Yesterday was Memorial Day. It is not so much a celebration as an occasion for sombre remembering and reflection on those who fought in prior wars and in particular those who died in the event. I have seen some rather touching posts on Facebook by those so remembering fathers or brothers or others. For most of us, it’s through books and movies that we tap into the experience of war. That experience runs the entire spectrum of human experience. At the end of the post, I’ll ask for your favorite or most moving war movie or show. Here are mine.
First, for TV, Band of Brothers, the TV miniseries from 2001. The project was produced by Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg, based on the 1992 book of the same name by historian Stephen E. Ambrose. I did the book as a CD-book on a long drive before I saw the series. Different experience. The book is informative. The series is powerful and unforgettable. The book emphasized the role of citizen-soldiers in the US military, which had a very small professional army before the US became actively involved in the WW2. It also highlighted the key role of mid-level front-line officers, lieutenants and captains, in US military success. They had considerably more discretion to accomplish assigned objectives than in other armies. They performed admirably.
The series, of course, is more striking and moving in the emotional and visual sense. I don’t know that it had any lessons in the same way the book did. I really don’t have a snappy answer to the questions, “What did you learn watching the series?” It’s the story and the storytelling and the characters that are captivating. Easy Company was there at D-Day, at Bastogne, at concentration camps, and at the final push into the heart of Germany. I’ve seen it twice and I’ll happily do a third watch. One beef: if you see it streaming on one of the services, they typically cut the credit sequence. But there is explanatory material and interviews presented as part of the credits. So go rent the DVD to get the full presentation.
Movies? It has to be Saving Private Ryan, the 1998 movie with the same two stars involved, Tom Hanks playing Captain Miller and Steven Spielberg directing. Again, it’s the visual impact of the scenes that is initially so striking, compounded by the characters one sees develop over the course of the movie. Ironically, the movie illustrates the lesson of the Ambrose book: Captain Miller, a leader of men, was a schoolteacher before the war.
War movies. Some people like ’em and some people hate ’em. They show extreme situations that involve life and death. That’s a fine vehicle for drama, but also a way to remember and honor those who served and especially those who gave their life while serving. Here’s to their memory and sacrifice.
I don’t really have a Mormon-themed tie-in on this one. Like a term in the military, an LDS mission can be a transformative experience, but I’m not sure the comparison is that insightful. The only relevant point may be that both experiences can induce PTSD in a few unfortunate young men or women. But I’m not going to try to expand on that.
So what’s your favorite war-themed TV series or movie? Why do you like it? If you’re at the other end of the spectrum, I guess you can tell us what you don’t like about war movies.
Wheat & Tares 
Twelve O’Clock High (1949). A WWII bomber unit has morale and efficiency problems that are addressed, increasing the men’s effectiveness in winning a war. The format is almost a stage play on film, lots of conversations; all there is of action and spectacle is some footage of bombers taking off. A couple hours contemplating the kind of leadership it takes to get men to do, and do well, something that will kill many of them. It’s the one that popped up in my mind.
Two that always stand out are:
The Devil’s Brigade. I suppose it’s because it was filmed in Utah, particularly the Lehi area. I remember as a young girl when it was being filmed. Lots of buzz about movie sets and stars throughout the area. William Holden was the star. My father frequented the Lehi Cafe and used to give us a report of who was there.
The Dirty Dozen. How many times have you seen this movie on TNT or other? I loved Lee Marvin. One of my favorite actors. Again, a star-studded list of actors who were part of the Dirty Dozen “team”.
I do not know if my post will be accepted, it is not in answer to the questions at the end of the artcle.
It is a comment on my Father who was a member ot the 101at Airborne, the Screming Eagles during WWII.
He missed D-Day but was there for Bastogne, the inital push into Germany, the concentration camps.
He was so very youg at the time, only 19 when he signed up and was sent to Europe to clean up that mess.
He saw every single ugly thing about war and when he came home he put it behind him and looked to the future to raise his family.
It was not easy, I was the oldest born not too long after the war ended.
I remember him not being able to sleep and up at night.
Walking around the house and going outside to just sit.
Being raised in a nice suburban home in Denver and then sent overseas to a country you know nothing about and seeing the pain and misery and death of war affected so many of our very young men back then affected my Father deeply as it did so many others.
And they all put it behind them, came home and built a future.
Hope this does not get me deleted, I know this post does not answer the questions at the end of the article.
Thanks for the comments, everyone.
Mansfield, I remember watching reruns of the 12 O’Clock High TV series that followed the movie. I heard that George Lucas used the fighter attack sequences (of German single-engine fighters attacking B-17 bombers) as a template for Star Wars fighter attack sequences.
Susan, those were good ones. We should note that Jim Brown, the star NFL running back who passed away a couple of weeks ago, had a lead role (well, one of the dozen) in The Dirty Dozen.
Chloe, thanks for sharing. Easy Company (in Band of Brothers) was part of the 101st Airborne. As a kid, I read Currahee!, a book about the 101st Airborne. You should be proud of his service in that storied unit.
I think the Christopher Nolan film “Dunkirk” is incredible. I wished I had saw it in 70mm IMAX. I found myself looking up the real people it was based on.
Also “The Guns of Navarone” has been released in 4k with an Atmos soundtrack.
The Great Escape! (that sound you hear is me dropping the mic…………………..)
The Bridge Over the River Kwai is the only reasonable choice. It is a story about friendship, restraint, and the evils of seeking the limelight.
Dave B. , I have to agree with you that Band of Brothers and Saving Private Ryan are two of my top Memorial day regulars. The episode in BoB where they liberate the concentration camp just devastates me.
