Anti-war films

[TC]

I'd like to get a list of anti-war films for my universities stop the war society to show.

We've already shown micheal moore's films and road to guantanamo.

Winter Soldier was also shown recently by another group.


So, what topical anti-war films can we show?

[Black Dagger]

Um... i'm not sure of the name, but i saw a doco a few weeks ago which was a compilation of video filmed by thousands of Iraqi people (back in i think 2003-ish, could be wrong), basically a thousand hand-held cameras were distributed throughout the country and people filmed their life experiences during occupation, at home, family, work etc. It's not explicitly 'anti-war' (as in there its not done in a 'political journalism'-typ style, discussing 'secret' histories or events etc), but as you can imagine it doesn't paint a rosey picture of life under occupation, though not to be cliche, it is nevertheless 'inspirational' :P

So yeah, maybe someone knows the doco i'm talkin' about? It was good nonetheless, and different to the usual films about the war in Iraq.

[Blue Collar Bohemian]

"Why We Fight" and "The Ground Truth - After the Killing Ends" are two very good anti-war films I've seen in the last week.

[TC]

Could you give more information like a summery of what its about, what conflict/war is it about and stuff?

Also if it wasn't obvious its best if they're films that make the US and UK look bad :-p.

[Blue Collar Bohemian]

Short Summaries.

"Why We Fight" is about the American Military-Industrial Complex.
"The Ground Truth" is about the psychological effects of the Iraqi and Afghan wars on the soldiers that are fighting them.

The websites.
http://www.sonyclassics.com/whywefight/
http://thegroundtruth.net/

I would suggest going with the latter honestly, simply because its more emotionally charged.

[Dr. Rosenpenis]

"Road to Guantanamo" is an excellent documentary about the American and their Afghani lackeys' brutalization of innocent civillians during the invasion of Afghanistan in 2001 and 2 and in the US military base in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

edit:
oh shit, I see you've already shown that

[Mariam]

I don't know if anyone ever seen this animated anti-war movie, it's called Grave of The Fireflies.
I know it's good i've been watching it since i was almost five in arabic and every time i see it i just get that feeling... :mellow:
Here's a review about it..but it's really worth watching:

The film opens with a ghostly montage that hints at the fate of the teenage Seita and his younger sister Setsuko, before an extended sequence showing an American attack on their home town. The wooden buildings catch fire from a myriad of phospherous canisters dropped from planes in an eeriely beautiful firestorm. The two find out that their mother didn't survive the attack and leave for their aunt's home. When things don't work out, they take up refuge in an abandoned bomb shelter.

Based on the novel by Akiyuki Nosaka, "Grave of the Fireflies" takes tremendous care to illustrate the everyday details of life during war time. It is an interesting paradox of animation that in the right hands, it can be more realistic than life action: the sparsity of the images heighten certain details-the cooking of rice, a bubble caught in the clothes of a little girl in a bathtub, the candy drops rattling in their metal container.

"Grave of the Fireflies" is certain to elicit tears from just about anybody. With the careful, quiet deliberation of the best Italilan neo-realism, it lays out its heartbreaking story. Never resorting to sentimentality or manipulative tricks, the film instills achingly real sorrow for the orphans' fate.

[Lenin's Law]

Originally posted by [email protected] 30, 2006 03:40 pm
I don't know if anyone ever seen this animated anti-war movie, it's called Grave of The Fireflies.
I know it's good i've been watching it since i was almost five in arabic and every time i see it i just get that feeling... :mellow:
Here's a review about it..but it's really worth watching:

The film opens with a ghostly montage that hints at the fate of the teenage Seita and his younger sister Setsuko, before an extended sequence showing an American attack on their home town. The wooden buildings catch fire from a myriad of phospherous canisters dropped from planes in an eeriely beautiful firestorm. The two find out that their mother didn't survive the attack and leave for their aunt's home. When things don't work out, they take up refuge in an abandoned bomb shelter.

Based on the novel by Akiyuki Nosaka, "Grave of the Fireflies" takes tremendous care to illustrate the everyday details of life during war time. It is an interesting paradox of animation that in the right hands, it can be more realistic than life action: the sparsity of the images heighten certain details-the cooking of rice, a bubble caught in the clothes of a little girl in a bathtub, the candy drops rattling in their metal container.

"Grave of the Fireflies" is certain to elicit tears from just about anybody. With the careful, quiet deliberation of the best Italilan neo-realism, it lays out its heartbreaking story. Never resorting to sentimentality or manipulative tricks, the film instills achingly real sorrow for the orphans' fate.
Yes! In fact I own Grave of the Fireflies! I thought it was a very moving, powerful film. Which I think is rare for most animated films do not deal with subjects as heavy as (real-life) war, bombings, and the effects of civilians and family. Nor are their endings as , eh, how should I say it without giving it away..."perfect" and "cheery" as the the typical Disney-style traditional animation movies.

I'm glad you also enjoyed it.

