Spam my WAR Countdown ballot!...movie recommendations needed

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Being tagged at IMDb is a good way to make an official criteria for submitting a ballot, but I don't for a second believe that's any way to come to an actual conclusion. You wouldn't feel differently if Casablanca wasn't tagged and Raiders was I assume, so I'm just asking you personally why one is war and the other isn't.

A lot of what I'm asking you is simply to help make up my own mind on some films.
I guess I don't feel like going into why I feel one is and one isn't a war film. I can only say when I say 'one is and one isn't', I mean that's how I feel, not how others should feel. If a movie that I think is war isn't tag as such at IMDB I would be bummed (a little) but I would just pick another film for my ballot.



A great example of when to break the military chain of command and relieve a higher ranking officer of his duties, definitely counting it as War.
I always thought of it as action, but now I'm thinking how do I not count that if I count Das Boot?



...A lot of what I'm asking you is simply to help make up my own mind on some films.
I'll try to explain more in detail later, maybe tonight. I do appreciate your interest in my thoughts on the subject. Right now I'm not feeling really hot (I'm tired and have a headache...probably have a headache because I'm tired).



I guess I don't feel like going into why I feel one is and one isn't a war film. I can only say when I say 'one is and one isn't', I mean that's how I feel, not how others should feel. If a movie that I think is war isn't tag as such at IMDB I would be bummed (a little) but I would just pick another film for my ballot.
I don't think you could have said anything that I agree with more. I was hoping for more concrete reasoning, because the fact is that I go by the same method that you do, which is how does it strike me.



Just some thoughts I had:

I am on the fence about Hiroshima Mon Amour. You have any thoughts?
I verily recall that but I do seem to remember there were flashbacks to Hiroshima and the woman talked about hiding in a cellar in France during the Nazi occupation. Seems like enough of a war film to me.

I won't be voting for Stripes or Failsafe, which I see much more as comedy and thriller, and there are others.
If I remember correctly Stripes is about people in the military but there's no war going on. I would say it was a war film if the same film had been a period piece set during the Vietnam war. Personally I don't think of comedies as war but yet M*A*S*H is a war film in my book. Dr Strangelove? Seems to me it was set during the cold war which isn't a war but a global political situation.

This is key.

War is probably more diverse than the comedy countdown. Is gang war included ala "The Warriors" or "City of God". I mentioned earlier about " Testament" and the like. Also "Pan's Labyrinth" which covers a few genres.
The Warriors, love that film but sure hope it's not included. Pan's Labyrinth, it was set during war time but for me the heavy fantasy elements renders it a non war film.

I get the argument for it, but I have certain criteria when deciding for myself. If you were going to show Casablanca to someone for the first time, could you tell them going in that it was a war film without them feeling like they were misled? I don't think so. If you told them it was going to be a classic romantic drama, I don't think there's any way they'd say, hey you didn't tell me it was a war film. Of course it has something to do with war, but for me it's about a nightclub owner who runs into an old flame, and it just happens to be set during wartime. Just my pov though. Obviously many films touch multiple genres, but also obvious is that not every film with humor is a comedy. In the case of Casablanca, it's not a case where I feel strongly enough to really debate it though. If I did consider it a war film, it would be my #1.
The first two times I seen Casablanca I thought of it as a jaded-jilted bitter sweet romance story...but I watched it for the third time only a couple of days ago and I focused on how much the film was focused on war time messages and symbolism...from the way the Italian's were portrayed to the way the Vichy government was portrayed to the symbolism of the free French 'out singing' the Nazi's with the French national anthem, it was heavy on the war message.

I get that a lot of people expect a war film to contain battles, but not me. One of my top war films has no battle scenes at all: Twelve O'Clock High.

I'm currently leaning, "no," for my own ballot due to genre categorization being a little too far for me, but there's also some threads there, that I could see the argument for.


It'll probably end up being dependent on if I can think up 25 other films I really like (also, I suspect I'd be going Night and Fog first. Arguably Muriel as well).
Night and Fog was my nomination in the last Short HoF (it won)...It's a war film according to my criteria but probably won't place on my ballot as it's not a film I 'love'. I do think it's a 5/5 film but not something I want to put on the TV and watch at any given time. I wonder how many people need to 'like' the war films they will choose to include them on their ballots?

