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1. WAR
”War Film Genre Conventions The Power Behind the Film Films Saving Private Ryan Platoon Films
regarding war have and will continue to exist forever. They are a vital organ in the body of work that
makes up the film industry. Initially, these films were meant to inform the people of facts, let people know
what our country was going through. Now, they serve a much greater purpose than the text book
experience. They teach perspective and connect us to the human experience behind war through the
emotions of the individual. These films make us question war and the government; make us further
analyze that which we take for granted.”

2. WAR
”In the world of cinema, there is perhaps no other genre that is quite as effective at simultaneously addressing
sociopolitical issues and assessing elements pertaining to human nature as the war film genre.”
War films first appeared in 1898, a few years after the birth of the motion picture. Their subject was the Spanish-
American War, which began shortly after the sinking of the USS Maine. From the beginning they proved a
sensational draw for audiences who wanted information about the first major international conflict they and the
country were experiencing. War films have remained a consistent attraction for viewers. Sometimes, as in the
case of World War II, the immediacy of the conflict and support for it by citizens helped spur production of and
attendance at war films. At other times, even while a major war ensued, as in the case of the controversial and
unpopular Vietnam War, practically all filmmakers held off until after its conclusion, upon which a spate of highly
regarded antiwar films appeared. With only a few exceptions, the involvement of the United States in Iraq and
Afghanistan has not encouraged significant film production by major producers, only a smattering of works by
mostly independent artists. All continue in some form in the early 21st century as a means of rendering our
experience with the numerous wars that have occurred since the beginning of motion pictures, as well as those
that preceded the birth of the genre. While the war film is one of the oldest genres and not unique to any one
nation or culture, there has as yet been no comprehensive world history of the war film.

3. - War in trenches, old and inefficient guns, heavy tanks with low quality armor, air support with
low firepower
- War at beaches, jungles, fields cities and towns, better quality weapons with manageable
firepower, mass murder camps, artillery introduced
- War at urban cities (usually middle east territories) with a lot of fire cover and hiding spots
e.g. rooftops, more advanced guns, the success is based on the money, fully advanced air
support (jets, helicopters), shielded tanks with high firepower cannons

4. - Invade a country, kill the enemies, win the war
- Usually good (Americans) versus bad (Germans, Russians), virtue versus evil, poor versus
rich
- Winning a war is more important that sacrificing thousands of lives
- Story is often based on a story of a single soldier that in the end becomes a hero
- The main soldier usually survives

5. - Often Big budget
- Lots of slow motion shots to emphasize the most important moments in the movie (POV’s of
a sniper etc.)
- Usually slow build up play
- Lots of explosions, shooting and action throughout the whole film
- Lots of gore

6. - Violent and cold blooded (Germans)
- Heroic and courageous (Americans)
- Revengeful and furious (Russians)

7. The lost battalion is a 1919 first real American Silent war film about units about the 77th
infantry division (The lost battalion) penetrating into the Argonne forest of France during First
World War. The film was directed by Burton L. King and features Major Charles Whittlesey and
a number of actual soldiers from the 77th who portrayed themselves in the film. The premiere
date was released on July 2nd, 1919 in North America. The movie was later on remade 2001
by Russell Mulcahy.

13. The single most powerful depiction of battle ever to grace the silver screen, in what very well
may be the greatest war film of all time, this brutally realistic, more-than-fifteen-minute
microcosm of D-Day remains as powerfully immersive as it was the day it released. Unlike
with some of its predecessors, the characters are not so much characters as they are pieces,
pawns of a great cinematic chess game that Spielberg plays ever so masterfully. We as an
audience are introduced to a carefully selected group of these pieces, chosen seemingly at
random in much the same way they are chosen to die. Some live, and some are killed right
there on the beach as their comrades look on with nothing to do but to forget and to fight for
self-preservation.

15. - Aerial Combat, Aviation (Battle of Britain)
- Anti-war (Triage)
- Civil War (American Sniper)
- Korean (Brotherhood)
- Prisoners of War/Escape (Rescue Dawn)
- Revolutionary (The Patriot)
- Submarine (Das Boot)
- Vietnam (Full Metal Jacket)
- Cold War (The Spy Who Came In From The Cold)

16. The war genre isn’t just about shooting guns and dropping explosions on your enemies, there
are cases in which war genre was shown in a different way. For instance The Patriot is
exposed in a different way, the movie is set in times of revolutionary war where the soldiers
had to fight using their sabers, only few soldiers had the opportunity to use the muskets and
the canon pistols, not only that but the story is set in more historical tone which makes the
movie seem like its not really a war movie but more of a historical and philosophical thriller.

17. 40’s 50’s 60’s 70’s 80’s
Battleground Rommel, Desert Fox Judgment at Nuremberg Too Late the Hero Das Boot
Lifeboat The Desert Rats Hell is for Hero's Battle of Midway The Winds of
War
Convoy Stalag 17 The Longest Day Cross of Iron War and
remembrance
90’s 2000’s 10’s
Stalingrad Pearl Harbor Battle of the Pacific
Hiroshima The days of Glory Fury
Saving Private Ryan Katyń 1944
Jakob The Liar

18. Steven Spielberg
One of Hollywood's best known and
wealthiest directors, Spielberg has directed
54 movies to date including "Saving Private
Ryan" and "Schindler's List." Both take
place during WWII, but in very different
places and from very different perspectives
Clint Eastwood
Directing everything from westerns to dramas,
Eastwood's "Letters from Iwo Jima" paints a
different picture of WWII, this time from the
perspective of the Japanese. It followed "Flags
of our Fathers," which he also directed, the
same story, but from the point of view of the
U.S Marines
Ridley Scott
In addition to directing many science fiction
flicks that could be categorized as war movies,
Scott directed 2001's "Black Hawk Down." The
movie, about U.S. soldiers battling heavily
armed Somalis in civil war-torn Mogadishu, is
based on a true story. He also directed "G.I.
Jane" and "Gladiator.”

19. Whether it's Call of Duty or Battlefield, they're games where you interact with the world using the gun in your
hand. This makes for an often exciting, adrenaline-pumping experience, but it also glosses over how war
influences anyone other than a soldier.
Both Call of Duty and Battlefield can offer a joy of becoming a virtual soldier but do they really show the reality of
war? The answer is quite simple, no it doesn’t. Sure it’s fun to ‘run and gun’ and kill people in virtual game but
these games are not realistic as some people may assume. For instance you can knife someone in the foot and
they die instantly and yet you can headshot someone with a pistol and they still survive. In other example you
always have a ammo counter somewhere in the bottom of the screen, in reality of war you’d have no idea how
many bullets you have left in a magazine. These little things make the game pretty unrealistic therefore it doesn’t
express the realism and reality that would happen in real life war.