The best World War 2 movie has been named and it’s not a famous title like Saving Private Ryan. Instead, it’s a flick from decades ago that apparently puts other war movies to shame. War movies have remained a popular genre for film buffs, enjoyed in cinemas and at home via streaming services. World War 2 is one period of history that seems to grip both filmmakers and audiences to this day.
The sheer number of World War 2 movies made over the last few decades is almost too many to count. In a recent ranking, Time Out enlisted the help of Quentin Tarantino to list the 50 best WW2 movies of all time, placing an unexpected one in the top spot. As well as surveying its readers, the publication asked Quentin Tarantino to weigh in. Tarantino made one of the most iconic WW2 movies from the last couple of decades, Inglorious Bastards.
But it’s one from a much earlier decade that grabbed the number one spot on the list. According to Time Out readers and Tarantino himself, the best WW2 movie ever made is Come and See, which was released in 1985.
Come and See follows a Belarusian boy, Florya, who joins the Soviet Army against his family’s wishes. After being treated unfairly during his time in the army, he returns home to distressing news, discovering that his family had all been murdered.
While the film isn’t readily available to stream as part of a subscription, it can be rented for free on Apple TV Plus. And it might just be worth it, because the film has glowing reviews.
On review site Rotten Tomatoes, film fans have called it a “masterpiece”, “terrifying” and “one of the best war films ever made”. One reviewer said: “It’s not an easy watch, but it’s not supposed to be.”
Journalist Dan Jolin writes for Time Out’s WW2 movie list: “Making the infamous opening of Saving Private Ryan look like a Sunday stroll in the park, Elem Klimov’s hallucinatory masterpiece feels like the nearest cinema has ever come to recreating the ruthlessly discombobulating sensory experience of war.
“After much deliberation, we thought it fitting to place this singular film at the top of our list, not just for its strikingly candid take on the human toll of warfare but as a work of sublime visual and aural intensity that uses every tool in the filmmaker’s arsenal to unforgettable and often nauseating effect.”
While the top spot was nabbed by Come and See, the top 10 section of the list was filled with underrated gems and WW2 classics. The top ten best WW2 movies ever made, according to this survey, are:
- Come and See (1985)
- The Thin Red Line (1998)
- Schindler’s List (1993)
- Shoah (1985)
- Das Boot (1981)
- Went the Day Well? (1942)
- Dunkirk (2017)
- The Cranes are Flying (1957)
- A Matter of Life and Death (1946)
- The Big Red One (1980)
Meanwhile, other well-known WW2 flicks to make the top 50 list are Downfall (2004), The Great Escape (1963), The Zone of Interest (2023), Saving Private Ryan (1998), The Inglorious Bastards (1978) and Battle of Britain (1969).