I'm on the fence with counting The Tin Drum, Three Kings, Crimson Tide, and Coming Home. Any opinions?
I can't remember Three Kinks but Coming Home seemed to be all about the aftermath of Vietnam so I would have no problem with that being a war film.



I'd agree about Dr. Strangelove & Failsafe (which are almost the same basic movie, but one's serious and one's not).
There's no real war going on (except the Cold War) until the very end of each movie - and since they both deal with the ultimate cataclysm of nuclear war, there is no on-the-ground combat.

I'd also agree that any films dealing with gang warfare are a different genre than those that deal with political warfare - sure, it could be argued that one's just a microcosm of the other, but the difference is warring criminal groups and warring established sovereign nations. Some might argue those are the same basic thing as well... and they'd have a good point. But gang movies aren't considered war movies.

Maybe we'll see a gang movie countdown soon!



My thoughts on the movies @cricket listed and I've seen

Rome, Open City....Well worth watching
Twelve O'clock High....Might be my favorite war film.
Run Silent Run Deep....Loved this one
Kingdom of heaven....Liked it OK
Sands of Iwo Jima...One of Wayne's best war films.
Gallipoli...Liked it.
Master and Commander....Tops with me
Imitation Game....Didn't care for it.
Fury...Hated it
War Horse...Hated it
Bridge too Far....Really liked
Longest Day...Really liked



I'd agree about Dr. Strangelove & Failsafe (which are almost the same basic movie, but one's serious and one's not).
There's no real war going on (except the Cold War) until the very end of each movie - and since they both deal with the ultimate cataclysm of nuclear war, there is no on-the-ground combat.

I'd also agree that any films dealing with gang warfare are a different genre than those that deal with political warfare - sure, it could be argued that one's just a microcosm of the other, but the difference is warring criminals groups and warring established sovereign nations.

Maybe we'll see a gang movie countdown soon!
Agreed and I will add to that: post nuclear apocalyptic films....unless the world was destroyed recently by a nuclear holocaust and no one told me!



You can't make a rainbow without a little rain.
Would you consider Raiders of the Lost Ark to be a war film? If not, what would you say is the difference between that and Casablanca counting?

I found this article about Raiders of the Lost Ark while researching war movies, and I thought it was interesting.


‘Indiana Jones’ theory suggests ‘Raiders of the Lost Ark’ was responsible for World War II

Could Indiana Jones have prevented World War II? Better yet, did the events of Raiders of the Lost Ark serve as the war’s catalyst? That’s the theory currently turning heads on Reddit.

After more than 40 years, Indiana Jones is still thrilling fans and making headlines. Although Harrison Ford is 80 years old, he’s cracking his iconic whip one last time for the upcoming Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny.

With so much attention being placed on the franchise, naturally, fans are drawn back to the classic films that made Indiana Jones famous in the first place. At the top of that list is the original 1981 blockbuster, Raiders of the Lost Ark.

In Indy’s first adventure, he famously raced the Nazis to find the mythical Ark of the Covenant. Said to hold the two tablets inscribed with the Ten Commandments that God gave to Moses, the plot revolved around the hidden religious artifact and the supposed power held within. As part of the movie, Hitler sends forces to Egypt where a rival archaeologist, Belloq, believes he has discovered the Ark’s resting place.

Despite Indy’s best efforts (and punches), the Nazis get their hands on the Ark with plans to unseal it in front of the Führer himself. However, Belloq convinces the German officers to first open it on an island near Crete. Of course, things go awry, and the Nazis are melted and vaporized by vengeful angels in one of cinema’s most famous scenes.

What would have happened if the Ark had been taken back to Berlin? One Redditor is confident that there would not have been a WWII had that occurred. In fact, he blames Belloq for causing the war

[Raiders of the Lost Ark] Belloq indirectly caused WW2

When the Ark was captured, the original plan the Nazis had for opening it was to open it in Berlin with the implication of the entire German high command being present for it's opening. Belloq wasn't going to be invited to this opening on account of his Jewish faith and it was only opened on the island after convincing Dietrich.

