[November 13, 2025] Occasionally it’s good to take a break from the challenge of the study of leadership. Today I’m providing my personal list of favorite war movies … those that made an impression on me when I saw them. Yes, they’re English movies so the list doesn’t include some great, non-English movies.
For some reason these movies struck a chord with me at the time I saw that particular movie. Why a list of twenty? Simple. I couldn’t realistically list fewer without leaving out some of my favorites. Here are my top twenty in no particular order (although numbered so I get exactly 20):
- Saving Private Ryan
- The Big Red One
- All Quiet on the Western Front (1930 version)
- Apocalypse Now
- We Were Soldiers
- The Great Escape
- The Longest Day
- A Bridge Too Far
- Lawrence of Arabia
- Bridge on the River Kwai
- The Patriot
- The Dirty Dozen
- Sergeant York
- Das Boot
- Patton
- Zulu
- The Thin Red Line
- Dunkirk (2017)
- The Sands of Iwo Jima
- The Green Berets
Did I leave out one of your favorites? Me too. I left out Inglorious Bastards, Full Metal Jacket, and Kelly’s Heroes which were all just too far from historical fact to make my top 20 list, despite being excellent movies. Please reply and give me your top war movies. Have a great day and enjoy.
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NOTE: The list of movies here also does not include those with war as part of the plot. Several exceptionally good movies here for example include: Casablanca, The Sound of Music, Empire of the Sun, The Killing Fields, and From Here to Eternity.
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Sir, new here. Great list. I can see how it would be hard to just list 20.
Great movies.
Sir, hey thanks for your list of the top war movies. I enjoy watching television but not too much. I find that most shows on television are crap (sorry for the crass language but that is the case). I think that the whole idea of television anymore is just to sell products. That’s okay as long as we know that. The good that has come from innovation is we can now watch movies on demand. That is a game changer for me. I still work and have a family. To watch a movie requires some good timing so on demand works out. I plan to watch a few of these movies you’ve listed but it’s going to take a long time. 👍
Excellent list, Gen. Satterfield ……. 👀
Thanks Gen. Satterfield. These are indeed some of the best movies, in all categories, for our viewing pleasure.
To Jason and Gen. Satterfield, and all those here in the leadership forum, wouldn’t it be a great idea if Gen. Satterfield started writing articles on war movies from the perspective like he did for “55 rules for a good life”? Now that would be a great book to read. No one has ever done that. And he could show that the best movies show how to act properly when under stress (like on a battlefield). Now, we know that movies are NOT reality, but sometimes they can be close enough to put together a great analysis of how to be a “good person.” Thanks all. Just a suggestion to consider.
Great list. With movies now on demand, most can be watched without having to pay for them, although there are commercials. I’ll be watching, or actually re-wathcing, many of these as winter starts here. 🕷️🕷️🕷️🕷️
An American pre-code film, the 1930 version of All Quiet on the Western Front is as historically significant as it is powerful. Depicting horrors of warfare during the events of World War I, the film received controversy for its honest and dour portrayal of conflict, using these details to depict a more human and painful experience. It was banned in Germany, although many German veterans who lived in America were actually featured in and advised on the film. Showing German youth signing up to fight for their country in World War I, expecting to find hope and heroism, the film depicts how their outlook changed when confronted with the violent reality of combat. The story has since been remade several times, including most recently in 2022, directed by Edward Berger, but even the best of these remakes cannot match the original for its powerful makeup and cultural significance.
Kubrick’s Paths of Glory Is An Especially Important Work
Billed as an anti-war film rather than a war film, this World War I film effectively captures the strategic and inhumane nature of warfare. Starring Kirk Douglas.
Good one, Mikka. I just saw it on The Movie Channel.
The Alamo (1960). I’m disappointed that the original was not included. The Alamo is a 1960 American epic Western war film about the 1836 Siege and Battle of the Alamo produced and directed by John Wayne and starring Wayne as Davy Crockett. The film also co-stars Richard Widmark as Jim Bowie and Laurence Harvey as William B. Travis, and features: Frankie Avalon, Patrick Wayne, Linda Cristal, Joan O’Brien, Chill Wills, Joseph Calleia, Ken Curtis, Ruben Padilla as Santa Anna, and Richard Boone as Sam Houston.
Loved the list. Just one question, “Where is 12 O’clock High?”
12 O’clock High: Lessons Not Forgotten
https://www.theleadermaker.com/12-oclock-high-lessons-not-forgotten/
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Nick, yes! One of my favorites and will remain so for a long long time.
Let’s not forget what Gen. Satterfield had to say about the lessons learned from this movie.
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Here are some of the simple lessons not forgotten:
1. MISSION, get it done! That is the primary task.
2. TEAMWORK matters because it keeps your 10-man crew alive.
3. OBEY the commander, he has mission responsibility. Do your job!
4. PRECHECK all your equipment, you will rely upon it to stay alive while flying.
5. KNOW your men.
6. STAY ALIVE, if you can.
Lessons are always a plus, once the entertainment grabs our attention.
Great list, and I see you added Dunkirk (2017) which I found compelling in some way. Of course, the movie was a big hit because of the accuracy of the scenery and general layout. But it is short on plot and big on the “scene.”