[Lenin's Law]

As for a few recommendations of my own (I'm sure more will come to me as time goes on, I'm a bit of a movie buff ;) )

Salvador
Platoon
Jarhead
The Pinochet Files (Documentary)
Born on the Fourth of July

Also, while I haven't see it yet only heard about it through other people, one of the films that was mentioned here "Why We Fight" is somewhat problematic because it seems to paint a rosy and very positive picture of US President Dwight D. Eisenhower for the famous speech he made at the end of his presidency. That speech aside however, Eisenhower did absolutely nothing to curb military spending while he was in power and was the President during some of the CIA's worst activities, such as overthrowing the social-democratic Arbenz government in Guatemala and installing what would become a legacy of bloody dictatorships in Guatemala.

I'm sure the movie makes good points but any film that hails a former US President as its hero must be taken a with a huge grain of salt.

[Blue Collar Bohemian]

Originally posted by Lenin's [email protected] 30, 2006 04:11 pm
Also, while I haven't see it yet only heard about it through other people, one of the films that was mentioned here "Why We Fight" is somewhat problematic because it seems to paint a rosy and very positive picture of US President Dwight D. Eisenhower for the famous speech he made at the end of his presidency. That speech aside however, Eisenhower did absolutely nothing to curb military spending while he was in power and was the President during some of the CIA's worst activities, such as overthrowing the social-democratic Arbenz government in Guatemala and installing what would become a legacy of bloody dictatorships in Guatemala.

I'm sure the movie makes good points but any film that hails a former US President as its hero must be taken a with a huge grain of salt.
Its not all rosy on Ike, they point out his failures, but that speech he made was very important and should have been taken to heart by the American peoples.

[coda]

sounds good Tragic Clown. Let us know how it goes and what was shown.

I highly recommend the anti-war classic "Paths of Glory" by Stanley Kubrick. Although it has nothing to do with any US conflict and pre-dates Iraq by 50 years, ---it's still a riviting film and a broad denuniciation of war and especially generals. It was filmed in 1957, B/W, loosely based on the suicidal mission for the French Fort Douamant in WWI. Has trench warfare, a court martial and firing squad execution of three randomly picked soliders who pay with their lives for the loss of the fort. Was innovative filmmaking back in it's time and still is. Good, brilliant film. Can be found on video and dvd. http://www.filmsite.org/path.html

as a second, Kubricks 1987 "Full Metal Jacket"-- US soldiers in bootcamp and later, Vietnam during the Tet offensive. good for anybody considering joining the military.

and the great US-Australian 4 hour mini-series "Frankie's House", based on the book "Page after Page" that documents the Vietnam War from the perspective of British war photographer Tim Page, and US freelance photographers, Sean Flynn and John Steinbeck IV, all who photographed against the sanitized images the US was publishing in the media at the time. Excellent Excellent film if any one can find a copy and if you do, please let me know. Trying to find a copy myself.

[RebelDog]

Originally posted by [email protected] 30, 2006 04:40 pm
I don't know if anyone ever seen this animated anti-war movie, it's called Grave of The Fireflies.
I know it's good i've been watching it since i was almost five in arabic and every time i see it i just get that feeling... :mellow:
Here's a review about it..but it's really worth watching:

The film opens with a ghostly montage that hints at the fate of the teenage Seita and his younger sister Setsuko, before an extended sequence showing an American attack on their home town. The wooden buildings catch fire from a myriad of phospherous canisters dropped from planes in an eeriely beautiful firestorm. The two find out that their mother didn't survive the attack and leave for their aunt's home. When things don't work out, they take up refuge in an abandoned bomb shelter.

Based on the novel by Akiyuki Nosaka, "Grave of the Fireflies" takes tremendous care to illustrate the everyday details of life during war time. It is an interesting paradox of animation that in the right hands, it can be more realistic than life action: the sparsity of the images heighten certain details-the cooking of rice, a bubble caught in the clothes of a little girl in a bathtub, the candy drops rattling in their metal container.

"Grave of the Fireflies" is certain to elicit tears from just about anybody. With the careful, quiet deliberation of the best Italilan neo-realism, it lays out its heartbreaking story. Never resorting to sentimentality or manipulative tricks, the film instills achingly real sorrow for the orphans' fate.
I think Grave of the Fireflies should be your first port of call. Its tremendous and it will leave you shattered.

Watch it on youtube now;


part 1 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_KDJGy04cFw

part 2 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LOrqa8pFEMk

part 3 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rXmvrqSTr78

part 4 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XxEwp5B58CY

part 5 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a9yy5ufbkL4

part 6 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BzBEZfl49Q8

part 7 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o2r_Oiilz6Y

part 8 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LxUuUfVcrNI

part 9 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lu_1bg_6B58

[Dr. Rosenpenis]

There is a super indy movie called American Combatant which deals with corruption and terrorism in the US. It's a very good movie, concerning polemic topics. Although as far as I know it has only been shown in the São Paulo International Film Festival, despite it being an American movie, so it might be hard to get a ahold of.

