20 Best War Movies Based On True Stories

Summary

• Realistic war movies can uncover intense moments in history better than works of pure fiction.
• Characters and events taken from real military operations add authenticity to war films.
• Striking a balance between fiction and biopics can make a movie more powerful by showcasing historical truths.

Fans of the war genre often want to see realistic depictions of historical conflicts, so some filmmakers choose to make movies about real moments in history with characters based on real people. These movies can straddle the line between fiction and biopics, especially when the characters or the stories are already well known to the public. The way that a movie shows the events are more important than the actual story beats themselves.

Whether they are hoping to inform audiences about a chapter from history or simply bringing famous stories to life, these movies are often more realistic and powerful than war movies that are works of pure fiction. Realistic war movies can uncover the most shocking and intense moments in human history, and none can do this better than those which are based on real military operations.

20 The Dam Busters (1955)

A group of British World War II pilots bomb a series of German dams

The visual effects in The Dam Busters have long become obsolete, but they are still hauntingly beautiful, even though they aren’t realistic. The bombing scenes are packed with genuine, eye-popping explosions, but the dogfights use tiny dots of light on the film to imitate the flashes of gunfire. This doesn’t quite sell the effect, but it makes these scenes feel alien and unsettling, which is an even better effect.

The Dam Busters
is an ambitious, exciting film, and it’s still considered one of the best British war movies of all time.

The Dam Busters chronicles Operation Chastise, a British bombing mission targeted at strategic German dams. Many of the characters are based on the real pilots who flew those missions. The first half of the movie is all about the planning stage, and this sets the scene for the unforgettable bombing runs. The Dam Busters is an ambitious, exciting film, and it’s still considered one of the best British war movies of all time.

19 Gettysburg (1993)

A detailed epic of a pivotal battle in the Civil War

Gettysburg has been praised for its historical accuracy, and it has become essential viewing for any Civil War buffs. At just under four hours long, Gettysburg certainly isn’t for everyone, but anyone with an interest in the battle will likely appreciate it as both history and fiction. The movie dissects the action from both the Confederate and Union sides, and it features thousands of extras to pull off the battle scenes.

At just under four hours long,
Gettysburg
certainly isn’t for everyone, but anyone with an interest in the battle will likely appreciate it as both history and fiction.

Gettysburg retains just as much thrust and vitality to avoid being a mere educational tool. There are strong performances all round, particularly from Jeff Daniels, who plays Union Colonel Joshua Chamberlain, and Martin Sheen, who plays Robert E. Lee on the other side of the conflict. The battle scenes, while they strive to present the conflict accurately, also have moments of real jeopardy.

18 Jarhead (2005)

A Marine deals with the tedium of the Gulf War

Jarhead stars Jake Gyllenhaal as Anthony Swofford, the former U.S. Marine whose memoir inspired the movie. Swofford drew from his experiences throughout the Persian Gulf War, and this gives Jarhead a sense of authenticity that is rare in most war movies. Swofford has to battle boredom and isolation more than the enemy combatants. In fact, the war ends without him firing a single shot.

Swofford has to battle boredom and isolation more than the enemy combatants. In fact, the war ends without him firing a single shot.

Even from the beginning, before Swofford travels to the Gulf, Jarhead ponders the way that veterans are treated in American society. Swofford finds some comfort in seeing his fellow Marines long after they return home. After all, they are the only ones who can understand the strange kind of shame he feels for being held in the same esteem as veterans of the Vietnam War or other conflicts.

17 American Sniper (2014)

Bradley Cooper shines as an elite sniper

Bradley Cooper was nominated for an Academy Award for his portrayal of Chris Kyle, a Navy SEAL Sniper who accrued 160 confirmed kills. Cooper’s performance is vital, because American Sniper is a character study that focuses on Kyle’s struggles with isolation and sorrow. Kyle first joins the Navy to escape his heartbreak, but his glittering career provides him with little comfort when he needs it most.

Cooper’s performance is vital, because
American Sniper
is a character study that focuses on Kyle’s struggles with isolation and sorrow.

American Sniper makes a few minor changes to Chris Kyle’s life story, but it draws heavily from his autobiography, so there’s no need to fabricate his emotional journey. Thanks to this attention to detail, and Clint Eastwood’s even-handed direction, American Sniper has found a place as one of the defining movies about modern warfare. There is just as much focus on Chris Kyle’s life after the war, and this speaks to the ongoing struggles of military veterans in America.

16 Downfall (2004)

Hitler’s final days in the bunker, presented up close

Adolf Hitler tends to feature on the periphery of many World War II movies, if he features at all. The prevailing dogma has always been that his presence might threaten to overpower any war movie, and that there’s no need to show him on-screen for audiences to know the role that he plays. Downfall does the seemingly-impossible by taking the audience inside Hitler’s bunker during the final days of his life.

