There have been some fantastic war movies made over the years, and while they traverse numerous wars, the ones about World War II are plentiful and feature some of the best films. The thing about making a war movie is that it is almost always about a group of men fighting together, making it an ensemble affair.
While there are some great ensemble war movies in everything from the Civil War to Vietnam, it is World War II that stands above the rest. There are so many famous battles and plenty of tragedies to tell the best stories. Thanks to the Allies’ victory in the war, it also promises a triumph in the end.
The Longest Day (1962)
When he wasn’t starring in Westerns, John Wayne was a staple of war movies from the 1940s through the 1960s. However, The Longest Day wasn’t just a John Wayne movie. It was an ensemble film with a cast that included Robert Mitchum, Sean Connery, Henry Fonda, George Segal, Robert Wagner, and many more.
The story follows the men as they land on Normandy during D-Day, a mission that sees many die, and not everyone makes it to the end alive. The ensemble cast plays real-life soldiers, with Fonda as Theodore Roosevelt Jr., Henry Grace as Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower, and Wayne as Lieutenant Col. Benjamin H. Vandervoort.
The Longest Day was a critical and commercial success, making $50.1 million on a $7.75 million budget, and was the highest-grossing black and white movie ever at that time. It also received five Oscar nominations, including Best Picture, winning for its cinematography and special effects.
Midway (1976)
There is some argument that the Roland Emmerich remake of Midway in 2019 is the superior movie, thanks to its effects and war battles. However, when looking at the ensemble cast, it doesn’t come close to the star power of the 1976 war movie. This film follows the Battle of Midway in World War II.
Midway has a 41% score on Rotten Tomatoes, but the list of actors makes that almost ridiculous. Hollywood legends play real-life soldiers, including Charlton Heston, Henry Fonda, James Coburn, Glenn Ford, Hal Holbrook, Robert Mitchum, Robert Wagner, Toshirō Mifune, Tom Selleck, and many more.
Critics who dismissed the movie still praised it as “pure spectacle,” and the action carried it to become a mᴀssive success, making $100 million on a $4 million budget. However, this cast is impressive and makes it worth watching.
The Guns Of Navarone (1961)
Released in 1961, The Guns of Navarone is a World War II ensemble movie about an Allied commando unit sent in to destroy a seemingly impregnable German fortress. This is a mission they need to complete so they can save 2,000 British soldiers marooned on Navarone Island.
The cast is led by three men, with Gregory Peck, David Niven, and Anthony Quinn in the lead roles, as well as a strong supporting cast including names like Richard Harris and Antony Quayle. The entire climax is a tension-filled event with the rescue starting before the fortress can be destroyed.
Critics mostly praised the melodrama of the story and the focus on the men trying to save the day, more than a look at the actual effects of World War II on the soldiers. However, the acting was incredible and elevates the underrated war movie above many others from its era.
Inglourious Basterds (2009)
Inglourious Basterds is a very different form of World War II movie. Instead of a film that follows a real-life mission or event, this is a fictional story set during World War II that evolves into an Elseworlds story, where the Allies send a spy team to ᴀssᴀssinate Adolf Hitler and his top officials during a movie premiere.
Directed by Quentin Tarantino, the war movie has an incredible ensemble cast, all with the privilege of delivering Tarantino’s masterful dialogue. With three different stories ongoing, the film stars names like Brad Pitt, Christoph Waltz, Mélanie Laurent, Michael Fᴀssbender, Diane Kruger, and many more.
Quentin Tarantino considers Inglourious Basterds his masterpiece, and for good reason. The acting is some of the best in any Tarantino movie, and the story is тιԍнт and perfectly plotted. For anyone looking for something unique in ensemble war movies, look no further.
The Dirty Dozen (1967)
The Dirty Dozen is an adaptation of the novel by E.M. Nathanson about a group of 12 convicts enlisted and trained as commandos for an Allied suicide mission before the Normandy landings in World War II. As the тιтle suggests, this film follows the 12 convicts, all played by some very big Hollywood names.