Some others are Lincoln, Glory, Flag of our Fathers, South Pacific, Tora, Tora, Tora, Platoon, and Hurt Locker.
If you are willingness to be more universal and not just consider US soldiers but the cost of war to any young man asked by their country to die for it, then both the old and new All Quiet on the Western Front , 1917, Dunkirk, and Letters from Iwo Jima have to be included.
If we consider the cost of war in civilian lives, then films like Grave of the Fireflies. A Beautiful Life, and Schindler’s List should be in the rotation.
Sorry, mild deviation from the post.
My father in law served in the military. When I tried to upload one of his pictures of his service in the military under memories to the LDS family search website, it was denied. As a military member he had a weapon in a still shot. Nothing noting aggression, a typical shot from 1980 military. This was uploaded 3 years ago, and returning to the website it still shows it conflicts with site guidelines, but has yet been accepted despite several requests to bypass the AI.
I understand not accepting violence and the gun issue. None of us are fans of war. But banning a personal appropriate military picture on the site of family history is a bit too much. Does the church apprecaite the military members, or just when military members use their position to “share the gospel”?
Looking at the GA’s who avoided missions by serving in the military, none have a picture with a sidearm. Were the GA’s in the military only serving as the cook, or administration, or were they in a military capacity. ?
Not trying to put picture on the liahona, just a private family website to share and for future generations.
When the church needs defense of the military they can throw their pens, bags of money or self righteousness at the oncoming enemy.
I’m not fan of war movies. But watch them occasionally. Favorites include: Apocalypse Now (because it’s an updating of Heart of Darkness), Three Kings, and Charlie Wilson’s War. And a second vote for Hurt Locker. The latter because it deals with being an adrenaline junkie, obsession, and the affect that war can have on the individual.
In high school, and early college, I was really into war movies. My favorite was Gettysburg, which actually began as a miniseries production, and didn’t ever really shake its made-for-tv flavor even in its big-screen release. I loved the big speeches, the brotherhood, and wondering how I might have performed in battle.
Oddly, and I think not coincidentally, my love for war movies dissipated with my Church activity. By my late 20s I was pretty much disenchanted. When you lose your hope for a glorious afterlife, sometimes the thrill of battle and the reality of war just being politics through violence becomes clear. Reportedly, one of the most brutal generals ever said, “War is hell.” He was right.
Probably the last war movie I ever loved was The Thin Red Line, which came out a few months after, and has ever remained in the shadow of, Saving Private Ryan. The Thin Red Line is very much a war movie for English majors. And its deliberately unflattering treatment of officer ego helps it remain redeeming to me. I’m also tempted to mention The Deer Hunter, but I don’t really regard that as a war movie.
Alas, I’m no special fan of Saving Private Ryan. The first half-hour is a masterful, much-needed deglorification of WWII and battle in general. I find the rest of the film too self-important and heavy-handed in its storytelling and messaging. But that’s a general criticism I have of every Spielberg historical-fiction film. For a good, all-American, witty walk-and-talk war movie, I say you can’t go wrong with The Big Red One, starring Lee Marvin and Mark Hamill.
2002’s “We Were Soldiers” for realism and 1970’s “Patton” for George C. Scott’s acting.
The BYU or LDS produced “Saints and Soldiers” is excellent. Wish it could have continued with more scholarly researchers lending their efforts to the project, oral historians. etc. I’m not aware of any comparable effort prior or after this series. We evidently have some spare $ lying around, reviving this project would be a valuable endeavor.
Darkest Hour (2017) is excellent and should be watched along with Dunkirk (also 2017).
Here, here for both bishop bill, and JCS ‘s suggetions. I’m not too keen on war movies, since they cannot help but glorify violence, even if this is not the intention. But, I do enjoy the occasionsl war FILM. The recent film “1917” was excellent – quite an achievement, shot in one continuous shot. David Lean’s epic Lawrence of Arabia (technically a war movie) is unparalleled, in my opinion. Three other films that use war as a backdrop for larger explorations of human flaws an foibles, include two of Kubrick’s early films, Paths of Glory, and Dr. Strangelove and his much later Full Metal Jacket. Stalag 17 (Billy Wilder’s best film imo), Mr. Roberts, and the Kane Mutiny, are all prime examples of the war/but not really war movie genre. The musical South Pacific also gets an honorable mention, because … I don’t need to give a reason. It should be self-evident. For a Mormon tie-in to the topic, I would say, for most TBM’s, military service is the only “acceptable” exemption for a young man not choosing to serve a mission.
Four films that I don’t think have been mentioned. All of these stories are layered and subtle in their own ways.
They Were Expendable. About PT boat crews who fought in the Pacific during World War II. The characters in this film understand that their assignment means their survival is not a high priority, but they are willing to sacrifice everything. The movie considers this kind of heroism.
The Best Years of Our Lives. At the end of World War II, three veterans return home to the same small American city and try to resume their lives. I think this is as good as any movie I’ve seen about coming home from war. I think it’s also one of the best of all Hollywood dramas.
Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World. Adventures at sea on a British Navy ship during the Napoleonic Wars.
Come and See. A remarkable Russian film about the German occupation of Belarus during World War II. This film is extremely grim and disturbing. It probably comes as close as any movie does to being genuinely anti-war; at least for me, there’s no glorification of war to be found anywhere in this one.
And I guess I’ll mention one more great film, maybe the best of this bunch: The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp. This one isn’t exactly a war movie, but it’s about a soldier, its action hinges on events unique to a soldier’s life, and it is entirely informed by life in Britain under siege in 1942, when it was made.