Downfall
manages to use Hitler as its central character without any hint of sympathy. It’s a disturbing portrait of his desperation and rage as his empire crumbles all around him.

Downfall manages to use Hitler as its central character without any hint of sympathy. It’s a disturbing portrait of his desperation and rage as his empire crumbles all around him. Bruno Ganz may portray him as occasionally charming, but it’s clear that he only uses this as a tool to manipulate people. In the end, there’s a delineation between the selfish cowardice of the Nazis who accompany Hitler to the bitter end and those who are at least rational enough to abandon him.

15 Black Hawk Down (2001)

Ridley Scott has always had a reputation for epic, large-scale action set pieces, but Black Hawk Down proved that the director could bring his winning formula into more modern settings. Based on the Battle of Mogadishu in Somalia in 1993, Black Hawk Down details the story of a group of elite American soldiers who find themselves vastly outnumbered by Somali troops when their mission goes awry.

Unlike some war movies which borrow from the horror genre to show that the virtuous may come out unscathed,
Black Hawk Down
is far bleaker and more callous.

Black Hawk Down has faced criticism that it lacks deep and meaningful characterization, but this could be a feature of the narrative to suggest that war chooses its victims without any discrimination. Unlike some war movies which borrow from the horror genre to show that the virtuous may come out unscathed, Black Hawk Down is far bleaker and more callous. It subverts the norms of the war genre.

14 Sergeant York (1941)

A tale of heroism during the First World War

Made during the Second World War but set during the first, Sergeant York tells the story of a quintessentially American hero who has become something of a folk figure. Gary Cooper is the perfect actor to play the part, as his brave and righteous screen persona allowed him to play many heroes throughout his career. Sergeant York is right in his wheelhouse, and he won an Academy Award for his performance.

It’s a patriotic tale that inspired young men to enlist after the attack on Pearl Harbor, and it was probably more effective than any military propaganda the army could have devised.

It’s no coincidence that Sergeant York came out just as America was reconsidering its neutrality in the Second World War. It’s a patriotic tale that inspired young men to enlist after the attack on Pearl Harbor, and it was probably more effective than any military propaganda the army could have devised. Decades later, Sergeant York is still an inspirational story of courage and conviction.

13 Zulu (1964)

An outnumbered British unit fight for survival in the Anglo-Zulu War

Zulu provided Michael Caine with his breakthrough role. He plays a British soldier at the Battle of Rorke’s Drift, a notorious episode in the Anglo-Zulu War when 150 Brits had to fight off 4000 Zulu warriors. The film sets the scene carefully before unleashing a chaotic swell of violence as the two armies clash. The relentless onslaught is an unforgiving spectacle replete with gunfire and pained screams.

Zulu
has held up surprisingly well, as it presents both the British and Zulu combatants as victims of a senseless conflict beyond their control.

Zulu has been interpreted as both anti-colonial and as potentially problematic. The consensus is that the film has held up well, as it presents both the British and Zulu combatants as victims of a senseless conflict beyond their control. It’s surprisingly nuanced for a war film that could so easily have glorified a moment of British heroism in a colonial war. This has allowed Zulu to endure where other British adventure movies have fallen away.

12 Letters From Iwo Jima (2006)

Iwo Jima from the Japanese side

Clint Eastwood shot Letters from Iwo Jima and Flags of Our Fathers back-to-back, with each movie exploring the Battle of Iwo Jima from a different side. Both movies received positive reviews, but Letters from Iwo Jima is the true masterpiece out of the two. Ken Watanabe stars as General Tadamichi Kuribayashi, a Japanese commander at Iwo Jima who has his hands full dealing with his own superiors as well as the American combatants.

Seen together with
Flags of Our Fathers, Letters from Iwo Jima
presents a complete picture of a senseless combat that ended many lives.

Letters from Iwo Jima shows the disconnect from within the Japanese ranks, as soldiers are given conflicting orders by their commanders, and they eventually have to decide for themselves whether to surrender, commit suicide or keep fighting. Seen together with Flags of Our Fathers, Letters from Iwo Jima presents a complete picture of a senseless combat that ended many lives.

11 Glory (1989)

Black Americans form a regiment to take the Civil War to the Confederates

Matthew Broderick plays Colonel Robert Gould Shaw in Glory, the commander of one of the first black regiments during the Civil War. While many of the other characters are fictionalized, the story is true, and their experiences reflect the real-life conditions that the soldiers faced. Denzel Washington won an Academy Award and a Golden Globe for his performance as a private.

The regiment’s journey below the Mason-Dixon line is incredibly tense, but
Glory
also takes enough time to humanize its subjects.

