The Movieforums Top 100 War Movies Countdown

Didn't Make the List (3/4)

17. The Shop on Main Street (1965)

I was thrilled to see this nominated in the group watch thread as this was another film which had no chance of making the countdown which I was happy to see get an extra bit of exposure on this site. It's not so much focused on war so much as it's focused on the rise of fascism on the town and Rozália's and Tóno's relations together. Their scenes together are simultaneously brutal to watch, yet you still hold out a slight bit of hope that things will end well for them. While Rozália can't survive without Tóno's company, being around him also puts her life in danger due to his somewhat unpredictable and rough nature. And Rozália's inexperience of the war doesn't help anything either. Overall, it's a rough situation where there doesn't seem to be a safe way out of it, and bearing witness to the claustrophobic situation throughout the film is what provides the film's suspense. I also enjoy WW1/WW2 films which give us lesser known perspectives of the war which aren't covered often, so that's another plus. Great final minute, too. All things considered, this is likely my favorite Czechoslovakian film.

Most likely to enjoy this: @Thief

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IMDb
Letterboxd

My updated ballot:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5. To Be or Not to Be (#41)
6. The Battle of Algiers (#24)
7.
8. The Best Years of Our Lives (#21)
9. From Here to Eternity (#30)
10. The Ascent (#33)
11. The Thin Red Line (#17)
12. Pan's Labyrinth (#54)
13. The General (#64)
14. Kanal (#61)
15. Red Angel (#100)
16. Underground (#43)
17. The Shop on Main Street (N/A)
18. This Land is Mine (N/A)
19. Barry Lyndon (#50)
20.
21. The Fifth Seal (N/A)
22.
23. Johnny Got His Gun (#97)
24. Night and Fog (#48)
25. The Deer Hunter (#25)

Tomorrow, I'll reveal what my #1 pick was. A couple of you may be able to guess it.

Nice! Just added it to my ever-growing watchlist on Letterboxd

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I bet mark_f would have had that on his ballot, probably pretty high up, too.

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"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

Saving Private Ryan is my #5 and I love everything about it. Enough people have talked about it to reflect my sentiments so I'm good with that. On the subject of Sam Fuller, I love The Big Red One and I really need to plunk down for the Reconstruction DVD. I saw it on cable about ten times when cable was relatively new in my neck of the woods and this great film was in heavy rotation. But I didn't think it fair to put it on my list unless I had seen it in recent years, which I haven't. But I did put another Fuller film on my list, one which I'd seen for the first time about 2 years ago and that's the already mentioned The Steel Helmet. I thought it was great and one of those rare movies about the Korean War (rare in the sense that WWII and Vietnam War movies seem to vastly outnumber them) that had a chance of making the countdown. Sorry to see I was wrong. Just a bit of trivia about TSH: there is an orphaned Korean boy who joins the platoon whose nickname is Short Round. Hmm, I wonder if one of the writers of a certain Indiana Jones movie liked TSH? Lastly, I really thought The Big Red One would make it but just wishful thinking in hindsight. I had The Steel Helmet at #20 on my list.

#2 Platoon "Barnes been shot seven times and he ain't dead. Does that mean anything to you, huh? Barnes ain't meant to die. The only thing that can kill Barnes is Barnes." #16
#4 1917 "Look, its just a bit of bloody tin. It doesn't make you special. It doesn't make any difference to anyone." #31
#5 Saving Private Ryan "I just know that every man I kill the farther away from home I feel." #8
#6 Das Boot "They're drinking at the bar, celebrating our sinking! Not yet, my friends. Not yet!" #9
#7 The Longest Day "In this darkest hour, in the gloom of night, we must not despair. For each of us, deliverance is coming!" #36
#8 Hacksaw Ridge "Please Lord, help me get one more. Help me get one more." #67
#9 We Were Soliders "If any of you sons of bitches calls me grandpa, I'll kill you." #104 DNP
#10 The Hurt Locker "The rush of battle is often a potent and lethal addiction, for war is a drug."#58
#12 Dunkirk "Seeing home doesn't help us get there, Captain." #47
#15 Patton "Rommel, you magnificent bastard, I read your book!" #28
#17 The Best Years of Our Lives “I had a dream. I dreamt I was home. I've had that same dream hundreds of times before. This time, I wanted to find out if it's really true. Am I really home?” #21
#18 The Dirty Dozen "Killin' generals could get to be a habit with me." #32
#20 The Steel Helmet "First we'll eat; then we'll bury 'em," DNP
#21 Tora! Tora! Tora! "It looks good on paper, but for God's sake... that's not a paper fleet sitting out there." #63
#23 The Deer Hunter "Stanley, see this? This is this. This ain't something else. This is this. From now on, you're on your own." #25

