The Best War Movies | A Top 10
The Best War Movies | A Top 10 It is quite interesting and also strange that whenever we watch war movies, we are usually in
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Recently, I wrote about historical fiction books, and the response was overwhelming. So, I thought, why not write about the best historical movies? After all, movies about history teach us about the past in a visual setting that we can’t exactly imagine while reading the books.
There’s an interesting difference between movies about history and books, however. As movies have a larger audience following than books, writers and directors exploit this medium easily. After all, producing a propaganda movie and historically and factually incorrect movies is easier.
So, it doesn’t come as a surprise that most historical movies released in the 20th century were propagandist, nationalist, or bragging. However, all is not lost.
Since cinema, many of the best history movies have been produced, capturing the essence of any particular historical era as closely as possible. As it is difficult to separate fact from fiction in history movies, I am doing something different.
The movies on our list are not about who conquered who or which political or religious ideology is better. These are human stories, showing what they had to entail and what tragedy they had to endure. Most importantly, they show human resilience, love, and resolve to improve in adversity.
I am curating a list of the best historical movies from across the globe, not just from America or Europe. This way, we can see movies by those better at narrating their history. So, let’s get started!
The Look of Silence is a documentary film directed by Joshua Oppenheimer. It focuses on the Indonesian genocide of 1965-66 and explores its lasting impact on survivors and perpetrators alike. Although Oppenheimer is an American director, he collaborated with an Indonesian family to learn about their past and make a factually correct movie.
The documentary film follows Adi Rukun, an optometrist whose brother Ramali murdered during the ‘Communist’ purge. Adi and his family, just like other families, lived in fear until the creation of one of the best movies about history.
In the film, Adi confronts the men responsible for his brother’s death, many of whom still hold positions of power in Indonesian society. Through these emotional encounters, Adi tries to find the motives behind the killings.
As Adi examines the eyes of former death squad leaders, he simultaneously probes their conscience, asking difficult questions about their past actions. What happens afterwards reveals denial, guilt, and fear in those years of Indonesian history.
The Look of Silence earned a nomination for Best Documentary Feature at the 88th Academy Awards. It won the Grand Jury Prize at the Venice Film Festival. It is one of the best historical movies, showing how confronting historical atrocities can be challenging to reconcile.
The Boy in the Striped Pajamas is a 2008 historical drama directed by Mark Herman. Set during World War II, it is about an unforbidden children’s friendship with unexpected consequences. But can anyone prevent children from becoming friends?
The film follows Bruno, an eight-year-old son of a Nazi commandant, who moves with his family to a house near a concentration camp. Bored and lonely, Bruno explores the area around his new home to do something new. He eventually meets Shmuel, a Jewish boy his age who lives on the other side of the camp’s fence.
Despite their differences, Bruno and Shmuel form a friendship, meeting regularly at the fence. Bruno, who’s too innocent to know about the war, believes that Shmuel and the other prisoners are farmers in striped pyjamas. As their friendship grows, Bruno’s innocence slowly erodes as he begins to understand his father’s work and the camp.
The film’s portrayal of the Holocaust’s horrors through childhood innocence makes it one of the best historical movies. Child friendships shouldn’t face such traumas as I celebrated a child friendship in Moonrise Kingdom movie, which I covered in coming of age movies. There are many other best history movies and TV shows about WWII that you can stream. Here’s the table to get started.
Movies | TV Shows |
Das Boot [Germany] | Generation War (Unsere Mütter, unsere Väter) [Germany] |
The Pianist [France/Poland] | A French Village (Un Village Français) [France] |
Letters from Iwo Jima [Japan] | The Heavy Water War [Norway] |
The Resistance Banker [Netherlands] | Band of Brothers [USA] |
Life Is Beautiful [Italy] | Land Girls [UK] |
Dunkirk [UK] | The Pacific [USA]
|
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon is a martial arts film directed by critically acclaimed Ang Lee. This Taiwanese-Chinese-American co-production stars an assembled cast. The film takes its name from the same name novel by Wang Dulu. If you want to enjoy stunning martial arts action coupled with a love story and history, this is one of the best historical movies to watch.
The film is set in 19th-century Qing Dynasty China and follows Li Mu Bai, a renowned swordsman about to give up his warrior life. He entrusts his legendary Green Destiny sword to his friend Yu Shu Lien. However, a mysterious thief steals the sword.
