The 10 best war films of all time ranked – including 1979 Brando ‘masterpiece’ | Films | Entertainment
Rotten Tomatoes has ranked the ten best war films of all time, from a 1979 nailbiter that’s a Marlon Brando masterpiece, to a 2008 film, which was described as one of the “best recent dramatisations of the Iraq War”.
Surprisingly, modern epics like Saving Private Ryan and Dunkirk didn’t make the list, with older generation films taking the top spot for their cinematic excellence.
From harrowing survival stories during WWII to missions during the Vietnam war, Rotten Tomatoes listed the 100 best-reviewed war movies of all time, ranked by Certified Fresh films.
10. The Hurt Locker (2008) — 96%
The 2008 movie depicts the story of a bomb-disposal unit in Baghdad, and as their tour of duty enters its final weeks, the men face a set of increasingly hazardous situations, any of which could end their lives in an instant.
The Rotten Tomatoes critics consensus describes it as “thus far the best of the recent dramatisations of the Iraq War”, which is well-acted, intensely shot, and “action-filled war epic”.
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9. Das Boot (1981) – 98%
Das Boot tells the story of a German submarine which patrols the Atlantic Ocean during World War II, manned by a crew that must contend with tense conflicts and long stretches of confined boredom.
Rotten Tomatoes’ critics consenus reads it is “taut, breathtakingly thrilling, and devastatingly intelligent”, and “one of the greatest war films ever made”.
Directed by Wolfgang Petersen, it was nominated for six Academy Awards, including Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay.
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8. All Quiet on the Western Front (1930) 98%
The film follows a group of German schoolboys who were talked into enlisting at the beginning of World War I by their teacher.
The story highlights the tragedy of war through the eyes of individuals, told entirely through the experiences of the young German recruits.
Edward Berger later recreated a film under the same name in 2022, following the gripping story of one young German soldier on the Western Front of World War I.
One reviewer said: “Director Lewis Milestone’s brilliant anti-war polemic, headlined by an unforgettable performance from Lew Ayres, lays bare the tragic foolishness at the heart of war.”
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