Modern War film production

The thing about filming, war films especially is that they cost a lot of money for simple film production. You know, with making war films, you've got to think about uniforms, props, locations and special effects all in just one script. I haven't looked this up, but I reckon that buying pieces of military property owned by NATO is bound to costing hundreds of thousands if not millions.

But when I was looking up on the internet for Modern War films, the kind film that caught my interest were documentary films, I just saw two of them.

The first was Restrepo, a story about a U.S. Army unit based in an outpost in a valley in Afghanistan called "Restrepo", because it's based from the name of a soldier who fell in battle. And the rest of the film is a chronicle about their year-long tour. It was interesting to watch and I got attached to the people who were interviewed, I would say it's more of a drama to watch.

The second documentary was Armadillo, it's about a group of Danish soldiers who departed for their tour in Afghanistan at a Forward Operating Base called "Armadillo". I personally liked this film because you can see more video footage of the people that it's based on, and shows the thrilling and tragic events that happen in warfare.

Documentaries are interesting and educating to watch, I just prefer to watch a scripted film with a high budget. If it's correct to the true story and it's got elements to it that are entertaining, then I can recommend it to friends and family. If a war film is too inaccurate, too wooden acting, or too cheap to put in the screens of the cinema and is direct to video, then it doesn't catch my interest.

Hollywood war films aren't actually everyone's favourite. I've heard some people argue that they're corny, inaccurate or jingoistic. But with that said, there have been Hollywood war films that based on a true story that is believable to me.

• Accuracy something to take into account, because it is a film based on a true event, I expect something that looks real because it could be dedicated to whoever it was involved. Of course, there's going to be some difference between what's real and what's "reel", but again, it's how believable and enjoyable it's going to be.

• Corniness is usually a big flaw when it comes to the writing of certain films. If a film is too corny in an uncomfortable level, then it's not humorous or patriotic, it's just too forceful. I hated the film Independence Day the second time I saw it. If you're writing a good war film, then it's got to have a serious tone to the storyline and some humour to share a bit of light and laughter.

• Jingoism should vary depending on the story. If a film is based on a true story which is based on big success, then it makes sense to put in some jingoism. Too much jingoism can make it go cheesy. For example, The Rock had a good plotline, but the setting was just so cheesy and dated that it was more like a remembrance back to the 90s.

I like Hollywood war films because they're sound and look well produced with a high budget. I'm not the sort of person who watches or likes a film that is direct to video or a film that has a cheap budget.

Other productions like Chinese film productions aren't all that perfect or trustworthy either. The films that I've seen which are owned by Chinese film market production tell stories that are too much about Right and Wrong. Not that isn't worth learning about, doing too much about it isn't always the best option for entertainment.

For me, well-produced war film involves a known choice of casting including movie stars and great special effects of sharp sounds of battle and real props of helicopters, tanks and all sorts of military hardware. If there's not enough money for at least one of those, you can make highly some effective CGI effects that would look real enough. And if you followed the three plot parts about like Action, Drama, or Politics, and know the right set of writing, e.g. homages to famous war films like Saving Private Ryan or Apocalypse Now, then you'd get a mastered Modern day war film...