***Your Top Five War Movies***

[gemini]

I know it's old, but I can't believe no one listed

"To Hell & Back." It stars & is about Texan Audie Murphy, the most decorated

soldier of WW2.

 

[DocHorn]

And Battleground ( a Battle of the Bulge story) was really good as was The Caine Mutiny and Mr Roberts

 

[monarch]

1. glory

2. mash

3. the last sumurai

4. kingdom of heaven

5. zulu dawn

 

[harpethhorn]

Patton

Saving Private Ryan

Stalag 17

Sands of Iwo Jima

Kelly's Heroes

 

[Irish in SEC country]

Gallipoli is great

 

[IWannaWin]

Private Ryan

A Bridge too Far

Pearl Harbor

FMJ

Apocalypse Now

 

[coolhorn]

I have a man crush on you Cool (this is Snide). These are MANLY movies (although I can't remember The Crossing - what was it about?)

The Crossing was an A&E special movie starring Jeff Daniels as George Washington, who planned and pulled off the crossing of the Delaware River and the successful attack on the Hessians at the battle of Trenton at Christmas time. He did it with poorly-equipped, poorly-clothed, and very hungry revolutionary soldiers who'd known nothing but defeat before this surprise victory. I'm sure you know the quality of A&E programming, and this is the best movie on the Revolutionary War that I've ever seen.

 

[coolhorn]

I do have a perverse side where war movies are concerned...that's why I still love Dr. Strangelove, and trying to figure out which real life military types from the sixties the characters in the movie are representing.

Sterling Hayden, as General Jack D. Ripper, was actually playing real life General Curtis "Bombs Away" LeMay.

Peter Sellers, in one of his three roles in the movie, as "Dr. Strangelove" was actually playing Henry Kissinger.

I'll let those of you who've seen it figure out some of the other roles.

 

[DocHorn]

I do have a perverse side where war movies are concerned...that's why I still love Dr. Strangelove, and trying to figure out which real life military types from the sixties the characters in the movie are representing.

Oh that's easy

Strangelove is based on Kissenger

General Turgenson was based on Curtis Lemay, he tried several times to get us in a shooting war with the Russians, including firing an Atlas missile during the middle of the Cuban missile crisis from vandenberg toward the NW Pacific, from the early trajectory it looked much like the target was Russia. Lemay claimed it was a routine test.

Fortunately the Russian early warning system was primitive and missed the whole thing or else they likely would have fired on us and that appeared to be Le Mays plan he wanted the war and felt we outgunned them about 30-1 in weapons

As a side note, the reasons our nukes have PAL's ( basically locks on the nuclear detonators that require codes to activate them) is Eisenhower's distrust of LeMay when Lemay was in charge of our nuclear arsenal in the early 50's as SAC commander. This Eisenhower insisted on the PALs.

LeMay also send a squadron of b-47s over Moscow at high noon during the Mayday celebration in around 1956. Basically the 47s could fly higher than the Migs and they had not yet developed SAMs as of yet. LeMay was sending the message, hey Ruskies, you are my bitch.

He was a loose cannon and wanted the war to destroy the Russians and rid the world of the "commie" menace. Fascinating study in narcissism , LeMay was.

If you guys like Cold War hx, read Richard Rhoades book. Dark Sun, he chronicles a fascinating time of our development of the hydrogen bomb and it's political annd military conflict and implications.

 

[gwhinton]

Patton

The Hurt Locker

The Dirty Dozen

Three Kings

The Longest Day

 

[coolhorn]

I suppose I can't write about war movies without including at least one John Wayne movie. I know he had some better-known war movies, but my favorite was Otto Preminger's In Harms Way. The Duke, Kirk Douglas, Henry Fonda, Patricia Neal, Burgess Meredith, Carroll O'Connor, and the mighty Japanese battleship the Yamato, being taken on by a bunch of PT boats. That was some pretty good stuff for a war movie, and you can never go wrong by featuring John Wayne.

 

[coolhorn]

Oh that's easy
Strangelove is based on Kissenger

General Turgenson was based on Curtis Lemay, he tried several times to get us in a shooting war with the Russians, including firing an Atlas missile during the middle of the Cuban missile crisis from vandenberg toward the NW Pacific, from the early trajectory it looked much like the target was Russia. Lemay claimed it was a routine test.

Fortunately the Russian early warning system was primitive and missed the whole thing or else they likely would have fired on us and that appeared to be Le Mays plan he wanted the war and felt we outgunned them about 30-1 in weapons

As a side note, the reasons our nukes have PAL's ( basically locks on the nuclear detonators that require codes to activate them) is Eisenhower's distrust of LeMay when Lemay was in charge of our nuclear arsenal in the early 50's as SAC commander. This Eisenhower insisted on the PALs.

LeMay also send a squadron of b-47s over Moscow at high noon during the Mayday celebration in around 1956. Basically the 47s could fly higher than the Migs and they had not yet developed SAMs as of yet. LeMay was sending the message, hey Ruskies, you are my bitch.

He was a loose cannon and wanted the war to destroy the Russians and rid the world of the "commie" menace. Fascinating study in narcissism , LeMay was.