As Li and Yu investigate, they encounter Jen, the governor’s daughter, who harbours a secret desire for adventure and freedom. As the story develops, we learn that Jen has been trained in martial arts by Jade Fox, the murderer of Li’s master.
The film was the first non-American movie in American cinema that generated over $100 million. Not only was it a commercial success, but it also won four Academy Awards. The movie remains a modern classic for its blend of action and drama, making it one of the best movies about history.
NO is a Chilean historical drama film directed by Pablo Larraín, also famous for Neruda. The movie stars Gael García Bernal and is based on the unpublished play “El Plebiscito” by Antonio Skármeta.
The film is set in 1988 in Chile during the historical referendum on Pinochet’s presidency. It follows René Saavedra, a young advertising executive who devises a campaign plan to vote Pinochet out of power. Despite constant threats from the oppressive regime, René devises an upbeat, positive campaign titled ‘No.’
As René is a marketing guy, he uses catchy jingles and optimistic imagery that contrast the traditional boring campaign of the opposition. As the campaign gains momentum, things become difficult for René, who must face personal risks and political pressures.
NO received critical acclaim and was nominated for Best Foreign Language Film at the 85th Academy Awards. It won numerous other accolades, including the 2012 Cannes Film Festival Art Cinema Award. The movie is one of the best historical movies about the resilience of a guy who found a way to oust the dictator.
Another interesting movie is The Motorcycle Diaries. Although not strictly Chilean, its characters, one of whom plays Che Guera, do come of age when they travel through South America and Chile. I covered this movie in the best Argentinian movies.
An Interesting Note
Dictators like to oppress people so they can stay in power forever. During the military regime in Brazil, which lasted from 1964 to 1985, one of the military strategies was to silence and discourage protest. For that, they used slogans like “Brasil, ame-o ou deixe-o” (Brazil, love it or leave it) and “Silêncio é bom” (Silence is good). Who knows, our guy René might have taken inspiration from Brazil but used constructively to oust the dictator.
It’s time for a romantic history epic, and what better movie than Jodhaa Akbar? The movie stars Hrithik Roshan as Mughal Emperor Akbar and Aishwarya Rai as Rajput princess Jodhaa Bai.
Set in the 16th century, it explores these two historical figures’ political alliance and love story.
The movie is about Akbar’s marriage to Jodhaa, a political union strengthening ties between the Mughals and Rajputs. Initially, Jodhaa is reluctant to marry outside her faith, while Akbar faces opposition from his court for marrying a Hindu princess.
What one can do when two love birds decide to fall in love, so do Akbar and Jodhaa. The outcome is interesting, as Akbar implements religious freedom policies and cultural integration. Historically, it was a diplomatic marriage, as Akbar sought to strengthen his kingdom by getting on good terms with the Rajputs.
Akbar’s son, Prince Salim, later to become Emperor Jahangir, also fell in love with a courtesan, Anarkali. Ironically, his father disapproved of the relationship and had her buried alive outside the then-Mughal capital, Lahore. Mughal-E-Azam is one of the greatest historical movies ever made in India and is about their love lives. You can watch the movie on YouTube.
Jodhaa Akbar was a box office hit in India and won awards, including two National Film Awards and seven Filmfare Awards. It is one of the best historical movies on Netflix because of its grand scale, performances, and music. If you like Indian movies, you can also check out other Bollywood movies.
A Taxi Driver is a South Korean historical drama directed by Jang Hoon. It stars the critically acclaimed Song Kang-ho (who has also played lead roles in movies like Parasite, Memories of Murder, The Host, and Broker) and Thomas Kretschmann.
The movie is about a taxi driver who helped a German reporter cover the Gwangju Uprising in 1980. We see the real-life experiences of Jürgen Hinzpeter, the German journalist who reported on the uprising.
The plot follows Kim Man-seob, a widowed taxi driver in Seoul struggling to make ends meet. He overhears a foreign passenger looking for a drive to Gwangju and back and decides to take the job. The passenger turns out to be Jürgen Hinzpeter, a German reporter determined to cover the unfolding events in Gwangju.
As they arrive in Gwangju, Kim and Hinzpeter witness the brutal military crackdown on civilian protesters. Initially reluctant to get involved, Kim gradually becomes committed to helping Hinzpeter document the uprising. Together, they expose the truth about the government’s actions to the world.
The movie was South Korea’s official entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 90th Academy Awards. It is one of the best historical movies, showing the common man’s courage and journalism’s role in exposing human rights abuses. I also covered many other Korean movies besides A Taxi Driver.