Que Pasa Despues de la Coca?
is a very good documentary about the war on drugs in Bolivia. It directly condemns American foreign policies and how they are a tremendous source of oppression and violence against innocent natives in Bolivia.

El Violin
deals with military violence against Mexican peasants and guerrillas.

[Zero]

The Politics of Terror (BBC doc on torrentspy.)

Or Sir No Sir! Whenever its set to release, if it hasn't already.

[Mariam]

Thanks for the link The Dissenter.

[Janus]

Iraq for sale.

[LoneRed]

Jarhead is Not Anti-War

its is quite pro-war

I recommend Control Room

[TC]

Oh yah, control room is great we should do that...

[Lenin's Law]

Originally posted by [email protected] 01, 2006 01:10 am
Jarhead is Not Anti-War

its is quite pro-war


How so?

My interpretation of Jarhead was that war, and the process of getting into the military, completely dehumanizes the typical soldier, breaks him down completely, makes him lose all individuality and even forces him to revert to immature adolescent behaviors in a way to "rebel" and let loose of the suffocating, authoritarian environment around him.

You notice that many of the soldiers want to be "heroes" they want to be GI Joe, but instead in modern warfare they are left to pushing a button - leaving no "joy" or honor out of war only cold, calculated death and destruction.

When the soldiers return back home to their "normal" lives they are left forever dysfunctional, forever scarred by their treatment and their experiences in war. After watching the movie, I was left with a deep sense of disgust at the way the US military operated and dehumanized young men into cold, sadistic killing machines.

This is the message that I got from the movie at least, where did you see the pro-war aspect?

[Zero]

Originally posted by "Lenin's Law"
leaving no "joy" or honor out of war
honor in war.

What a pitty common sense has fallen to.

[Lenin's Law]

Originally posted by Zero+November 01, 2006 02:51 am--> (Zero @ November 01, 2006 02:51 am)
"Lenin's Law"
leaving no "joy" or honor out of war
honor in war.

What a pitty common sense has fallen to. [/b]
Had I feeling this part would be quoted upon - "Honor" in their , the soldiers, perverted sense of the word; the sense of wanting to be "heroes" like GI Joe, Rambo, etc. Of course I agree with you that being a GI Joe or Rambo is no hero; quite the opposite, just as I agree that there is no honor in war, (at least bourgeois war, class war has its merits I believe) however any illusions that regular, typical run of the mill soldiers, such as in the movie Jarhead might have had about being "heroes" like GI Joe and doing something "honorable" and "brave" for your country were quickly discarded as machines and buttons dictated who would win and lose battles and not individuals. Thus there was no opportunity to be the (false) "heroes" that they had initially believed they would become.

[Dr. Rosenpenis]

Originally posted by [email protected] 31, 2006 10:06 pm
Iraq for sale.
I have heard of this...
It's the same folks who produced Wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Prices, right?

Should be fairly good.

[RebelDog]

Originally posted by Dr. Rosenpenis+November 02, 2006 07:38 am--> (Dr. Rosenpenis @ November 02, 2006 07:38 am)
[email protected] 31, 2006 10:06 pm
Iraq for sale.
I have heard of this...
It's the same folks who produced Wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Prices, right?

Should be fairly good. [/b]
Also available on youtube;

Part 1 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lEnX5meWTPQ

Part 2 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q-d8cHa58k8...related&search= (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q-d8cHa58k8&mode=related&search=)

Part 3 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GA1dH7Z2KEQ...related&search= (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GA1dH7Z2KEQ&mode=related&search=)

Part 4 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KNA91abaNBU...related&search= (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KNA91abaNBU&mode=related&search=)

Part 5 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dlw9i7zCYbg...related&search= (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dlw9i7zCYbg&mode=related&search=)

Part 6 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TaQktW5iE_s...related&search= (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TaQktW5iE_s&mode=related&search=)

Part 7 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rOQRJSZJH7Q...related&search= (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rOQRJSZJH7Q&mode=related&search=)

Part 8 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IHw348mm0rI...related&search= (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IHw348mm0rI&mode=related&search=)

[shadowed by the secret police]

You can see Why We Fight on Google video (a documentary by the BBC).


http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=37...+we+fight&hl=en (http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=3787578650617448322&q=why+we+fight&hl=en)

Check out the movies A Midnight Clear and All Quiet on the Western Front. The latter addresses so many issues. Also The Battle of Algiers----amazing movie!!!

[bolshevik butcher]

http://video.google.co.uk/videosearch?q=th...r+of+nightmares (http://video.google.co.uk/videosearch?q=the+power+of+nightmares)

All 3 parts of the power of nightmares are there. It's a fantastic analysis of how the ruling class in imperialist countires relies on the war on terrorism.

[Sir Aunty Christ]

I've heard good things about Hearts and Minds (http://about.pricegrabber.com/search_fullinfo.php/masterid=100939410), about the Vietnam War. Although I haven't seen it for myself.

[shadowed by the secret police]

Yeah I saw "Hearts and Minds." I recommend it. It is a documentary about Vietnam war.