One of my favorite war movies I forgot
"Sailor of the King" (WWII re-make)
The original pre-war movie titled "Brown on Resolution" was set during WWI.

When I was a kid I thought Battle Of The Bulge was the coolest movie I'd ever saw. Then I grew up and watched it again and realized how horrible it truly was.

I don't know if I have a favorite. Maybe Casablanca

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Retired Career Security Guard

Top three:

Catch-22

Patton

The Dirty Dozen

Twelve O'Clock High. My all time top of the list favorite and I have seen all the many good ones mentioned.

"The Memphis Belle: A Story of a Flying Fortress" 1944
"The Cold Blue" 2018 (Using William Wylers Archived film)

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Compact 9mm Just my $0.02

Casablanca…

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Where Law Ends, Tyranny Begins

I was an airlifter by trade in the Air Force, so "A Bridge Too Far" is high on my list. Made when computer generation didn't exist, so it's all real C-47s, gliders and troop drops. Great cast.

The Devils Brigade
Sands of Iwo Jima
Band of Brothers
The Pacific
Merrill’s Marauders
Hell is for Hero’s

Just a few WW2 favorites that come to mind.


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Kirk Douglas was right. It was a good movie with those poor effects. It could also have done away with the romantic triangle between Douglas, Torrey's son and the nurse. That didn't really add anything to the film...but the relationship between Duke's character and Patricia Neal's was great and believable.

Didn't see them previously mentioned.

"1944" and "My Way"

No particular order:

Das Boot

Downfall

Casablanca

12 O'Clock High

Run Silent, Run Deep

Midway

Tora! Tora! Tora!

Battle of Britain

The Dam Busters

Patton

Zero (Japanese)

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"He was kinda funny lookin'"

I thought of another one, 'Farewell to the King' with Nick Nolte.

The Enemy Below
Action in the North Atlantic
They Where Expendable

Anyone else remember "An American Guerilla in the Philippines" with Tyrone Power? Haven't seen it for many years but I thought it was very good back when. Especially those slam-fire shotguns made out of water pipe. After watching it I thought about making one. Probably a good thing I didn't.

"Passage to Marseille" was another good Bogart war film. It was banned in some countries because of the scene where Bogart used his Lewis Gun to kill some Germans floating in the ocean after their plane was shot down. That was too unsportsmanlike I guess. I am partial to movies that show the use of Lewis guns. There are actually quite a few of those.

"Across the Pacific" was also a good Bogart war film performance. Except the title was deceptive because no one actually crossed the Pacific. At least not in the movie.

There are so many good WWII movies that it’s hard to choose. I suppose my Top 10 are:

“Pride of the Marines”
“Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo”
“Back to Bataan”
“They Were Expendable”
“Flying Leathernecks”
“Twelve O’clock High”
“The Dirty Dozen”
“Best Years of Our Lives”
“Since You Went Away”
“Battleground”

“Pride of the Marines” with John Garfield is a favorite because it’s a true story about Philadelphia Marine Al Schmid. They filmed some of it in Philly, including at the Navy Yard.

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Wheel guns are real guns.

All of the above. Had many friends that were there, some wounded and some came back OK. Sadly all are gone now but their stories are still in my memory.

"Best Years of Our Lives" (1946) was undeniably an excellent movie, but was mainly a poignant study of the adjustment difficulties former servicemen faced when they returned home to civilian life after WWII. I don't think there was a single shot fired. Several other films from that period had much the same general homecoming trauma theme, but were not nearly as well done.

Saw a WW2 movie on TCM I had never seen before...."The Americanization of Emily" with James Garner, James Coburn and Julie Andrews. Drama/comedy about a cowardly admirals aide who is caught up in a scheme to film the first sailor to land on Omaha Beach.

I tried watching that once but didn't get too far; certainly not anywhere close to James Garner's best efforts.