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"Miss Jean Louise, Mr. Arthur Radley."

8. Saving Private Ryan - Once you've seen it, it's somewhat diluted, but I'll never forget sitting in a cinema and watching Steven Spielberg's recreation of the assault on Omaha beach on D-Day, 6 June 1944. There had not been many true reflections made concerning the reality of battle in film history - especially when it comes to how hot metal, explosive force and fire can destroy a human body. For 24 unrelenting minutes we share in the terror from a first person POV that puts you there - and in that cinema the whole audience were being shaken by the non-stop shocks and concussions. The visuals, explosive sound and panic all meld into the audience's mind, and when it was finally over a gasp was let out from every person in attendance. We'd had our first sense of what it must feel like - and we understood right then why some soldiers lose their mind. After that, the story about a group of soldiers sent to rescue a lone surviving brother from a family who had suddenly lost three out of four in action, is top notch - and although nothing can compare to that opening, we'll revisit the horror of the fight, and come across many of the moral quandaries soldiers and officers faced during those dark days. Tom Hanks cemented his iconic status as one of the best actors of the 1990s, and I found myself returning to Saving Private Ryan many times - it was one of the great war films of it's day, and shared a spotlight with The Thin Red Line, which came out the same year. I didn't like The Thin Red Line at first, but I've since come to love it a great deal. Saving Private Ryan however - that became one of the greatest cinematic experiences I've ever had after only around 24 minutes. Private Ryan (Matt Damon) will always wonder if he (and by relation his generation) earned the sacrifice made by his brothers and comrades - but he and they did. We really need to remember what that sacrifice was all about. I had Saving Private Ryan at #10 on my list. 6 in a row - let's see tomorrow if I can keep the streak going.

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Seen : 71/93
I'd never even heard of :12/93
Movies that had been on my radar, but I haven't seen yet : 10/93
Films from my list : 18

#8 - My #10 - Saving Private Ryan (1998)
#9 - My #6 - Das Boot (1981)
#10 - My #8 - All Quiet on the Western Front (1930)
#11 - My #3 - Schindler's List (1993)
#12 - My #9 - Grave of the Fireflies (1988)
#13 - My #12 - Downfall (2004)
#15 - My #21 - Inglourious Basterds (2009)
#17 - My #11 - The Thin Red Line (1998)
#20 - My #17 - The Cranes Are Flying (1957)
#27 - My #15 - The Human Condition I: No Greater Love (1959)
#31 - My #20 - 1917 (2019)
#33 - My #2 - The Ascent (1977)
#34 - My #4 - The Human Condition III: A Soldier's Prayer (1961)
#38 - My #23 - Glory (1989)
#49 - My #24 - The Guns of Navarone (1961)
#51 - My #7 - The Human Condition II : Road to Eternity (1959)
#70 - My #14 - The Caine Mutiny (1954)
#74 - My #16 - Shoah (1985)

Overlooked films : Breaker Morant, Fail-Safe, Night and Fog, Casablanca

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I had The Big Red One at #19 on my list. Alas my 7 points and your 6 added to whatever other people may have given it weren't enough for it to make a showing. I really thought it had a chance - obviously more people need to see it. Oh, and yes, anyone who does should watch the The Reconstruction - it's 1980 cinematic release was butchered by madmen.

