While war movies can offer a glimpse into major historical conflicts, the unfortunate reality is that the end of a war is just one part of the story for many soldiers. Over the years, there have been many great post-war movies, most of which examine the physical and psychological effects of war on returning soldiers, with trauma, survivors' guilt and society’s treatment of veterans all being common themes.
Many of the best post-war movies were made in the years directly following a conflict, and they managed to capture the mood of an entire society. In some cases, these movies don’t have to address the war head-on, since the shadows of large conflicts can hang over countries for years in one way or another. Even thebest war moviesrarely have time to appropriately address the aftermath of war, both on a personal level and on a broader societal scale.
Flags of Our Fathersis one ofClint Eastwood’s best movies, andit works especially well alongsideLetters From Iwo Jima.Together, the two movies depict the Battle of Iwo Jima from the American and Japanese sides, as well as the aftermath of the conflict. While a lot of the action takes place during the war,Flags of Our Fathersonly works so well because of the sections of the story which show events much later.
Flags of Our Fathersonly works so well because of the sections of the story which show events much later.
The photo of six Marines raising the American flag on Iwo Jima is one of the most iconic images of the Second World War, andFlags of Our Fatherstries to demythologize the event. The tactical importance of Iwo Jima has been debated, but the morale-boosting effect of the famous photo took on a new significance all of its own. The post-war sections ofFlags of Our Fathersexamines the after-effects of war propaganda once the dust has settled, as the soldiers and the rest of the country tries to reconcile the truth with their own stories.
Born on the Fourth of Julyis the second movie in Oliver Stone’s Vietnam War trilogy, betweenPlatoonandHeaven & Earth.Stone wrote the script with Ron Kovic, based on Kovic’s autobiography, which details his experiences during the war and his subsequent turn to anti-war activism.Born on the Fourth of Julydoes a great job of capturing the social unrest that the Vietnam War caused on American soil.
Stone has never been the type of director to shy away from controversy, and he isn’t afraid to point the finger inBorn on the Fourth of July.
Born on the Fourth of Julyis a sobering look at the way Vietnam War veterans were treated by their government. Stone has never been the type of director to shy away from controversy, and he isn’t afraid to point the finger inBorn on the Fourth of July.The real-world context of Kovic’s story lends some added weightto the movie, and Cruise’s powerful performance leaves a lasting impression.
Da 5 Bloodsis one of Spike Lee’s most underrated movies, but it tells an important story that often goes unnoticed in modern conversations about the Vietnam War. The story follows a group of Black veterans who return to Vietnam decades later to find a stash of gold they buried during the war and to pay tribute to their squad leader.Da 5 Bloodssoon unravels into a frenzy of desperate violence, thematically bringing the past crashing into the present.
Spike Lee balances his historical musings with more modern social commentary.
Da 5 Bloodsexamines the racial inequality that Black American soldiers had to endure during the Vietnam War, but Spike Lee balances his historical musings with more modern social commentary.Da 5 Bloodstherefore manages to dig into the personal effects that war can have on soldiers, while simultaneously analyzing how the past isn’t as different from the present as some people would like to believe.
Godzilla Minus Onetakes the franchise back to its roots, since the kaiju was originally created as a metaphor for the atomic bomb. The franchise has gone through many different eras, butGodzilla Minus Onereturns to a post-war setting, as World War II veterans face the threat of Godzilla. The destruction of Ginza evokes the bombings of Nagasaki and Hiroshima, as Godzilla unleashes his heat ray and lays waste to a vast area.
10 Sci-Fi & Fantasy Movies Set During Real Wars
Wartime settings are usually used for bleak, realistic portrayals of war, but real wars have also provided a backdrop for sci-fi and fantasy stories.
WhileGodzilla Minus Onecreates an allegory of the final months of the war in Japan,it’s also an examination of Japan’s collective trauma in the years after their surrender. The soldiers deal with post-traumatic stress disorder and survivors' guilt, and ultimately their battle with Godzilla allows a cathartic victory, as if the story is a fantasy of an imagined history in which Japan was not so devastated in the post-war years.Godzilla Minus One’s endingsuggests that the kaiju may survive, teasing a sequel.
Animation and war movies don’t often go hand-in-hand, partly because the colorful, synthetic style of animation can seem disingenuous and insufficient when handling such heavy topics.Waltz With Bashiris one rare exception to this rule, and it’s an animated movie like no other. The story tracks director Ari Folman’s search to recover his lost memories from his time as a soldier.