Glory earned four Oscar nominations in addition to Washington’s win, and it still has a wealth of admirers thanks to its powerful storytelling. The regiment’s journey below the Mason-Dixon line is incredibly tense, but Glory also takes enough time to humanize its subjects, so that the true weight of their experiences can be felt. Each of the main characters has their own backstory that informs their decision to join the army, and they also have enough personality for Glory to feel more vibrant than most historical dramas.

10 The Killing Fields (1984)

Two journalists cover the Khmer Rouge regime in Cambodia

The Killing Fields stars Sam Waterston and Haing S. Ngor, who won an Academy Award in his film debut. Like his character Dith Pran, Ngor survived Pol Pot’s Cambodian genocide in the 1970s.The Killing Fields views the genocide and the entire Khmer Rouge regime from the perspective of two journalists, one American and one Cambodian, who develop a deep and lasting friendship.

The Killing Fields
views the genocide and the entire Khmer Rouge regime from the perspective of two journalists, one American and one Cambodian, who develop a deep and lasting friendship.

The relationship between the two men is at the heart of The Killing Fields, as they support each other in their work to shed light on the atrocities committed by the Khmer Rouge. The real-life Sydney Schanberg won a Pulitzer Prize for his coverage of the Khmer Rouge regime, and The Killing Fields was another important moment in raising public awareness of the genocide which killed over a million people.

9 Hacksaw Ridge (2016)

Andrew Garfield plays Desmond Doss, a pacifist who worked as a combat medic without a firearm

Andrew Garfield delivers an outstanding performance in Hacksaw Ridge as Desmond Doss, a combat medic whose religious beliefs forbid him from carrying any type of weapon. He bravely rushes onto the battlefield completely unarmed, and this earns him the respect of his fellow soldiers, who initially meet him with confusion and suspicion. Doss valiantly saved 75 men during combat.

Hacksaw Ridge
‘s combat scenes hammer home the peril that Doss faced every day he stepped foot on a battlefield, especially the explosive Battle of Okinawa sequence.

The true story behind Hacksaw Ridge is as unbelievable as any movie. The script makes a few minor changes, but there is nothing that can detract from the big picture. Desmond Doss never doubted his convictions, nor did he let stop him from serving his country during the war. Hacksaw Ridge‘s combat scenes hammer home the peril that Doss faced every day he stepped foot on a battlefield, especially the explosive Battle of Okinawa sequence.

8 Dunkirk (2017)

Christopher Nolan explores Operation Dynamo from multiple angles

Christopher Nolan’s first movie based on a true story was far more than just a warm-up for Oppenheimer, although it did clearly provide a stepping stone on the path toward the Best Picture winner. Dunkirk tells the story of Operation Dynamo, a British mission to rescue soldiers stranded in a French coastal town in 1940 after they are pinned in by the advancing Germans.

Dunkirk
uses its large ensemble cast to follow the action from land, sea and air.

Dunkirk uses its large ensemble cast to follow the action from land, sea and air. Tom Hardy is particularly captivating as a Spitfire pilot, despite being given very little dialogue. He witnesses events from above, intermittently swooping in to shepherd his compatriots toward safety like a guardian angel.

7 Come And See (1985)

A teenager witnesses the horror of the Nazi occupation of Belarus

There’s an ongoing debate over whether any war movie can truly claim to be anti-war. Putting violence on the big screen marks it as an object of fascination and entertainment, and there have been plenty of poorly-judged war movies which have used real wars as the setting for generic action thrillers. Come and See is evidence that anti-war movies can and do exist, as it presents an unflinching look at the depths of human cruelty.

Come and See
is evidence that anti-war movies can and do exist, as it presents an unflinching look at the depths of human cruelty.

Come and See is based on survivor testimony from the Nazi occupation of Belarus, a chapter of the Second World War which often goes overlooked. The film uses the perspective of a young teenager to accentuate the dehumanization and cruelty of war. Flyora witnesses things that no person should, let alone someone so young that they should still be in school. The painful realism offers no respite to the audience.

6 The Great Escape (1963)

A group of POWs escape from Stalag Luft III

Steve McQueen famously requested that the motorcycle chase be added to The Great Escape so that he could show off his riding skills, and this fact highlights the entire film’s commitment to making its cast look as cool as possible. The Great Escape is a story of camaraderie, so it helps that McQueen and his fellow inmates seem like an aspirational crew. There are very clear distinctions between the laid-back prisoners and their uptight Nazi captors.

The film’s irresistible charm helps to draw the audience in to the action, and this is when
The Great Escape
suddenly turns into an agonizingly tense drama.

It would be unfair to suggest that The Great Escape coasts on style, however. Creating an engaging team dynamic helps give the movie the same slick feeling of a heist movie, but the stakes are much higher and the danger is frighteningly palpable. The film’s irresistible charm helps to draw the audience in to the action, and this is when The Great Escape suddenly turns into an agonizingly tense drama.