Are we talking about "To Hell and Back" that is the autobiography/movie of Audie Murphy's life to the end of WW II. It is the 3rd Inf Div. that is portrayed in the movie. To Hell and Back (film - Wikipedia)

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USMC 69-93 Combat Pistol Inst.

All the movies mentioned are good in their own ways. I have enjoyed the all, Been watching WW II flicks since the 50's. One good one that no one has mentioned is "Wake Island". Made in 1942 Wake Island (1942) - IMDb

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USMC 69-93 Combat Pistol Inst.

I think I may have seen it long ago but don't remember for sure. But the History Channel had an excellent documentary about it some years ago called "Wake Island, Alamo of the Pacific"

It was made before anyone knew the results of the battle. Thus they got it wrong and showed the Marines dying to the last man. In fact, many were captured and were prisoners of war for the duration. When they were asked about the movie, one of the surviving Marines said, "Well, first thing, we didn't have a dog." Gotta love grunts!

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The best I can with what I got

It was worth watching and Julie Andrews was still sort of hot at the time (mid-1960s). Saw something about her on TV a few days ago. She is still alive and over 90 today. And looks it.

Gung Ho is another one I enjoy.

Found Cross of Iron on Prime so I’m gonna check it out.


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They knew the results of the battle. The battle for Wake Island ended Dec.23, 1941. The movie was released on Aug. 11, 1842. I would guess they gave the feeling that all had died to hype the propaganda of the film.

Battle of Wake Island - Wikipedia.

wake island movie - Google Search

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USMC 69-93 Combat Pistol Inst.

Has anyone mentioned Stalag 17 or The Desert Fox?

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LIVE FROM THE DAWGHOUSE

I only saw a couple people mention Hacksaw Ridge, are you kidding me? That’s probably my most favorite movie of at least the last 10 years.

What a great movie. I don't boo-hoo at movies much, but the scene where Homer is demonstrating to his girlfriend how he has to get dressed with his hooks gets me tearing up every time.

One that surprised me recently was Miracle in the Rain. Its a 1956 Van Johnson WWII tearjerker, but there is one extraordinary scene. Van and his girl (Jane Wyman, already the ex-Mrs Reagan) are in a cafe and a recently returned vet is at the counter and has an episode of "the shakes", what we would now call PTSD. Van and Jane see it happen, and go over and comfort him and shield him from the others in the place until it passes. Gave me the chills.

(Edited to clarify for future generations: I totally got this wrong. While Miracle in the Rain is a perfectly good movie, the scene I’m thinking of was in the often overlooked “Till the End of Time” from 1946.)

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“What you got, ain’t new.”

I think "Best Years of Our Lives" is easily in the top three of WWII films. It's incredible how well a non-actor like Russell played his part (even if he was depicting himself) in the movie. His role still required much work, practice, and determination.

My mom, a WWII survivor could never bring herself to watch it a second time.

I can't either as, like her, I am too empathic and soft-hearted.

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Music/Sports/Beer fan

And he got TWO Academy Awards - only person to get two Oscars for the same role in the same movie.

He was nominated for Best Supporting Actor, but no one expected him to win. He was so well-thought of that he was given a Special Oscar first, then went on the win the other. He sold the Best Supporting one to pay for his wife's medical bills decades later.

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“What you got, ain’t new.”

Plus 1 on Fordson's pick of "A Walk in the Sun"- a great cast & good story line. The book is a good read also if you can find it.

Also- "The Hill"- a fairly early Sean Connery starring role. He plays a Brit career SgtMajor, during WW2, who refuses an order to take his men into a certain death situation. He is sentenced to time in a Brit penal camp to break his spirit & return him to the war. An excellent cast.

BYOOL also had an outstanding musical score by Hugo Friedhofer which set the mood perfectly. Up there with the "The Bad and The Beautiful" musical score (which had nothing to do with WWII).

