# Last unashamedly pro-war mainstream movie? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** movies\ **Created:** [April 21, 2023, 10:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/last-unashamedly-pro-war-mainstream-movie/983035 "2023-04-21T22:24:59Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Celtic\_Kitsune](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/celtic_kitsune/32/12086_2.png) [@Celtic\_Kitsune](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Celtic_Kitsune)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2023, 10:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/last-unashamedly-pro-war-mainstream-movie/983035/1 "2023-04-21T22:25:00Z")
If Hot Shots Part Deux taught us anything it’s that war is _fantastic_. Leaving that masterpiece aside and because of the recent success of the pretty much classic anti-war war movie ‘All Quiet on the Western Front’ I was wondering what was the last mainstream movie that could be said to pretty much, war it’s A-OK. And no I don’t think it’s a good thing or even particularly like war movies. Except Top Gun Maverick, which was like a semi-serious version of Hot Shots the first partenining crossed with Star Wars. Have I just answered my own question? ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2023, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/last-unashamedly-pro-war-mainstream-movie/983035/2 "2023-04-21T22:52:39Z")
> [@Celtic\_Kitsune](#): > > partenining Are you okay? ---
**Author:** ![Celtic\_Kitsune](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/celtic_kitsune/32/12086_2.png) [@Celtic\_Kitsune](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Celtic_Kitsune)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2023, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/last-unashamedly-pro-war-mainstream-movie/983035/3 "2023-04-21T22:56:32Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > Are you okay? It’s a joke, like something that would feature in that movie. ---
**Author:** ![Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/q.q.switcheroo/32/5713_2.png) [@Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.Q.Switcheroo)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2023, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/last-unashamedly-pro-war-mainstream-movie/983035/4 "2023-04-21T23:10:23Z")
I’d say **300** , except there was a sequel: > **[300: Rise of an Empire](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/300:_Rise_of_an_Empire)** > > 300: Rise of an Empire is a 2014 American epic historical action film directed by Noam Murro from a screenplay by Zack Snyder and Kurt Johnstad, based on Frank Miller's graphic novel Xerxes.\[a\] It is a follow-up to the 2006 film 300, taking place before, during, and after the main events of that film, and is loosely based on the Battle of Artemisium and the Battle of Salamis. The cast includes Lena Headey, Peter Mensah, David Wenham, Andrew Tiernan, Andrew Pleavin, and Rodrigo Santoro reprisin... ---
**Author:** ![Sitnam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Sitnam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sitnam)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2023, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/last-unashamedly-pro-war-mainstream-movie/983035/5 "2023-04-21T23:10:55Z")
I have long held that **Apocalypse Now** was a pro war movie, but that is 1979. **Braveheart**? ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2023, 11:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/last-unashamedly-pro-war-mainstream-movie/983035/6 "2023-04-21T23:24:48Z")
I haven’t seen it but [_Devotion_](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NCDEGP6VjYY) (2022) seems to be pretty pro-war. From what I can tell, the main message of the movie is that black Americans and white Americans can overcome racism by fighting a common enemy like the Communists. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2023, 11:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/last-unashamedly-pro-war-mainstream-movie/983035/7 "2023-04-21T23:46:43Z")
_The Darkest Hour (2017_). Gary Oldman won an Oscar playing Winston Churchill, with the film’s on-screen antagonists being Chamberlain and the other British politicians who wanted to make peace with the Germans. Honestly, almost all American and British WW2 movies - at least those dealing with the European Theater of Operations - are pro-war to one degree or another. It’s either that, or be against fighting Nazis. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2023, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/last-unashamedly-pro-war-mainstream-movie/983035/8 "2023-04-21T23:52:58Z")
If you think about, Germans are anti-war when it comes to WW1 and WW2, Americans are anti-war when it comes to Vietnam… basically, people are only anti-war when they’ve lost. It’s a sour grapes thing: _I didn’t want to win it anyway. War sucks, you know?_ ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2023, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/last-unashamedly-pro-war-mainstream-movie/983035/9 "2023-04-22T00:04:28Z")
I know it is older than most mentioned, but it has the benefit of being a actual shooting war movie. I give you the jingoistic propaganda piece, The Green Berets. ---