Lee Marvin and Ernest Borgnine star as two majors who take these convicts under their wings to train. These convicts include Charles Bronson, Jim Brown, John Cᴀssavetes, Telly Savalas, Donald Sutherland, and more. The film features twists, turns, and betrayals, and is one of the most exciting World War II caper movies.
The Dirty Dozen won an Oscar for its sound editing, and the AFI named it on its “100 Years … 100 Thrills” list. It was also followed by sequels, none of which touched the quality of the original World War II film.
The Thin Red Line (1998)
The Thin Red Line is an ensemble World War II movie that is often forgotten about for one big reason. It came out the same year as Saving Private Ryan, and Steven Spielberg’s movie got the most publicity of the two. Regardless, the film received seven Oscar nominations, and the movie was a harsh look at the effects of war.
The cast is led by some monster names, including Sean Penn, Adrien Brody, Jim Caviezel, Ben Chaplin, George Clooney, John Cusack, Jared Leto, Woody Harrelson, Tim Blake Nelson, John Travolta, and more. Even the smaller cast members were famous, with names like Thomas Jane, Miranda Otto, and Nick Stahl.
The Thin Red Line cast was so huge and impressive that there were also scenes with Lukas Haas, Bill Pullman, and Mickey Rourke, which were deleted from the final product.
Army Of Shadows (1969)
Visionary French New Wave director Jean-Pierre Melville directed the World War II movie Army of Shadows, released in 1969 and based on the novel by Joseph Kessel. The film follows the French Resistance fighters who fought back against the Nazi occupation during World War II.
The main character introduced at the start is Philippe Gerbier, a civil engineer who leads a French Resistance cell in Lyon. However, once he escapes from his captors at the beginning of the film, things move quickly, and the rest of his cell is introduced, turning into an exciting suspense-drama.
The movie follows these resistance fighters as they move between safe houses, work with the Allied military forces, kill informers, and try to evade capture, knowing that death awaits them if they are caught. The characters are heroic, but the Resistance is shown to be a dangerous, bleak life, with death as the main way out.
The Bridge On The River Kwai (1957)
David Lean directed some of the most expansive and brilliant movies of the 1950s, influencing future filmmakers like Steven Spielberg. While the World War I movie Lawrence of Arabia was his masterpiece, Lean also directed a great World War II ensemble movie called The Bridge on the River Kwai.
This film was an entirely fictional movie based on Pierre Boulle’s novel, but it uses the Burma Railway construction as a historical setting. Although it was not based on any real historical events other than the railway, it featured a fantastic cast, mainly composed of people who wanted to work with David Lean.
This ensemble included William Holden, Alec Guinness, Jack Hawkins, and more. The war movie won seven Oscars, including Best Picture, and was entered into the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress in 1997.
The Great Escape (1963)
The Great Escape is not a World War II movie set on the front lines or during a famous battle. Instead, Steve McQueen stars as Captain Virgil Hilts, a POW in a German camp who has a reputation for trying to escape. This movie is about him causing problems and trying to escape once again.
While McQueen is the main star here, this is an ensemble war movie, with some great co-stars, including James Garner, Richard Attenborough, Charles Bronson, Donald Pleasance, and James Coburn. The film was highly praised upon its release, and it remains a beloved war movie to this day.
The Great Escape wasn’t a big award winner when released, but it has since gained more respect over the years. The motorcycle jump and chase scene is considered one of the best stunts in movie history.
Saving Private Ryan (1998)
There might not be a more successful World War II ensemble movie than Saving Private Ryan. Directed by Steven Spielberg, the film follows a troop of soldiers sent to Normandy during D-Day to find a private named James Francis Ryan and get him home safely after his brothers were all killed in action.
The main cast member is Tom Hanks as John Miller, the captain leading his team to find Private Ryan. However, he is joined by some amazing actors, including Edward Burns, Tom Sizemore, Vin Diesel, Adam Goldberg, Barry Pepper, Giovanni Ribisi, and Jeremy Davies. Matt Damon also plays Private Ryan.
Saving Private Ryan is widely considered one of the greatest war movies ever made. It has some of the most realistic battle scenes of any war movie, and the ensemble cast makes this a movie worth watching. The Library of Congress added it to the National Film Registry in 2014.