5 Paths Of Glory (1957)

A French commander sends his men on a suicide mission

Stanley Kubrick made several war movies, and Paths of Glory was the first one which bore the imprint of the legendary director. Kirk Douglas stars as a colonel who supports his fellow soldiers when they refuse orders to engage in a nonsensically dangerous mission. The subsequent court-martial is a farcical proceeding, with Colonel Dax decrying the trial as a sham to deflect blame from the military higher-ups.

Paths of Glory
is a harrowing anti-war film that dissects the infuriating bureaucracy of military structures.

Paths of Glory is a harrowing anti-war film that dissects the infuriating bureaucracy of military structures. Dax and his men are treated like pawns on a chessboard, being pushed around by men who will never experience any consequences for their haphazard decisions. The final scene where the men try to find some solace in each other’s company is the only flicker of hope to be found.

4 A Man Escaped (1957)

A member of the French Resistance orchestrates his escape from a Gestapo prison

Much like The Great Escape, A Man Escaped is the story of prisoners of war, but Fontaine finds himself in a prison being run by the Gestapo, not the Luftwaffe. This makes his situation much more perilous, and he regularly hears other prisoners being executed through the walls. Another key difference is that Fontaine is mostly alone in his pursuit of freedom, and he spends long stretches of his time on the inside simply reaching out for meaningful human contact.

Fontaine is fighting for his survival, but he’s also fighting to cling on to the last remaining shred of hope he has.

A Man Escaped is as much about the psychological torture of war as it is about the immediate dangers of imprisonment. Fontaine is fighting for his survival, but he’s also fighting to cling on to the last remaining shred of hope he has. The escape sequence is loaded with dramatic tension, as A Man Escaped has already done ample legwork to establish the physical and emotional stakes beforehand.

3 The Battle Of Algiers (1966)

The story of Algerian rebels who sought to seize control back from French colonialists

Often cited as one of the greatest war movies of all time, The Battle of Algiers is a marker of realist cinema. The film starts with a disclaimer that no newsreel footage was used in the production, and this makes the crowd scenes toward the end and the bombing scenes feel much more vibrant and perilous. The Battle of Algiers confesses from the beginning that it’s a work of fiction, but this doesn’t lessen the impact of the conflict.

Director Gillo Pontecorvo injected extra authenticity into
The Battle of Algiers
by using several actors who actually took part in the real battle years earlier.

Director Gillo Pontecorvo injected extra authenticity into The Battle of Algiers by using several actors who actually took part in the real battle years earlier, and he often positions the camera as if he’s part of a news crew trying to observe the action from a reasonable distance. The result is a film that feels kinetic and genuine, but it still makes use of the benefits of its artifice to heighten the tension, and the score from Ennio Morricone does a lot of the heavy lifting in this regard.

2 Lawrence Of Arabia (1962)

T.E. Lawrence was a British officer who fought alongside Arabian tribes against the Ottoman Empire

David Lean’s sweeping cinematic epic has often been regarded as a rite of passage for any true film lover. Lawrence of Arabia‘s gorgeous panoramic views of the desert set the scene for a remarkable tale from the First World War. Most movies about this period focus on the action unfolding in the trenches of Western Europe, but Lawrence of Arabia takes place in the vast Ottoman Empire.

T. E. Lawrence was a British Army officer who became a pivotal figure in the Arab Revolt, often leading military actions in support of the independence wars against the Ottoman Empire in the region.

T. E. Lawrence was a British Army officer who became a pivotal figure in the Arab Revolt, often leading military actions in support of the independence wars against the Ottoman Empire in the region. Peter O’Toole’s performance in Lawrence of Arabia captures the internal conflict he felt at the time as an outsider who wholeheartedly believed in the cause. Lawrence kept detailed journals during the war, and he became a cult figure long before the movie was released.

1 Schindler’s List (1993)

Liam Neeson delivers a career-defining performance as a German industrialist who used his privilege for good

Steven Spielberg’s remarkable Holocaust drama, released in the same year as he directed Jurassic Park, remains a vital and powerful chronicle of one of the biggest human atrocities of all time. Liam Neeson stars as Oskar Schindler, the German industrialist credited with saving hundreds of Jewish lives during the Second World War. He is supported by Ben Kingsley and Ralph Fiennes in superb form.

With Spielberg’s trademark humanism,
Schindler’s List
paints an astonishing picture of the Holocaust.

Schindler’s List is based on a novel, Schindler’sArk by Thomas Keneally, but the author made sure to present the facts of Schindler’s life as accurately as possible. Some moments may be dramatized for added effect, and Spielberg also takes his own liberties at times, but the broad strokes are true. With Spielberg’s trademark humanism, Schindler’s List paints an astonishing picture of the Holocaust.