War Movies

The Burning Sky

1940

The film was produced during Second Sino-Japanese War, before the Pearl Harbor Attack in 1941. The film mainly concerns the training of newly-recruited pilots and their daily life, then their subsequent fighting experiences in China. Army supported the production, providing all the authentic airplanes, training and actual actions. They even provided the older biplanes disguised as Chinese fighter planes. Obinata plays the trainer-turned-combat-leader, who is passionate and cool at the same time. All his boys love him, of course. The film is not as intense, full of sugar-coated camaraderie, until young pilots are killed in action one by one. Last twenty minutes are fairly grim, as the message of self-sacrifice is heard loud and clear.

Cyclepaths

2023

An old woman is carrying shopping bags. A child with a gun is riding a scooter. Birds are flying. A city is falling. A party is lit.

Les semailles et les moissons

2001

From World War I to World War II, a mother and daughter go through many trials in their search for happiness.
star 6

Seeds of Destiny

1946

Seeds of Destiny

1946

star 6
Oscar winning postwar propaganda film in support of the United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration. Strident but poignant, focusing on children. The film surveys the Nazi/Japanese atrocities, post-war devastation and the early relief efforts. This film was responsible for raising over $200,000,000, making it a top moneymaking film.

The Man Who Wouldn't Tell

1918

During World War I, young Englishman Hawtrey Burke captivates New York society with his charming manner and his skill at polo, but he incurs the scorn of the woman he loves, Elinor Warden, who, having recently returned from war-torn Belgium, cannot understand why Hawtrey is not on the front lines.

The Pacific War and Himeyuri Corps

1962

The last fight put up by remaining forces and a special volunteer nursing corps in 1944-5.

Yamashita: The Tiger's Treasure

2001

star 5.7
In World War II veteran Lolo Melo enjoys regaling his grandson Jobert with war stories, one of which includes Lolo's participation in burying the famed Yamashita treasure. When Jobert heads to Manila to unearth the cache, little does he know that he has competition: A shadowy G-man and a soldier of fortune are also in pursuit of the loot.

The Future Awaits

0000

In July 1942, during the Vel’ d’Hiv’ Roundup of Jewish families in Paris, 13 year old Tauba Birenbaum and her parents, who are Polish Jews, find refuge in a tiny room for the next 765 days. Living conditions are tough and they fear being discovered at any moment. But while her parents sink further into despair, Tauba’s fighting spirit shines through. She finds joy in every little thing, from a piano drawn on the floor, to the views of Paris through an open window. Despite extreme circumstances, she will keep hope until the liberation of Paris, and take back control of her life.

Unknown Pages from the Life of a Scout

1990

star 1
The Soviet intelligence officer, abandoned on the territory occupied by the Germans, finds himself in a tragic situation: high-ranking state security officials put him in the position of an outcast. However, he continues to act - at his own peril and risk ...

Baby Elephant Story: The angel who descended to earth

1986

In the winter of 1945, Sakura the elephant gave birth to a baby elephant at Tokyo Fujimi Zoo under the watchful eye of the zookeeper Shota Tanabe. Around the same time, Shota's wife, Setsuko, also gave birth to a son. Hanako, the baby elephant, grows up while deepening her bonds with elementary school students who love zoos. However, as Japan enters the Pacific War, the military orders the animals in the zoos of five major cities to be killed.

Beyond the Line of Duty

1942

star 4.7
This short film in support of the war effort focuses on the training and missions of Army Air Corps Captain Hewitt T. Wheless just after the U.S. entry into World War II.
star 5.3

Seeing Hands

1943

Seeing Hands

1943

star 5.3
This serious Pete Smith Specialty series entry encourages industry to hire people with disabilities to help with the war effort. As a boy, Ben Helwig was blinded in an accident while playing baseball. He eventually acquired a guide dog and now works in a defense plant.
star 6

The Sea Hawk

1942

The Sea Hawk

1942

star 6
During a WWII a duel starts between Soviet war ship and Nazi submarine.
star 6

I Betrayed Hitler

2016

I Betrayed Hitler

2016

star 6
During the worst days of World War II, the British government asks the mathematician Alan Turing to unravel the mysteries of the German Enigma encryption machine, an impossible task to accomplish without the invaluable information that Hans-Thilo Schmidt, a disenchanted but greedy German citizen, had been handing over to the French secret services since 1931.
star 2

Westward Ho!

1940

Westward Ho!

1940

star 2
Wartime short promoting the evacuation if urban children to rural areas.
star 5.2

Ravished Armenia

1919

Ravished Armenia

1919

star 5.2
A Hollywood biographical film about a survivor's experience of the Armenian Genocide. Arshaluys (Aurora) Mardiganian plays herself in the film which is based on her published memoirs. It is thought to be the first film about made about genocide. All known complete copies of the film have been lost. A restored and edited 24-minute segment of the historic motion picture was released in 2009 by the Armenian Genocide Resource Center of Northern California. It is based on a rare surviving reel of film edited in Soviet Armenia.