My Personal favorite Modern War films

4. A film which I thought I wasn't going to like, but it surprised me is 13 Hours. One of the reasons it surprised me is because it's a film directed by Michael Bay. It's a film where he shows himself as an actual director which I haven't seen in years. Though the film has some awkward humour and explosions that you would expect to see in a fireworks display, it doesn't have the weak points and continuity problems that turned off most Michael Bay films. The film is based on real event in Benghazi, Libya during September 11th 2012, about a group of six Ex-Military members of a security unit that are in charge of protecting a CIA Annex and U.S. Diplomatic Outpost when a massive attack happened, and it was up to them to do what was right when everything went wrong. The film was nominated for Best Sound Mixing. I admit, the film does have some historical inaccuracies, but despite that, it's a very well-acted, gripping and heartfelt masterpiece.

5. My next favourite is The Hurt Locker. This dark-themed thriller, drama shows that war is hell, but some people fit into that hell. This film won 6 Oscars, won for Best Picture, Kathryn Bigelow directed a suspenseful war drama about a group of U.S. Army doing one of the most dangerous jobs in the Iraq War, Bomb Disposal. What makes this film shine is drama between the characters, their perspectives and how to get through the adrenaline building events in warfare. The film has got very solid writing, acting, and scene building. Very precise from the start to the end. Starring Jeremy Renner, Anthony Mackie, and Brian Geraghty, The Hurt Locker shows present-day warfare, not like any else seen on the big screen and stands as a true masterpiece.

6. But speaking of Kathryn Bigelow, I don't it's as good as Zero Dark Thirty. A few years after her succession with The Hurt Locker, Kathryn Bigelow took on something even further. Zero Dark Thirty is a war thriller based on the decade long manhunt for Osama Bin Laden, it's a brilliantly crafted and written that managed to get five Oscar nominations, one for Best Picture, and winning another for Best Sound Editing. I personally like this film better compared to The Hurt Locker because it has a lighter setting with more political development. And the raid scene the end is one of my favourite scenes in the movie. Though the cons I have with it are that it's been criticized for being historically inaccurate and it's torture scenes, however, it still shows great thrilling and harrowing scenes that greatly build character development. Starring Jessica Chastain, the main CIA intelligence analyst involved in the manhunt, Zero Dark Thirty is an intelligent and gripping masterpiece.

7. Yes, for anyone who knows this film, then you must of know this was coming. Black Hawk Down is not just my favourite modern war film, it's also one of my personal favourite films of all time. Directed by Ridley Scott, this is a true story set in Somalia, about how a group of 123 elite U.S. soldiers of Delta Force, Army Rangers and 160th SOAR were on a mission in 1993. Their objective was to capture two lieutenants of a Warlord, which turned into an all-out battle in the streets of Mogadishu. And what can I say about it? The cinematography is fantastic, the acting is stupendous, the people behind the scenes used filming technology which is now used all the time now, and the action is like thunder and lightning in a bottle. For a full-on action film, it looks and feels real, and it's easy to follow. The story is well told while there's constant gunfire. Black Hawk Down is an effective, gripping and intense masterpiece of war, all while backed by Ridley Scott's skill of filming techniques which help with the focus of a struggle between life and death.


Do you agree with my favourites?

If you haven't seen any of these films and you're interested,

or if you have any recommendations for more Modern War films...

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