Both World Wars have been significant events in the history of mankind. Through them have come tales of unshakable courage, heartbreak, and the overall spirit of humanity, resulting in the creation of many films of the aforementioned feats. However, there are many wars that humans have fought with equal tenacity that don’t get the credit or coverage due to the world wars' gigantic reputation but still produce equally heartwarming tales and anecdotes.
In fact, every generation brings its own chapters of destructive wars that leave an indelible mark on humanity and on the film industry as well. War is sadly something that is universal, that spans generations and countries with various conflicts being the backdrop to many iconic films. Here are some of the bestwarmovies that are not based on both the World Wars.
Update June 26, 2025: In honor of Veterans Day, this article has been updated with even more war films that are not focused on World War I or II that are worth watching and where you can stream each title.
10Shershaah (2021)
Shershaahis a Bollywood biopic based on the life of an Indian soldier named Vikram Batra, who was awarded India’s highest military decoration, the Param Vir Chakra. In the Kargil war fought between India and Pakistan, Batra gallantly sacrificed his life in a bid to capture an important strategic location, hugely contributing to India’s war-winning efforts.
What Makes It Great?
Although the movie is mainly concerned with doing justice to the details of the Kargil war, director Vishnuvardhan takes the audience during the first half of the movie on a tour around Captain Vikram’s childhood, and his love story with Dimple Cheema. This technique brings forth the personal and the human in the dehumanizing act of war. The second half of the movie allows lead star Sidharth Malhotra the chance to shine the bigger than life aura of his character through amazingly shot war scenes. The film covers everything (strategizing, battling, explosions, heavy artillery, and war speeches), and the camera does not shy away from pushing in on the horrendous and bloody consequences of the war.
Stream on Prime Video
9Beasts of No Nation (2015)
Beasts of No Nation
As civil war rages in Africa, a ruthless warlord (Idris Elba) brainwashes young boys and makes them join his army, turning them into vicious guerrilla soldiers.Beasts of No Nationis a visceral film, that paints a raw and realistic picture of the violent mechanics of war. This is the movie to watch when you want to see amazing cinematic techniques blend with the emotional power of great performances.
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Idris Elba won the SAG Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor for his unmatched talent in this role. By critics and audiences' consensus,Beasts of No Nationisan uncompromising war masterpiecethat challenges viewers ‘of all nations’ and wakes them up to the horrendous impact of war on the most vulnerable social chain: children. Children turned into soldier killers is a great rebellion against basic human rights that had frightening reverberations on the children’s reality. These consequences were beautifully captured by Fukunaga’s sharp camera. In short, the movie is a brutally honest, sobering, and magnificent cinematic experience that’s at times too hard to watch.
Stream on Netflix
8The Hurt Locker (2008)
The Hurt Locker
In this Academy Award-winning film by Kathryn Bigelow, Jeremy Renner plays the role of Sergeant First Class William James, a bomb squad leader who comes to odds with his team for his eccentric approach towards his job.The Hurt Lockeris against the backdrop of a war torn Iraq, where nobody is safe and everybody is a threat. This war drama shows the unconventional side of bravery. Staff Sgt. William James, is a man of war who instead of dropping bombs, defuses them. The movie presents him as the strange, peculiar man, whose reckless behavior in the face of danger does not necessarily make sense to the rest of his team.
What Makes it Great?
The Hurt Locker is a tense thriller in the context of a war movie. It capturesthe raw moments of dangerin defusing bombs that leaves the audience on the edge of their seat. The film won six Academy Awards, including for Best Picture in 2010. The movie is rife with the heart-melting suspense, adrenaline, and meaning that every war movie fan is looking for.
Stream on Max
Jarheadfollows Anthony Swofford (Jake Gyllenhaal), a US military sniper during his harsh days during ‘Operation Desert Storm’, where 35 countries retaliated to Iraq’s invasion of Kuwait. In the film, Swofford is stationed in the Persian Gulf, on standby despite being eager to fight. As he continues sitting on the sidelines, Swofford spirals into having dark thoughts about his girlfriend cheating on him, while inversely getting more desperate to hill.
From the amazing soundtrack and the cast’s dazzling performances, the movie is an underrated one. Jake Gyllenhaal and Jamie Foxx bring their best act to the screen, relying not only on their natural charisma but also translating their rising maturity into becoming best performers. The Guardian calls Sam Mendes' war film: “stunning to look at and to listen to.”
Stream on Starz
6Full Metal Jacket (1987)
Full Metal Jacket
Full Metal Jacket,is a riveting tale of war following Private Davis (Matthew Modine), one of Vietnam War’s new recruits, nicknamed Joker, as he undergoes severe boot camp training. We see him graduate and then get sent to Vietnam as a journalist. Although he keeps a peace button pinned on his uniform, he finally succumbs to becoming the killer Hartman (his Sergeant) wanted him to be.