If you guys like Cold War hx, read Richard Rhoades book. Dark Sun, he chronicles a fascinating time of our development of the hydrogen bomb and it's political annd military conflict and implications.

I loved the Russian Premier's name...Dimitri Kissoff...and the actor did a pretty spot on impression of Khruschev, as Kissoff.

 

[Etex Horn]

It was mentioned in a post above about Audie Murphy being the most decorated WWII soldier. I have been told (can't provide a link to substantiate it, sorry) that the 2nd and 3rd most decorated WWII soldiers were both from the small town of Trinidad, Texas, in Henderson County. I don't know their names; I was told this by a friend from Trinidad. Interesting trivia, if true.

 

[txscallywag]

I'm assuming you're a squid from your pic?... All those men died as a result of terrible planning and horrible execution of a horrible mission plan. Those are plain facts. Do you know any operators? YOU should speak to an Operator. Speak to any operator in the SOF community, the community I live in, and they will echo my sentiment... The mission is a glorification of terrible mission planning. Take your sensitivity elsewhere. One of us is speaking from real life experience while the other is speaking out of his ass... That simple. It is a shame all those men died. They shouldn't have... All of their deaths could have been prevented.

Here's to speaking out of my ass....

It's funny that you think I'm being too sensitive when you don't even know me, and you have no idea why I might be somewhat frustrated with your statements. I am not questioning your belief that the planning and execution of the mission was poorly executed. I am questioning why you would publicly criticize the "poor" planning and execution. I'm sorry, that's just how I feel. And while you may or may not live in the SOF community (there's a lot of pretenders out there), that gives you no added privilege to say what you will about 19 dead men in such a manner. If you feel the need to do so, keep it in house. I served for 12 years and this is something that is not taken lightly in my community I served.

Master at Arms 2nd Class (EXW)

 

[Lord Vader]

In no order: The Patriot, Glory, Full Metal Jacket, Green Berets, Gladiator

 

[Etex Horn]

Gettysburg (Civil War)

Sergeant York (WWI)

Patton (WWII)

Pork Chop Hill (Korea)

Hamburger Hill (VietNam)

 

[castlebravo1]

Hmm.

1. Patton

The others in any order:

Kelly's Heroes

Midway

Dr. Strangelove (Cold War count?)

Dirty Dozen

 

[doc longhorn]

Here's to speaking out of my ass....
It's funny that you think I'm being too sensitive when you don't even know me, and you have no idea why I might be somewhat frustrated with your statements. I am not questioning your belief that the planning and execution of the mission was poorly executed. I am questioning why you would publicly criticize the "poor" planning and execution. I'm sorry, that's just how I feel. And while you may or may not live in the SOF community (there's a lot of pretenders out there), that gives you no added privilege to say what you will about 19 dead men in such a manner. If you feel the need to do so, keep it in house. I served for 12 years and this is something that is not taken lightly in my community I served.

Master at Arms 2nd Class (EXW)

Gentlemen - There is no need to post up on each other. Both of you served in the military and that makes the both of you admirable, in the eyes of the nation. You both were on the side of our country and you both were brothers in arms. Neither of you should forget that.

If the balloon goes up, we will all fight together - shoulder to shoulder.

And another thing - you both are Texas Longhorns - 'nuff said!

 

[echeese]

Oh that's easy
Strangelove is based on Kissenger

General Turgenson was based on Curtis Lemay, he tried several times to get us in a shooting war with the Russians, including firing an Atlas missile during the middle of the Cuban missile crisis from vandenberg toward the NW Pacific, from the early trajectory it looked much like the target was Russia. Lemay claimed it was a routine test.

Fortunately the Russian early warning system was primitive and missed the whole thing or else they likely would have fired on us and that appeared to be Le Mays plan he wanted the war and felt we outgunned them about 30-1 in weapons

As a side note, the reasons our nukes have PAL's ( basically locks on the nuclear detonators that require codes to activate them) is Eisenhower's distrust of LeMay when Lemay was in charge of our nuclear arsenal in the early 50's as SAC commander. This Eisenhower insisted on the PALs.

LeMay also send a squadron of b-47s over Moscow at high noon during the Mayday celebration in around 1956. Basically the 47s could fly higher than the Migs and they had not yet developed SAMs as of yet. LeMay was sending the message, hey Ruskies, you are my bitch.

He was a loose cannon and wanted the war to destroy the Russians and rid the world of the "commie" menace. Fascinating study in narcissism , LeMay was.

If you guys like Cold War hx, read Richard Rhoades book. Dark Sun, he chronicles a fascinating time of our development of the hydrogen bomb and it's political annd military conflict and implications.

Interesting write up. . .let me add another twist to the story. . .

Sterling Hayden was one of the Hollywood stars who went to war. . .in his case he worked for the OSS and was dropped into Slavic Europe (I forget exactly where) to assist the communists against the Germans. . .he returned very committed to the communist cause and it almost cost him his career. . .

Cast in the role of "Curtis LeMay" is an interesting twist. ..

 

[gecko]

"The Train" starring Burt Lancaster.