My guess is that it might be a film that rhymes with "The Unravelling Layers" - if my guess is correct, it probably missed out on a good 20-or-so points from me - a fanatical convert to it's greatness.

My thoughts exactly. Doesn't belong in the top 10 in my opinion. Afters the opening, it's a series of shootouts and Band of Brothers type escapades. Decent film but overrated.

Maybe The Unravelling Layers is an actual movie title. I guess we'll find out soon enough.

The opening is a good, tense scene, but I was talking about dialogue. Your other two examples are crap. Especially Landa. He ruined it for me as much as anything.

I was tempted to go with the proper The Inglorious Bastards, but I don't even care greatly for that film either. Though I do prefer it, naturally.

I wouldn't have thought The Cruel Sea was obscure? But maybe that's just a view of a middle aged Brit?

EDIT: So it's much of a nothing after that opening 25 minutes that I forgot that SPR had been revealed. Yeah... Umm... I prefered it as Call Of Duty: Medal Of Honour. It's well made, it's decent, it's... Yeah, that's what it is. KInd of the Gladiator of war films. It's there, it does what it does and it leaves. Apparently that's enough for the majority of those who see it, so it ends up near the top of lists like this. I don't in any way hate it, I just don't see what's so great about it beyond that opening.

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5-time MoFo Award winner.

Yeah, maybe not so much to those that were around when it opened or closer to it. It is a 1950s film, but as far as I'm concerned, I rarely see it mentioned. Even when submarine films have been briefly discussed, I don't remember its name coming up. It has 5.2K ratings in IMDb, and less than 2K on Letterboxd. By those metrics, I would say it is little known and/or obscure.

Some facts about our last entry... with 26 ballots, it edges Das Boot (25) as the film that has been present in most ballots so far.

Interestingly, they both got the same point (413), which comes after the biggest point gap (53) between two films. It's also the first tie in points we've had since #37 and #36.

Steven Spielberg becomes the third director with three (3) entries in the countdown, with Empire of the Sun (#40), Schindler's List (#11), and now Saving Private Ryan (#8). The other two are Masaki Kobayashi and Sergei Bondarchuk, both for series films (The Human Condition and War and Peace).

Saving Private Ryan also sneaks into the Top 5 as far as IMDb ratings go, with 8.6 points.

Looking at the presumed movies left, I say it's gotta be Bridge on the River Kwai, today. Start whistling, Colonel Bogey.

I predict Apocalypse Now will be #1.

further on revealing my ballot step by step ...

My #24. Black Book (2006)
Directed by Paul Verhoeven

Discovered this film several years ago while examining Paul Verhoeven's works.
A Dutch view of the WWII events on their land, presented very attractively: ...suspense, romance, drama... Worth to see movie, as a whole.


80/100

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My Ballot
▽
1. Empire of the Sun (1987) [#40]
2...
3. The Pianist (2002) [#23]
4...
5. Underground (1995) [#43]
6. The Deer Hunter (1978) [#25]
7...
8. Ivan's Childhood (1962) [#56]
9. Platoon (1986) [#16]
10. The Great Dictator (1940) [#22]
11. The Thin Red Line (1998) [#17]
12...
13. Ice Cold In Alex (1958) [#119]
14. Enemy at the Gates (2001) [#88]
15. The Hill (1965) [#94]
...
18. The Hurt Locker (2008) [#58]
...
21. Saving Private Ryan (1998) [#8]
22. Catch-22 (1970) [#116]
23...
24. Black Book (2006) [DNP]
25. The Book Thief (2013) [DNP]

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"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.

I think I'll borrow that quote from you in the very near future

It's mainly about a British convey escort ship, not really a sub movie persay, though I think there is a sub in the first third of the movie.

Please no.