SinceWaltz With Bashiris about memory, trauma and imagination, its animated style is the perfect medium. This allows Folman to blur the line between different stories and different truths, such as the truth he wants to believe, the truth he is condemned to believe and the truth he can perform for others. It’sa startlingly honest semi-autobiographical moviethat describes the psychological effects of combat, guilt and disassociation.
TheRambofranchise’s critical reputation fell off a cliff after the first movie, butFirst Bloodremains a compelling action classic. Though the sequels lean into explosive action without much thought for character development and emotional storytelling,First Bloodis a surprisingly intelligent story about a Vietnam veteran. Of course, Sylvester Stallone delivers all his usual high-octane thrills, butFirst Bloodbalances this out with an effective plot.
First Bloodspeaks to the difficulty that many Vietnam vets faced when returning to the United States.
TheRambofranchise chooses its words carefully, andFirst Bloodhas plenty of great quotesdespite John Rambo’s preference to keep his mouth shut. His stoic style makes him an intriguing mystery, butFirst Bloodreveals enough of his backstory piece by piece to make him a character worth rooting for. It may be an action-heavy exaggeration of the facts, butFirst Bloodspeaks to the difficulty that many Vietnam vets faced when returning to the United States.
Bicycle Thievesis a landmark work of Italian cinema, but its prestigious reputation shouldn’t put audiences off. At just under 90 minutes,Bicycle Thievesis an economical and razor-sharp drama that can be enjoyed by anyone. The story follows a man scouring the streets of post-war Rome with his son to find his stolen bicycle, which he desperately needs to do his job. While direct allusions to the war are scarce, the entire story reads as an Italian retrospective of fascism and destruction.
At just under 90 minutes,Bicycle Thievesis an economical and razor-sharp drama that can be enjoyed by anyone.
Bicycle Thieveslays bare the dire economic situation of post-war Italy, and Antonio Ricci’s story reflects the moral decay of a society under intense pressure, both during Mussolini’s reign and in the immediate aftermath. The story is fairly straightforward, and this allows the movie enough breathing room to dig into the minds of its characters and heighten the tension with each passing minute.
The Best Years of Our Livescame out just a year after the Second World War ended, andit has become a fascinating time capsule of American attitudes from the post-war years. William Wyler’s Oscar-winner follows three men from different backgrounds, and with different experiences of the war, as they try to slot back into society in the same nondescript midwestern town.
At the time,The Best Years of Our Liveswas praised for its performances and the strength of its script, but it was also recognized for its ability to capture the mood of the time. While some people simply wanted to celebrate the end of the war, others didn’t find it so easy to adjust.The Best Years of Our Livesshows both sides of this divide, and the surprising ways that people’s attitudes and feelings developed as people moved on at different paces.
The Deer Hunter’s iconic Russian roulette scenesare probably recognizable to many people who haven’t ever seen the movie, but Michael Cimino’s Oscar-winner has plenty more to offer, including some fantastic performances across the board. A lot of the action unfolds in Vietnam, but most of the dramatic thrust comes when the characters return to the United States and face the challenges of moving on from the war.
10 Vietnam War Movies That Experts Praised For Accuracy & Realism
Vietnam War movies can highlight the horrors of conflict but are not always accurate, but these films have been praised by experts for their realism.
The Deer Hunteris a harrowing examination of the lasting effects of the Vietnam War, ending with a moment of shock that seems inevitable in retrospect. In many ways, other post-war movies have been trying to copy the template ofThe Deer Hunterfor years, but it isn’t easy to come up with both a script and a cast that are nearly as effective. One thingThe Deer Hunterdoes better than its imitators is find the right balance between the personal and the political.
The Third Mantakes place amid the rubble and ruin of post-war Vienna, as a British man notices some inconsistencies in the story of his friend’s death. As soon as Orson Welles makes his entrance, with an impish, vaguely threatening look on his face,The Third Manshifts gears from a mystery into a noir thriller about truth and justice. The war and its fallout are scarcely addressed directly, but they color the entire story.
While the streets of Vienna are still lined with the remnants of bombed-out buildings,The Third Manleaves the story of the Second World War behind to focus on a game of cat-and-mouse between two former friends. In this way, it reveals itself to bea cunning and beautifully-written metaphor for the eruption of the Cold War, when allies turned against one another and paranoia thrived as Europe struggled to rebuild.
