The Top of the Bleeping Obstacle: MoFo Top 100 War Movies Prelims!

→ in
Tools    





I don't see someone to pay much attention at recommendations but anyway:

Ice Cold in Alex (1958)Directed by J. Lee Thompson.

Thrilling adventure in Sahara desert during WWII.
I'm going to watch that one tonight. Thanks for the recommendation!



....Ice Cold in Alex (1958) Directed by J. Lee Thompson...Thrilling adventure in Sahara desert during WWII.


I just watched that last night thanks to your recommendation. One of the best war films I've seen recently. Shot in Libya and available in HD it looked great and was very well done. I enjoyed it!



Since we sometimes theorize as to which directors will appear the most often in countdowns, lemme remind the people here of some directors who are quite prominent in the war genre.


  • Abel Gance (Napoleon, The battle of Austerlitz, J'Accuse)
  • David Lean (Lawrence of Arabia, Dr. Zhivago, The Bridge on the River Kwai)
  • Gillo Pontecorvo (The Battle of Algiers, Kapo, Burn)
  • Lewis Milestone (All Quiet on the Western Front, Edge of Darkness, Halls of Montezuma, Pork Chop Hill, A Walk in the Sun)
  • Masaki Kobayashi (Human Condition trilogy, Tokyo Trial)
  • Roberto Rossellini (Rome Opern City, Paisan, Germany Year Zero,
  • Samuel Fuller (The Big Red One, Fixed Bayonettes, The Steel Helmet)
  • Sergai Bondarchuk (War and Peace 1-4, Fate of a Man, Waterloo
  • Stanley Kubrick (Full Metal Jacket, Paths of Glory, Dr. Strangelove, Spartacus, Barry Lyndon, Fear and Desire)
  • Steven Spielberg (Schindler's List, Empire of the Sun, Saving Private Ryan, 1941, War Horse)



Since we sometimes theorize as to which directors will appear the most often in countdowns, lemme remind the people here of some directors who are quite prominent in the war genre.


  • Abel Gance (Napoleon, The battle of Austerlitz, J'Accuse)
  • David Lean (Lawrence of Arabia, Dr. Zhivago, The Bridge on the River Kwai)
  • Gillo Pontecorvo (The Battle of Algiers, Kapo, Burn)
  • Lewis Milestone (All Quiet on the Western Front, Edge of Darkness, Halls of Montezuma, Pork Chop Hill, A Walk in the Sun)
  • Masaki Kobayashi (Human Condition trilogy, Tokyo Trial)
  • Roberto Rossellini (Rome Opern City, Paisan, Germany Year Zero,
  • Samuel Fuller (The Big Red One, Fixed Bayonettes, The Steel Helmet)
  • Sergai Bondarchuk (War and Peace 1-4, Fate of a Man, Waterloo
  • Stanley Kubrick (Full Metal Jacket, Paths of Glory, Dr. Strangelove, Spartacus, Barry Lyndon, Fear and Desire)
  • Steven Spielberg (Schindler's List, Empire of the Sun, Saving Private Ryan, 1941, War Horse)
Good list. For Spielberg, Bridge of Spies and Lincoln are also eligible. So there could be two directors with 6-7 films on the list!



Good guess. He might have 3-4 on the list. Kubrick and Spielberg will likely have a few on the list too.
Yes I'm sure Paths of Glory Schindler's List and Saving Private Ryan will be on it. I wonder how many of the war pictures that were filmed during WWII will be on the list?



Yes I'm sure Paths of Glory Schindler's List and Saving Private Ryan will be on it.
Yup for sure.


wonder how many of the war pictures that were filmed during WWII will be on the list?
Not many I think, but I have 9 that were made during WWII in contention for my ballot. Any guesses as to that those 9 are?



I have 9 that were made during WWII in contention for my ballot. Any guesses as to that those 9 are?
Casablanca and eight others. 😀
__________________
"Film is a disease. When it infects your bloodstream it takes over as the number one hormone. It bosses the enzymes, directs the pineal gland, plays Iago to your psyche. As with heroin, the antidote to Film is more Film." - Frank Capra



Other than the peerless Casablanca here are some of the other great flicks made during the war, for my taste...

Chaplin's The Great Dictator
Lubitsch's To Be or Not To Be
Hitchcock's Saboteur and Lifeboat
Powell & Pressburger's The Life & Death of Colonel Blimp
Rossellini's Rome, Open City
Preston Sturges' Hail the Conquering Hero
John Huston's Across the Pacific
William Wyler's Mrs. Miniver



I'm not gonna vote for Casablanca personally, but I expect it to make the countdown and deserves respect for whatever WWII commentary it provides.



Society ennobler, last seen in Medici's Florence
Something pre-20th century (to diversify things)...

...please don't forget this Shakespeare style classic:

Henry V (1989)

Directed by Kenneth Branagh

Starring Kenneth Branagh, Paul Scofield, Derek Jacobi, Ian Holm, Emma Thompson, Judi Dench and still young Christian Bale.

This was absolute cult for all cinema admiers back then more than three decades ago.
Brilliant casting, acting and all of the rest...

What a high culture war film creation!

__________________
"Population don't imitate art, population imitate bad television." W.A.
"You can't depend on your eyes when your imagination is out of focus." M.T.



Here's an interesting recommendation: Shadow in the Cloud (2020). I watched this on Netflix. Chloe Grace Moretz stars in this World War II drama about a female pilot on board a plane with top secret cargo...and a gremlin! This is an unusual blend of B movie, creature feature, sci-fi horror and war aerial adventure. I thought it was pretty fun. I enjoyed Moretz's performance and the gremlin looks cool. Check it out...



Here's an interesting recommendation: Shadow in the Cloud (2020). I watched this on Netflix. Chloe Grace Moretz stars in this World War II drama about a female pilot on board a plane with top secret cargo...and a gremlin! This is an unusual blend of B movie, creature feature, sci-fi horror and war aerial adventure. I thought it was pretty fun. I enjoyed Moretz's performance and the gremlin looks cool. Check it out...

I would totally be watching that ASAP if I wasn't trying to lower the percentage of horror in my movies log by focusing on other genres.



So what actor do people think will make the most appearances on the countdown? Humphrey Bogart? John Wayne? Kirk Douglas? Clint Eastwood? Someone else?



Something pre-20th century (to diversify things)...

...please don't forget this Shakespeare style classic:

Henry V (1989)

Directed by Kenneth Branagh

Starring Kenneth Branagh, Paul Scofield, Derek Jacobi, Ian Holm, Emma Thompson, Judi Dench and still young Christian Bale.

This was absolute cult for all cinema admiers back then more than three decades ago.
Brilliant casting, acting and all of the rest...

What a high culture war film creation!


On another Shakespearean note, I'd like to mention that the 1944 Henry V directed by Laurence Olivier is also eligible. I'm going to watch both.



So what actor do people think will make the most appearances on the countdown? Humphrey Bogart? John Wayne? Kirk Douglas? Clint Eastwood? Someone else?
Without thinking about it too much, I'll guess Tatsuya Nakadai.