tremors of war movies. Perfectly done on a tiny budget. Land of Mine; Another Danish war movie from 2016 that was up for an Oscar IIRC. Covers the end of WWII where 9 April covers the first day. Come and See; Shocking Russian flick. Letters from Iwo Jima (subtitled edition) Siege of Jadotville From the looks of things I'm a bit meh over the big Hollywood epic blockbuster type movies at the moment. And I must like reading. And character development.

[@martinan22]

The Cruel Sea is a fantastic war film also.

[@LLDavis-qe8wb]

As a 78 year old Vietnam combat veteran.. I've see a lot of combat. I would say that the top ww 2 is saving Private Ryan. Also Brad Pitt movie fury. As for the Vietnam it would be Rodger Stone platoon, and of course Apocalypse now. But realistic movie's aside I like Kelly's heros.

[@captnwinkle]

Fury was awesome but last scene sucked, too unrealistic. Now, Starship Troopers, totally reall. As a Mexican, thanks for your service sir!

[@kwazhims3lf]

I would like to hear your thoughts on the first half of Full Metal Jacket

[@LLDavis-qe8wb]

@@kwazhims3lf.. the entire movie was crap..

[@wun1gee]

Fury sacrificed too much reality for flashy drama. Like the scene with the Tiger. In real life at the ranges they were at, the two 76mm M4s would've put APCBC rounds right through the Tigers glacis with absolutely no trouble at all. There wouldn't have been a need for a cross-field rush. 2 76mm M4s vs a Tiger = a dead Tiger. The 76mm M1 gun could kill a Tiger at like 1,900 yards or something silly like that, and that's not even counting the APCR rounds.. Also the whole "supply shortage" feel was unnecessary. We were talking April 1945. Weeks before the end of the war. We had more tanks over there than we knew what to do with. Supply units were begging the stateside armories to stop sending tanks because they had nowhere to put them. The like about "not being able to do anything about mechanical issues" is just another example of drama defeating realism. In reality, if they had a busted lugnut they could've gotten a new tank.. Let alone a new lugnut..

[@captnwinkle]

@@wun1gee nice points and totally agree. At least the girl had her las egg

[@thomaspreston3618]

You can talk half way around the world with a 1/4 watt radio. They had those in WW2. They were just a one frequency unit

[@ScoundrelSFB]

I'm part way in, but if Das Boot is not mentioned I will be sorely disappointed. Saw the director cut in theatres and that is by far my favorite next to saving Private Ryan. The sounds of the ASDEC radar still gives me chills, that whole search for them still almost makes me bite my nails.

[@stuartmiddleton1972]

I actually thought that the whole end of the movie was better than Conrad. From my last reading of the book Conrad didn’t really specify what Kurtz had did. This movie did. Learning that they actually used real bodies!! It was a real nightmare.

[@thehopperhopes6365]

Perfect call on the Big Red One . Try some Russian movies Battle for Sevastopol, 9th Company , Siege of Leningrad, Panfilovs 28 , there is a TV series called Night Swallows - basically the night witches as you discussed.

[@georgeedward1226]

"Joyeux Noel" just came to mind. Good movie, heavy on the Scottish accents though!) I would actually categorize it as a peace movie more than a war one. One scene in particular left a lump in my throat.

[@hairydave82]

One of my mates from Uni is in that. He plays one of the Scottish soldiers.

[@yoshiforpm]

Let me offer five that I don’t see mentioned at all or much: 1) MacArthur: A forgotten follow-up to “Patton.” Gregory Peck is brilliant as the General. 2) Red Dawn: Oddly, one of the more insightful movies about partisan warfare ever made. 3) Gettysburg: Lyrical and well-acted, could never be made today. 4) Lawrence of Arabia: Great writing, better performances Well, that’s four.

[@JH-pt6ih]

Lol. Red Dawn is on my short list of dumbest movies ever made. Gettysburg is written by Michael Shaara and based on his historical fiction novel The Killer Angels. Very good book and it amazes me how often I think of that book some 30 years after reading it.

[@spacedinosaur8733]

@@JH-pt6ih Which one, the original Red Dawn, or the remake?

[@JH-pt6ih]

@@spacedinosaur8733 Original. Haven’t seen the remake.

[@EmpireFanatic]

In my town in Norway all 3 LOTR movies had 10 minute intermissions. I think it was because they had to change the wheel. Definetly Return of the King had it. Never experienced it before or since. The Cinema in Oslo (Oslo Spektrum does a yearly LOTR marathon, theres 10 minute pauses between the movies :P. I saw all 3 movies 3 times originally when they were rerleased and then I saw all 3 in a row in the cinema as said in 2010). I dunno if they still do it though (Midnight all the way to the morning).