**Author:** ![Dallas\_Jones](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dallas_jones/32/3277_2.png) [@Dallas\_Jones](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dallas_Jones)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2023, 12:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/last-unashamedly-pro-war-mainstream-movie/983035/10 "2023-04-22T00:07:32Z")
Mel Gibson’s, _We Were Soldiers_ is pretty good. [We Were Soldiers (2002) Official Trailer #1 - Mel Gibson Movie HD - YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wYK4jrhepdU) ---
**Author:** ![Kropotkin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kropotkin/32/18045_2.png) [@Kropotkin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kropotkin)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2023, 12:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/last-unashamedly-pro-war-mainstream-movie/983035/11 "2023-04-22T00:48:03Z")
A German film critic, writing about the recent All Quiet on the Western Front, suggested that it is impossible to make an anti-war movie. War porn of any kind turns it into a pro-war film at some, fairly obvious level. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2023, 12:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/last-unashamedly-pro-war-mainstream-movie/983035/12 "2023-04-22T00:52:25Z")
> [@Kropotkin](#): > > War porn of any kind turns it into a pro-war film at some, fairly obvious level. So if they avoid that, we’re cool? Because **Hair** is definitely anti-war and has zero war porn. **Blackadder Goes Forth** and **The Odd Angry Shot** would also like a place in the discussion. ---
**Author:** ![Kropotkin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kropotkin/32/18045_2.png) [@Kropotkin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kropotkin)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2023, 12:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/last-unashamedly-pro-war-mainstream-movie/983035/13 "2023-04-22T00:54:15Z")
I misread, misthought the op, reading as "pro war mainstream (war) movie. The reference to All Quiet threw me ---
**Author:** ![Larry\_Borgia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/larry_borgia/32/156_2.png) [@Larry\_Borgia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Borgia)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2023, 1:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/last-unashamedly-pro-war-mainstream-movie/983035/14 "2023-04-22T01:12:47Z")
I’ve heard that attributed to Truffaut. That it’s impossible to make an anti war film, it’s just too exciting on the big screen. ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2023, 1:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/last-unashamedly-pro-war-mainstream-movie/983035/15 "2023-04-22T01:15:58Z")
Don’t know if it fits the criteria but the first movie I thought of was Starship Troopers. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2023, 1:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/last-unashamedly-pro-war-mainstream-movie/983035/16 "2023-04-22T01:20:54Z")
The Patriot? ---
**Author:** ![mordecaiB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mordecaib/32/7725_2.png) [@mordecaiB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mordecaiB)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2023, 8:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/last-unashamedly-pro-war-mainstream-movie/983035/17 "2023-04-22T08:14:52Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > **The Odd Angry Shot** So I’m not the only person that’s watched this movie. Good to know. Saw it as a double feature drive in with _Attack Force Z_, a WWII movie starring a very young Mel Gibson. ---
**Author:** ![Jack\_Burden](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/958977/32.png) [@Jack\_Burden](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jack_Burden)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2023, 4:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/last-unashamedly-pro-war-mainstream-movie/983035/18 "2023-04-23T04:38:30Z")
_Dune_ and knowing what’s in the rest of the novel _Part II_ whenever that comes out. ---
**Author:** ![Velocity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/velocity/32/18006_2.png) [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2023, 4:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/last-unashamedly-pro-war-mainstream-movie/983035/19 "2023-04-23T04:47:20Z")
The one I’m thinking is 2012, Act of Valor, the cringeworthy one starring actual Navy SEALs. But 2022’s Top Gun Maverick is also very pro-war, although it’s more about the characters than the overall plot. ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2023, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/last-unashamedly-pro-war-mainstream-movie/983035/20 "2023-04-23T18:06:23Z")
I don’t know that I’d say it was _pro war_, so much as a more accurate than most retelling of the actual events in question. You could very easily come out of that movie pretty anti-war, when you see how many of the main characters end up killed or wounded, and just how sort of pointless overall the actual battle was. The US forces definitely destroyed the opposing PAVN forces, but for what gain? With hindsight it was a tactical victory that didn’t really lead anywhere else. The movie didn’t glorify war, didn’t gloss over much, and if it was sentimental, it was sentimental about the esprit de corps of the US units and individual heroism of some of the soldiers. It certainly wasn’t _The Green Berets_ or any of the WWII propaganda movies. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/last-unashamedly-pro-war-mainstream-movie/983035.md?page=2)