And now for the honorable discharges:
101. The Dam Busters
102. Beau Travail
103. Zulu
104. We Were Soldiers
105. Barefoot Gen
106. King Rat
107. The Imitation Game
108. Quo Vadis, Aida?
109. They Shall Not Grow Old
110. Lincoln
111. The Last Samurai
112. Where Eagles Dare
113. Europa Europa
114. Three Came Home
115. Born on the Fourth of July
116. Catch-22
117. Kagemusha
118. Casualties of War
119. Ice Cold in Alex
120. Stalingrad
101. The Dam Busters
102. Beau Travail
103. Zulu
104. We Were Soldiers
105. Barefoot Gen
106. King Rat
107. The Imitation Game
108. Quo Vadis, Aida?
109. They Shall Not Grow Old
110. Lincoln
111. The Last Samurai
112. Where Eagles Dare
113. Europa Europa
114. Three Came Home
115. Born on the Fourth of July
116. Catch-22
117. Kagemusha
118. Casualties of War
119. Ice Cold in Alex
120. Stalingrad
Beau Travail: I love Denis Lavant's narration and it has its impactful moments, but throughout the few times I've seen it, I've yet to warm up to the middle section and the film still leaves me cold. I just wish I could feel the weight of what Lavant's character was going through better.
Zulu: Though it has its rough moments, the battle scenes are the clear highlight of this one and are far ahead of their time. I don't like them enough for it to make my ballot, but I'm glad it came close to making the countdown.
Barefoot Gen: I watched it in the Group Watch thread and enjoyed it. Here's what I wrote on it: Just finished Barefoot Gen, and I really enjoyed it. It's very dark, but powerful and the subject matter is important. In regards to the child characters being annoying, I remember having that issue with Grave of the Fireflies, but I think the voice acting in this film was easier to sit through. That acting style is normal for anime though, to my understanding.
King Rat: Another film I watched in the Group Watch thread. I thought it was alright: Just finished King Rat. While I somewhat admired certain elements about it like King and Grey vying for power and King's and Marlowe's friendship, I didn't feel like either of these elements added up to much I found interesting and I found myself deeply unengaged throughout much of the runtime. Showing so little of the Japanese guards was an interesting touch though. I'm curious to read what the rest of you have to say about this film.
The Imitation Game: It's been too long since I've seen this one. I just remember thinking the acting was good. Don't have much of an interest in revisiting it anytime soon though.
Quo Vadis, Aida?: Yet another Group Watch thread nomination. Here's what I wrote on the film: Also, just finished Quo Vadis, Aida?, and I really enjoyed it. I liked how it came from the perspective of someone who isn't any significant danger from the troops, yet her family is and she has to figure out a way to protect them. It made for a good point of view, especially as the UN troops are slowly shown to be at the mercy of the Serbian troops. It won't make my ballot, but I'm glad I was able to watch it.
The Last Samurai: It was one of my favorites growing up, but I haven't thought about it in a while. Not sure how I'd respond to it now.
Europa Europa: I wrote a pretty extensive review for this one earlier this year. I have my issues with it, but it's still a good film. https://letterboxd.com/popcornreview...ropa-europa/1/
Kagemusha: Not nearly as epic as it tries to be, but it's still worth watching as Takeda makes for a decently interesting character given the tough situation he finds himself in all throughout the film. He can remain a formidable character, but is always at risk of his true colors being exposed. I think Kurosawa would go on to direct the film he intended this one to be five years later with Ran though.
Anyways, none of them made my ballot.