10 War Movies To Watch If You Love Hacksaw Ridge

Directed by Mel Gibson, Hacksaw Ridge is probably one of the best war movies of the recent years – and for good reasons. It has a real story behind it, a great cast to portray the characters, and a powerful message that will make any viewer realize just how terrible war is, no matter how justified it may seem.

Obviously, the movie received universal acclaim and was nominated and won multiple awards, becoming a box office success and finding many fans. But this means that some viewers might want to see more similar films. Luckily, there are such war movies to watch after Hacksaw Ridge.

10 Jarhead (2005)

The 2005 Jake Gyllennhaal movie Jarhead was directed by Sam Mendes who recently directed another acclaimed war movie, 1917. Though it got mixed reviews from critics and underperformed at the box office, but audience ratings on IMDb show that it is still loved by regular viewers.

Based on the 2003 memoir of the same name, Jarhead follows a US Marine sniper participating in the Gulf War who struggles with a variety of issues both at home and in the warzone.

9 American Sniper (2014)

Despite its controversies, American Sniper was a massive success both for director Clint Eastwood and for lead actor Bradley Cooper. Moreover, it was a massive commercial success and even earned multiple awards and nominations.

Loosely based on a 2012 memoir by Chris Kyle, the story follows Kyle who is a Navy S.E.A.L. sniper who is outstanding at what he does, but once he returns home, he realizes that he can’t get rid of the Iraq War.

8 Darkest Hour (2017)

The movie that finally earned Gary Oldman his Academy Award for Best Actor, Darkest Hour saw the actor transforming into one of the most famous historical figures of all time – none other than Winston Churchill himself.

Set during WWII, it follows Churchill depicting his early days as the prime minister of the United Kingdom as he tries to deal with the clashing opinions about whether the country should sign a peace treaty with Adolf Hitler while the Nazis are conquering Europe in 1940.

7 Empire Of The Sun (1987)

Empire of the Sun is Christian Bale’s first starring role and is one of Steven Spielberg’s largely forgotten movies. However, it still stands out as a heartwarming story about a kid who pretty much loses his innocence because of the war he has to experience.

Based on a semi-autobiographical novel of the same name, it follows a young British boy who lives with his family in Shanghai. But as WWII breaks out, he is separated from his family, captured, and placed in a Japanese internment camp.

6 Black Hawk Down (2001)

Ridley Scott’s Black Hawk Down is a movie often praised as much as Kathryn Bigelow’s The Hurt Locker – after all, both were released in the 2000s and both followed groups of US soldiers on a mission in a foreign country.

Based on the non-fiction book of the same name, it is set in 1993 and depicts a particular event from the civil war in Somalia known as the Black Hawk Down incident.

5 Dunkirk (2017)

Christopher Nolan’s Dunkirk is an unusual movie and an even more unusual war movie which is probably why it was so successful. It doesn’t have a defined antagonist but rather relies on the emotions the characters are feeling. Moreover, it doesn’t have a single protagonist, either.

Nolans’s story itself is split into three narratives taking place on land, on water, and in the air over one week, one day, and one hour respectively. All the characters involved are actually participating in a historical event – the Dunkirk evacuation of WWII.

4 The Wind Rises (2013)

The Wind Rises is one of the most recent Studio Ghibli creations which also happens to be the last movie Hayao Miyazaki directed before retiring. Much like one of his earlier works – Porco Rosso – The Wind Rises explores a topic Miyazaki has particular love and passion for and that is flight.

A fictionalized depiction of a real person’s life, The Wind Rises follows Jiro Horikoshi who was an aircraft designer for Japan during WWII.

3 Patton (1970)

Though somewhat forgotten nowadays, Patton was actually quite successful and acclaimed at the time of its release and even won seven Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Original Screenplay. Moreover, its screenplay was co-written by Francis Ford Coppola.

Taking place during WWII, it tells the real story of the US General George S. Patton who was a controversial figure but was nonetheless important for the Mediterranean theater of WWII as he commanded the Seventh US Army operating there.

2 The Imitation Game (2014)

The Imitation Game has by far one of the best roles in Benedict Cumberbatch’s career. It was a massive critical and commercial success, but it did get involved in some controversy at the time of its release.

Based on a biographical book about Alan Turing, The Imitation Game depicts Turing who worked for the British government as a cryptanalyst during WWII creating a machine that would be able to decode German intelligence messages.

1 The Pianist (2002)

Probably one of the most heartbreaking war movies of the recent decades, The Pianist premiered at the Cannes Film Festival where it won the Palme d’Or and went on to be successful critically and commercially and to win multiple awards.

Based on the autobiographical book of the same name, it follows the Polish-Jewish pianist Wladyslaw Szpilman who experiences WWII and lives through the Holocaust.

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