Most Realistic Military And War Movies Ever Made

There have been a number of versions of All Quiet on the Western Front, the very first coming in 1930. It tells the story of a group of German schoolboys who are talked into enlisting in the German army right before World War I breaks out. This intense and very realistic remake centered around one solider specifically, Paul Bäumer, whose idea of war and the realities of it are two different things.

Bäumer is an idealistic sort but learns early on, it is survival of the fittest and the luckiest, as bodies drop like flies around him. This version of All Quiet on the Western Front also included a parallel storyline that showed the negotiations that led to the end of the war.

The realism of the story brought the film nine Academy Award nominations, winning four. These were for Best International Feature Film, Best Original Score, Best Production Design, and Best Cinematography.

Director Ridley Scott brought to life the true story of the 1993 U.S. Military raid on Mogadishu and the rescue attempt on the soldiers of a Black Hawk helicopter that was shot down during that mission.

The film features an ensemble cast that includes Sam Shepard, Eric Bana, Ewan McGregor, Josh Hartnett, Tom Sizemore, William Fichtner, Jason Isaacs, Jeremy Piven, Ioan Gruffudd, Ewen Bremner, Hugh Dancy, and in his very first film, Tom Hardy.

Although the film grabbed some criticism for manipulating some of the events of the Battle of Mogadishu, veterans who watched the film gave it a major thumbs up for the realities the film presented of the combat experience. Because of how well the firefights were staged and shot, many vets experienced rage and PTSD.

Platoon takes its realism back to the Vietnam War in this unflinching look considered to be one of the most realistic military and war films ever. Oliver Stone wrote and directed this movie and based everything on his own Vietnam experience. This film is about as realistic as it can get.

The movie follows Pvt. Chris Taylor, played wonderfully by Charlie Sheen, who finds himself in Vietnam, not only fighting against an enemy hard to kill but also those in his unit as his Platoon Sergeant (Tom Berenger) and Squad Leader(Willem Dafoe) are in a constant battle against each other and the moralities of war.

Stone’s horrific story of Vietnam earned him eight Academy Award nominations, taking home four trophies for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Sound, and Best Film Editing.

For some, this was truly a hard film to watch. Talk about realism. The film is based on the true story of Marcus Luttrell who, along with fellow soldiers Michael Murphy, Danny Dietz, and Matthew Axelson, are on a covert mission during the war in Afghanistan. Their mission was to take out Taliban leader, Ahmad Shah, but they met more resistance than ever expected.

Instead of accomplishing their mission, the four soldiers find themselves in a firefight they cannot win. The war movie stars Mark Wahlberg as Luttrell along with Taylor Kitsch, Emile Hirsch, and Ben Foster. If you haven’t seen this, be prepared.

Stanley Kubrick brought tons of reality to this 1987 war drama that showed military life first at Parris Island, South Carolina, where new recruits were going through basic training before being sent on to fight in Vietnam.

The first half showed basic training and how Gunnery Sergeant Hartman (the excellent R. Lee Ermey), through cruelty, verbal and physical abuse, and even sometimes a little bit of Marine love, turned his green recruits into literal killers. The first half of the film is where Kubrick’s movie received much of its praise.

The second half of the film followed one of Hartman’s recruits, Private Joker (Matthew Modine) as he tries to survive everything the Vietnam War has to throw at him. The movie also stars Vincent D’Onofrio as Private Leonard Lawrence (aka Gomer Pyle) in another amazing performance. D’Onofrio gained 70 pounds for his role.

Anyone who has seen the first 25 minutes of Steven Spielberg’s gut-wrenching Saving Private Ryan truly understands why this film is considered to be the top when it comes to realistic military and war movies. After a very brief prologue in which a military vet is visiting an American cemetery in Normandy, we go right to the blood, gore, and guts of the storming of Omaha Beach.

Taking on devastating German military fire, American soldiers face mass slaughter. Most of which is extremely hard to watch. The film stars Tom Hanks as Captain Miller, the man who leads his troops into battle. After the slaughter is over, Miller’s group is given a mission – to find and save Private Ryan (Matt Damon), who is behind enemy lines.

Sadly, he is the only Ryan boy alive after his three brothers were killed in battle.