Stanley Kubrick’s anti-war film throws light on the dehumanizing effects war has on young recruits from the stage of initiation to the actual grounds of battle. InFull Metal Jacket,Kubrick symbolically creates a coarse and tense environment throughout the film in a bid to show the loss of individuality one suffers when one participates in any sort of war. The film also boasts of eccentric characters like drill instructor Sergeant Hartman, who from the onset, seemsmore sadistic and cruel than the enemy. In a career filed with great movies,Full Metal Jacketstill manages to stand out among the pack.
Stream on Apple TV+
5Platoon (1986)
Platoonis a harsh film thatdepicts the horrific nature of warand the duality of man. The plot revolves around a group of American soldiers who survive in the jungles of Vietnam while dealing with their personal revelations on the inside. The film deals with deep, thought-provoking themes of drugs, violence, and interpersonal conflicts, coming very close to painting an accurate picture of what the war seemed like.
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The movie is here to tell of the futility of war through a very realistic lens, one that is carefully prepared by writer and director Oliver Stone, who included his own experience in the service. Withits semi-autobiographical spirit, its veseral performances, and its daring exploration of the vicissitudes of war, the movie won over the hearts of the audience. Not only that,Platoonalso won The Academy Award for Best Picture and The Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture.
4Braveheart (1995)
Braveheart
Based on the trials and tribulations of Sir William Wallace, a 13th-century Scottish Warrior who waged war against King Edward I of England after he killed the love of his life after their first day of marriage.This small act of rebellioneventually turned into a giant revolt, acting as a cornerstone in Scotland’s war for independence.
Directed and starred in by the born-great Mel Gibson,Braveheartmade a clean sweep at the Oscars, winning five awards from ten nominations, most notably, the Academy Award for Best Picture. The movie made $213.2 million on a $65–70 million budget. The secret to this massive success on all scales is the main character’s natural charismatic leadership and his passion for what he is fighting for. The impelling combination of his duty toward his nation and his loyalty to his love interest, whose been wronged and killed, makes this war epic relatable from all sides.
3Lincoln (2012)
Based on Doris Kearns Goodwin’s 2005 biographyTeam of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln,Lincolnis directed by Steven Spielberg and stars Daniel Day-Lewis in the titular role of Abraham Lincoln. The film highlights Lincoln’s final months in office, set against the backdrop of a nation divided by war and radicalism. In such a sensitive moment, Lincoln displayed true grit and character by tirelessly working towards ending the war while also abolishing slavery, a decision that put him at odds with a lot of powerful people.
The Guardianreally put it well when they described the film as “moving and honorably high-minded.” for its brilliant description of a sensitive political moment in the United States. Lincoln’s biographer, Ronald White himself, testifies to the movie’s “delicate balance or blend between history and dramatic art”. While the Civil War is not the centerpiece here, it is important for the context of the film as the real battle is the political fight that plays out. Daniel Day Lewis of course is incredible and he won the Academy Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role.
Rent on Apple TV
2Apocalypse Now (1979)
Apocalypse Now
Francis Ford Coppola’s 1979 war epicApocalypse Nowthrows light on man’s descent into madness as he descends deeper into war. The plot follows Captain Willard (Martin Sheen) and his crew as they are dispatched on a mission that on paper doesn’t exist, but revolves around themassassinating a renegade colonel (Marlon Brando), who’s hidden deep within the jungles of Vietnam, where insulated by an army of guerrilla rebels.
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From the dangerous landscape of the Vietnam War to the even more dangerous landscape of the collapsing mind of a soldier, Coppola brings the viewer through a heart of darkness. Willard shows signs of post-traumatic stress from his previous experience of war and still undergoes the madness and senseless gore of it all during his suspicious new mission to catch Kurtz. Coppola’s depiction of the soldiers' response to war is unromanticized and realistic. The soldiers are portrayed not as heroes but as weary men slowly losing their mental stability. From whichever way you look at it,Apocalypse Nowis undoubtedly a masterpiece.
1Ran (1985)
Ranis a Japanese war film that serves as anadaptation of Shakespeare’sKing Lear, set against the curtain of sixteenth-century feudal Japan. It follows the Great Lord Hidetora Ichimonji (Tatsuya Nakadai) as he decides to divide his kingdom among his three sons. One of which will rebel against the pledge of obedience, followed by his two siblings, causing epic action scenes.
The film is majestic in scope and scale. It highlights Akira Kurosawa’s greatness, successfully examining the folly of war and the potency of greed and betrayal in the pursuit of power. Visually powerful scenes oscillating between vivid blood and beautiful sunsets create a positive suspenseful instability in the viewer. In fact, many viewRanas one of Kurosawa’s greatest films and should be on every Kurosawa fan’s watch list.