If the Ark was opened as originally intended, the Germans probably wouldn't have invaded Poland as the top brass of the Nazi party would have been killed during the Ark opening.
It’s an interesting theory that has been pondered by viewers since 1981. Since apparently, God did not like anyone touching his things, it’s safe to say it would have been a similar outcome had the Ark been opened in Berlin, only with Hitler and his top officers all having their faces melted.

Historically, Germany invaded Poland in 1939, thus setting the stage for WWII, and Raiders takes place in 1936. With Hitler and the Nazi regime vaporized, we can assume no one else would have given the command to send forces into neighboring countries.
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Just some thoughts I had:

I verily recall that but I do seem to remember there were flashbacks to Hiroshima and the woman talked about hiding in a cellar in France during the Nazi occupation. Seems like enough of a war film to me.

Despite loving the film, I'd have to refresh my memory, but the flashbacks are very short, I believe, and I think she's hiding in the cellar after the war (after the immediate liberation of France).


WARNING: spoilers below

This was due to her being afraid of her fellow citizens for being considered a collaborator for having having a German officer as a lover.



I was thinking about it, and the bulk of the film might be more comparable to Wyler's The Best Year of Our Lives, which people consider a war film, I believe. How much of that rests specifically on it being soldiers re-adjusting to post-war life vs citizens (though the man was presumably in the Japanese army, I'd assume).



Despite loving the film, I'd have to refresh my memory, but the flashbacks are very short, I believe, and I think she's hiding in the cellar after the war (after the immediate liberation of France).

WARNING: spoilers below

This was due to her being afraid of her fellow citizens for being considered a collaborator for having having a German officer as a lover.


I was thinking about it, and the bulk of the film might be more comparable to Wyler's The Best Year of Our Lives, which people consider a war film, I believe. How much of that rests specifically on it being soldiers re-adjusting to post-war life vs citizens (though the man was presumably in the Japanese army, I'd assume).
Thanks that jogged my memory about the woman in the cellar in Hiroshima Mon Amour. I looked up that movie and it's not tagged war so I won't include it on my ballot. However The Best Year of Our Lives, is tagged War and I feel it was enough about the aftermath of WWII service that it will make my ballot.



Let the night air cool you off
Das Booty
Bridge over the River Kwai
Bridge over the River Super Kawaii
Saving Private Someone or other: AKA Save Matt Damon Volume 1.
The Duellists
You forgot about Zuwu




I saw Twelve O'Clock High in 2017 and gave it 3.5/5.

You probably already know this, but Waterloo Bridge is tagged as war.
Thanks for recs, I hadn't heard of many of them. I'm starting to wonder if anyone is voting for the common war films, you know like Platoon

Glad you mentioned Waterloo Bridge because I might not have thought of that one. I don't log my movies and I can't remember them all. I'm going to add that to my list of potential ballot films.



You can most definitely expand the number of films to include as "war films" by loosening the definition or lessen them by tightening it (by say only including films with military combat).

I saw The Great Escape (1963) listed - I'd definitely call that a war film, but by the same account we'd have to also include Stalag 17 (1953) - another film that takes place entirely at a POW camp DURING WWII.

So, if POW camps are included then how about Japanese internment camps in the U.S. also DURING WWII? Would or should Come See the Paradise (1990) be included?

Or how about films that simply take place during a war where the war is a background setting yet directly effects the story? How about Mrs. Miniver (1942) - which tells the tale of how WWII effects a British family and includes such things as the blitz, the Dunkirk evacuation, sons going off to war, enemies on home soil (and even invading homes), and civilian casualties of the war on home soil?



You can't make a rainbow without a little rain.
Or how about films that simply take place during a war where the war is a background setting yet directly effects the story? How about Mrs. Miniver (1942) - which tells the tale of how WWII effects a British family and includes such things as the blitz, the Dunkirk evacuation, sons going off to war, enemies on home soil (and even invading homes), and civilian casualties of the war on home soil?

I haven't seen Mrs. Miniver in years, but TCM showed it a few days ago, and I DVRed it.