[@EmpireFanatic]

I have Lawrence of Arabia on DVD. The intermission is actually on the DvD, so you have to fast forward through it. Lasts about 10 mins. I think maybe Spartacus or was it Ben Hur which also has it. Monty Python and the Holy Grail also has an intermission, but thats put in for comedic effect :P

[@Localdefense]

Havent watched yet. But I'd throw Hacksaw Ridge in the mix. 👍 Always good stuff from the Drinker!

[@atragonx7939]

A Happy Hour right before Halloween where you discuss war movies!? Consider my expectations subverted.

[@onofftopic5275]

13 Hours for me is my number one. I've probably watched it at least 15 times. Heroic.

[@snoopywriter3643]

Drinker, I’ve doing a deep dive on your open bars, but I saw this Happy Hour and had to watch. I love historical movies, especially war films from every period.

[@narva8474]

Talvisota (1989) is the best war movie.

[@tubetorpedo]

How you should have done this, is to share your list with each others and watch those movies you have not previously seen before you made this stream. It would balance the conversation when both could have commented every movie and it would also be a great way to see new great movies. Nice conversation otherwise but a missed opportunity.

[@From-North-Jersey]

The big red one was awesome. The member of the squad who is the narrator and aspiring author working on his war epic was played Robert Carradine of Revenge of the Nerds fame. Written and Directed by Samuel Fuller.

[@BirdLady68]

I'm glad you mentioned The Enemy Below as an Honorable Mention. This was my Dad's favorite movie. I didn't appreciate it as a kid or young adult but as I mature, I appreciate it more and more. Thanks, Dad for introducing me to it. Interesting Fact, Star Trek: TOS borrowed heavily from it in the episode where the Enterprise is following a cloaked Romulan Ship that is in Federation space heading home. The Curt Jurgens character is played by Mark Lenard.

[@criticalmemetheory5404]

Paths of Glory and Where Eagles Dare are easily Top Five 🎯🎯🎯 💚💚💚 Broadsword calling Danny Boy

[@TheClutchCanuck]

Paths Of Glory is so overlooked as an all time great war film. It’s not the most action packed but it’s just a beauty of a movie

[@christopherhornung7929]

I once saw a Russian made Move called "The 8 Companie" what is about the Soviet war in Afgahnistan. In my eyes a well done move and it was refreshing to see something like that from a Russian perspectiv. But me as a German fella, I would also recoment "The Downfall" of course and a Move from the early 90 what is simply called Stalingrad.

[@teddkave327]

All excellent choices.I'd like to also add: Come & See Kingdom of Heaven (the director's cut, not the god awful theatrical version) Casualties of War (this film would never get made today) and Battle of Algiers

[@SandyQueue]

Glory - American Civil War movie. Amazing acting and great story.

[@rhineriversurf5594]

Stalingrad from Vilsmeyer is one of the best ever. Apocalypse is Art. Lawrence is perfection. I go for this top3

[@egomania2792]

People watching this, consider taking a look at the german production "Unsere Mütter unsere Väter", rereleased as "Generation War". Its a movie about 5 german friends and their experiences within the second World War.

[@davebarrowcliffe1289]

The Duellists is a truly beautiful film. Worth 2 hours of any reasonable person's time...

[@tchoupitoulos]

Sterling Hayden was great in Dr. Strangelove as Colonel Jack T. Ripper. His earlier career was spent mostly playing in a ton of low budget noir films as heavies as well as doomed protagonists. Later he would be known for playing the corrupt police chief that Michael Corleone kills at Louie's Italian Restaurant in The Godfather.

[@randomscribblings7192]

Master and commander and downfall would definitely be in my top 5. Have to think about the rest.

[@Ya_Mosura]

Glory is one of my favs. No idea if it's historically accurate or not.

[@maximiliand2544]

It's pretty close actually.

[@georgeedward1226]

Glory was a good movie but any American movie that involves race tends to get a bit preachy.

[@Ya_Mosura]

@@georgeedward1226 I think it was pretty fair, the scene with Morgan Freeman sticking up for the common white soldier comes to mind. Now, if it was made today on the other hand...

[@georgeedward1226]

True. That scene was very good.

[@Sonofdonald2024]

Stalingrad (German version) 1917, Glory , Dunkirk (2017), Land of Mine

[@maximiliand2544]

The parachute invasion scene from A Bridge to far is the best I've ever seen. So many extras. So many real planes.

[@davidallen3774]

And real paratroopers. All the extras that did the jump sequences were members of the Parachute Regiment

[@maximiliand2544]

@@davidallen3774 At my age ive seen many great scenes in a lot of war movies but that scene has to be the most impressive ive ever seen. Hands down. It never fails to fill me with awe.

[@mudcrab3420]

The amount of real and working equipment they used in this movie is very impressive. I think half the British tanks are actual runners. The scene where Michael Caine drives down the line of tanks has some fibreglass statics to make up the numbers, but the rest were real.

[@captnwinkle]

No way it's better than the Klendathu drop

[@maximiliand2544]

@@captnwinkle CGI is the death of great cinema.