While not one of my favorites, a rarely shown but very interesting WW 2 movie is The Pursuit of the Graf Spee (1956). It is a pretty realistic portrayal of the events leading to the cornering and ultimate destruction of the Graf Spee, one of Germany's commerce-raiding armored cruisers, (called a "pocket battleship" by the Allies), tracked down by three Royal Navy cruisers and forced to scuttle itself off Montevideo early in the war.

For me, the most interesting aspect is the use of a ship that actually participated in that battle, the HMS Achilles (which at the time of filming had become the Indian Navy's INS Delhi). The Achilles was crewed by New Zealanders (and was later transferred to the New Zealand Navy), and I was able to read its log book which was on display at the Auckland War Memorial Museum. Its entries are concise and remarkably matter-of-fact at the time the Achilles was trading salvos with the Graf Spee. The only thing I noticed in the log that betrayed the excitement that must have been going on, was that the sea temperature that ordinarily would have been recorded at that time, was not taken. I wondered if some junior officer got in trouble for that omission. Somehow, I doubt it.

The "roles" of the other British ships are played by WW 2 vets. There are many scenes shot at sea, and the cinematography is first-rate. It's worth a view if you haven't seen it.

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What, me worry?

I didn't see that scene. The only "cafe" scene was a restaurant called the "Cafe Normandy" and there are only tables. No counter. And Van and Jane never comforted a soldier. How far into the movie is it?

Since the question was what one film was my favorite, it would be "Dunkirk". Surprised nobody even mentioned it (unless I missed it). I was born in 1942 and my father and all my uncles were overseas or at sea during the war and I've seen lots of WW II movies, many of them great. I'd rate "Saving Private Ryan" number 2. Interestingly, my paternal grandmother had all three of her sons stationed in Europe from 1943-1945. The local newspaper published a story about her. Fortunately, they all returned and lived to old age.

You are completely right - I’m thinking of the wrong movie.

“Till the End of Time” - 1946, the same year as Best Years of Our Lives.

Guy Madison, Dorothy McGuire, and Robert Mitchum.

Sorry about that.

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“What you got, ain’t new.”

Hello. I'm new here member. How are you guys doing?
A Wing and a Prayer

Welcome from Northern NY. There are a lot out there with that title, I will assume you are referring to the 100 Bomb group!

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14 S&W Revs none with locks!

12-O-Clock High is mine.
I used to collect WWII 50 Mission Crushers.
Love them Crushers.
Pretty sure Peck's was the Bancroft Flighter?

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Dave Ramsey Cultist

I like 1941. Toshiro Mifune with Christopher Lee and Slim Pickens' Cracker Jack compass.

Classic.

Loved John Belusi as Wild Bill Kelso.

Gonna have to get that one out & spin it again.


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I liked Ned Beatty. "DO NOT load a magazine into the gun. DO NOT......."

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The best I can with what I got

I haven't seen In Harm's Way mentioned yet. The cast was a who's who of war movie stars, and I think was one of John Wayne's best films.

Another one I didn't see is Hell in the Pacific. Only two characters in the whole film; Lee Marvin as a castaway Marine washed up on a small island, and Toshiro Mifune as a Japanese soldier similarly marooned.

The Enemy Below and Heaven Knows, Mr. Allison are two of Robert Mitchum's best.

If we are going to include "1941", then "Kelly's Heroes"needs to be there too..... Kelly'''s Heroes (1970) - IMDb

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USMC 69-93 Combat Pistol Inst.

No comparison; "Kelly's Heroes" may not have been excellent, but it was a pretty good film and worth watching once, unlike "1941".

The boys and I enjoy 1941. I have it on a stick.


"I seen a house fly...".

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Music/Sports/Beer fan

I watched "1941" when it was first released. It must have failed to make a lasting impression on me as I remember little about it beyond John Belushi being in it.

Check out a young Mel Gibson in "Attack Force Z." Sam Neill, too.

Pretty low-budget, but you get to see some suppressed grease gun action.

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Because of the metric system?