If ever there was a movie that was a timeless classic with the finest acting, direction, and story, that would be The Battle of Algiers, released in 1966. It is shot in a documentary-like style and covers the Algerian War against French colonial rule in North Africa.
The film focuses on the years between 1954 and 1957, portraying the violent struggle between the Algerian National Liberation Front (FLN) and French colonial forces. We see FLN in the Casbah of Algiers and their escalating guerrilla tactics against the French.
The narrative is about the experiences of Ali La Pointe, a young Algerian recruited by the FLN, and Colonel Mathieu, the French paratroop commander tasked with crushing the rebellion. As the conflict intensifies, both sides engage in increasingly brutal tactics.
The FLN carried out bombings and assassinations, while the French responded with torture, executions, and indiscriminate violence. Eventually, the French army turns victorious in the Battle of Algiers, ultimately foreshadowing Algeria’s eventual independence.
The film was nominated for three Academy Awards and won the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival. It remains one of the best history movies for its realistic portrayal of urban guerrilla warfare and balanced approach to complex conflict. You can stream the movie on Amazon Prime.
Timbuktu is one of the best history movies directed by Abderrahmane Sissako. The film takes place in the ancient city of Timbuktu, Mali, during its occupation by the Islamic extremist group Ansar Dine.
Kidane, a cattle herder living peacefully in the dunes with his family, becomes entangled in a tragic conflict with a local fisherman. Meanwhile, the city’s residents face increasingly oppressive rules imposed by the jihadists, including bans on music, sports, and uncovered women.
As the story unfolds, we witness the impact of these restrictions on daily life. The film depicts acts of resistance, small and large, from a woman who refuses to wear gloves while selling fish to a group of youths who play an imaginary soccer game without a ball.
Timbuktu received widespread critical acclaim and numerous accolades. It won seven Césars, including Best Film and Best Director, and was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film. It is one of the best historical movies on human resilience in the face of oppression and the importance of cultural preservation. You can stream the movie on Amazon Prime.
It is quite strange that Paul Rusesabagina wasn’t known to the world until 2004, when one of the best movies about history, Hotel Rwanda, came out. He left Rwanda in 1996 and used to work as a taxi driver in Brussels, Belgium. The journalist Philip Gourevitch briefly mentioned him in We Wish to Inform You. He was lured back to 2020 in Rwanda and sentenced to 25 years in prison. However, after America’s diplomatic pressure, he came back to America in 2023.
The movie Hotel Rwanda is about the life of Paul Rusesabagina. He was a hotel manager who sheltered over a thousand Tutsi refugees during the Rwandan genocide in 1994.
Paul Rusesabagina himself was a Hutu man married to a Tutsi woman who used to manage the upscale Hôtel des Mille Collines in Kigali. As the Rwandan genocide began, with Hutu extremists massacring Tutsis, Paul initially remained neutral to protect his family. However, seeing the dire situation, he used his connections to shelter Tutsi refugees.
However, the situation worsened every day, and he had to deal with difficult circumstances like bribing officials, calling in favours, and using his wit to keep the refugees safe. His risking his life to save others while the international community largely ignores the unfolding tragedy makes this one of the best historical movies.
Come and See is a Soviet anti-war film in Belarus during World War II. The movie portrays the Nazi occupation and the partisan resistance. The film is known for depicting war atrocities and its innovative sound design.
Flora is a young Belarusian boy who eagerly joins the Soviet partisan forces after finding a rifle. His enthusiasm turns to horror as he experiences the brutal realities of war. Separated from his unit, Flyora witnesses increasingly nightmarish scenes of violence and destruction.
As Flyora’s journey continues, he meets a young girl, Glasha. Together, they travel through lands full of death and devastation. The film is one of the best historical movies for its portrayal of the dehumanising effects of war.
You should also check out other best history movies about massacres and war tragedies from different regions and conflicts. For example, Farha (Palestine) and Incendies (Canada) are about the Lebanese Civil War.
Although, I could include many other best historical movies. After all, many of the best movies about history portray war, tragedy, love, and betrayal. The best history movies in this post cover wider regions, historical periods, and multiple conflicts.
If you have any particular favourite when it comes to the best historical movies, leave a comment.
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2 Responses
counterfeit traitor – great wwii film based on a true story and filmed in the actual locations where the original events took place.
Hi Louis, thanks so much! I didn’t know it, will add it to my watchlist 🙂