[@stephenrichards4443]

Dualists is a great movie. Wonderful and unexpected pick. Well done a must see and review for the Drinker.

[@veightyone]

I don't agree that only Germans that were ideological nazis were the only bad guys, and wermacht were only doing their job. After 5 years of brutal occupation, it wasn't only the nazis who did atrocities, book "ordinary men" i think describes it the best. 5% of the Germans refused orders to murder civilians, at all or at some point. Knowing our - Polish history i'd agree with that estimation.

[@TheDoomKnight]

Taegukgi, a Korean movie about the Korean War. Absolutely phenomenal, fantastic acting, and based in a true story. A remarkable film I highly recommend!

[@Vyleea]

What I learned from the discussion is that "war movie" is a really loosely defined term :D

[@mikavirtanen7029]

One man's historical epic is another man's war movie...well, in a way Casablanca and Gone With the Wind are war movies.

[@TheB00tyWarrior]

That's semantics. War movies are a unique But easy category to define. It's about battles and the hardships/victories within. The plot is not about the politics, significant others, all that bullshit. Those are devices in the background

[@mikavirtanen7029]

@@TheB00tyWarrior That's like your opinion, man. I have in my bookshelf old Videohound's War Movies opus, which divides War Movies in seven different categories...Unit pictures, resistant movies and spies, homefront stories, action adventures, anti-war combat films, re-creations of actual battles and service comedies. You can have your opinion, but it's not universal truth.

[@josephw.1463]

_Tora! Tora! Tora!_ --- it's a tiny bit surreal because it doesn't have any cursing, but it's an excellent telling of the Pearl Harbor saga from both Japanese and American viewpoints.

[@johnholmstrom1192]

I am so sorry I missed this livestream, I would have to have posted a comment or two. I have always wondered about your knowledge of war films (which were action movies before Marvel superheroes: When I was growing up, WW2 soldiers were our film heroes). For some strange reason I agree that "A Bridge Too Far" deserves the top spot, and thanks for mentioning "The Great Escape." My father was a "guest" of the German government in WW2 and worked on the many escape attempts at Stalag Lufe 3 as a forger (he published a book of his P.O.W. drawings after the war). He took us to see it (I was 10 years old) when it came out. His comment? "Aw, you know those Hollywood guys!" That said, I would list the Marx Brothers "Duck Soup" as the best war film of all time, with Kubrick's "Paths of Glory" as the second-best. Maybe you can do some follow-ups someday on war movies: Best Civil War films, best WW1 films, best WW2 films... etc.

[@ScorpionP2C]

Not sure what happened to the original upload but wanted to say this guest was really good! Please have him back, his charm and excitement are infectious as well as so knowledable.

[@jahu5440]

Original upload was on "Critical Drinker" channel, reupload is on "Critical Drinker After Hours" channel. This is how Mr. Drinker is mostly doing it. But I also agree with your comment about Mr. Bro - this livestream was very interesting and so seems to be his channel as well

[@captnwinkle]

I woke up half drunk/hang over Monday night... (I'm Mexican) thought ot was a Documentary cuz of his voice!

[@franfenderjazz]

4 weeks too late but watch Battleground with Van Johnson. I watch it every Christmas. Ask any WWII vet and they'll tell you it's the most realistic WWII flick ever made.

[@THEPETERC1]

Breaker Morant is worth 10 of yours, O soused son of Ossian! And...and...well...Starship Troopers is worth an honorable mention. There! I said it!

[@chimpboy12345]

The thing with Blackhawk Down; it was criticised at release by some for the reason you mentioned, about not "showing the other side". But the book was written by someone who was in with the US troops and it was all based on real men, some of them are combinations of several people for movie making necessity, but still real. What people need to think is that to "show the other side" would have meant just... making stuff up. For dubious reasons. That would be pretty insulting for both sides.

[@blatherama]

The other fun thing about Blackhawk Down is you had a cast that included Legolas (Orlando Bloom); Obi-Wan Kenobi (Ewan McGregor); Mad Max (Tom Hardy); Lucius Malfoy (Jason Isaacs); and Jamie Lannister (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau).

[@blatherama]

@@JustinK808 Only saw that movie once a thousand years ago. Completely forgot Legolas and Ang Lee Hulk were in it.

[@JackBurtonPCE1986]

Drinker, I think you must've been holding your list upside down. Where Eagles Dare is clearly #1!

[@Maverick-7508]

Operation Market Garden was one of Montgomery's biggest follies, and it was made worse by Montgomery allowing a massive german force to escape the Falaise pocket. In addition you had the massacre of polish paratroops in a german/english crossfire, the english were using the same ammo as the germans, so the germans were able to capture 1st division ammo drops and use them. As for Monty's rep, he had no part to play in the victory in North Africa. The defense of El Alamein was setup and planned out by the general Monty replaced, he had no part in it.