Best Movies About Vietnam War

From Robert Zemeckis, starring Tom Hanks, Robin Wright, Gary Sinise, Sally Field
Rated PG-13

Forrest Gump is a 1994 American comedy-drama film directed by Robert Zemeckis and written by Eric Roth. It stars Tom Hanks as the titular character, a slow-witted but kind-hearted and exceptionally brave man from Alabama who witnesses, and in some cases influences, some of the defining events of the latter half of the 20th century in the United States. Forrest Gump's journey of self-discovery takes him through many of the significant events of the 1960s and 1970s, such as the Vietnam War, the Watergate scandal, the civil rights movement, and the birth of the personal computer. The film also features Robin Wright, Gary Sinise, Mykelti Williamson, and Sally Field. The story is narrated by a grown-up Forrest, recalling his life from childhood to adulthood. Along the way, he experiences love, heartbreak, tragedy, and redemption. Forrest Gump won the Academy Award for Best Picture, Best Actor (Tom Hanks), Best Director (Robert Zemeckis), and Best Adapted Screenplay (Eric Roth).

From Francis Ford Coppola, starring Martin Sheen, Marlon Brando, Robert Duvall, Frederic Forrest
Rated R

"Apocalypse Now" is a 1979 drama-war film directed by Francis Ford Coppola, starring Marlon Brando, Robert Duvall, Martin Sheen, and Frederic Forrest. Set during the Vietnam War, the film follows a troubled Army special operations officer, Captain Willard (Sheen), on a mission to assassinate the renegade Colonel Kurtz (Brando), who has gone AWOL and is believed to be insane. On his journey, Willard meets a variety of characters who help him gain insight into Kurtz's motivations and the true horrors of the war. Along the way, Willard also confronts his own inner demons and his feelings of patriotism and duty, culminating in a final confrontation with Kurtz in the jungle.

From Stanley Kubrick, starring Matthew Modine, R. Lee Ermey, Vincent D'Onofrio, Adam Baldwin
Rated R

Full Metal Jacket is a 1987 war film directed by Stanley Kubrick, based on the novel The Short-Timers by Gustav Hasford. The film follows a platoon of U.S. Marines, from their intense training in boot camp to the brutal street fighting in Hue during the Tet Offensive in the Vietnam War. The film is split into two distinct sections: boot camp and Vietnam. In boot camp, the recruits are relentlessly trained to be model soldiers, while in Vietnam they're confronted with the harsh realities of war. Throughout the film, the young soldiers struggle to make sense of their surroundings and find their place in the chaos of conflict. The film's title is a reference to the full metal jacket bullet used by the military. The film was a critical and commercial success, earning an Academy Award nomination for Best Adapted Screenplay.

From Oliver Stone, starring Charlie Sheen, Tom Berenger, Willem Dafoe, Keith David
Rated R

Platoon is a 1986 American war film written and directed by Oliver Stone that stars Tom Berenger, Willem Dafoe, Charlie Sheen, Forest Whitaker, and Francesco Quinn. The film tells the story of Chris Taylor, a young American volunteer soldier in the Vietnam War who experiences a personal moral crisis as a result of his participation in the conflict. It follows Taylor's journey through the bloody and chaotic battlefields of Vietnam and his struggle to reconcile his conflicting feelings about the war with his own sense of patriotism. Platoon was one of the first major Hollywood films to realistically portray the horrors of war, and it was highly acclaimed upon its release, winning the Academy Award for Best Picture and several other awards.

From Michael Cimino, starring Robert De Niro, Christopher Walken, John Cazale, John Savage
Rated R

The Deer Hunter is a 1978 American epic war drama film directed by Michael Cimino. It stars Robert De Niro, Christopher Walken, John Savage, John Cazale, Meryl Streep, and Chuck Aspegren. The story takes place in Clairton, Pennsylvania, a small working-class town on the Monongahela River south of Pittsburgh, and in Vietnam. The film follows a group of friends from Clairton as they go off to fight in the Vietnam War. It focuses on the devastating consequences of their war experiences, both physically and psychologically, as they struggle to adjust to life back home. It is a powerful and haunting exploration of the human cost of the war and the lasting effects of the conflict.

From Roland Joffé, starring Sam Waterston, Haing S. Ngor, John Malkovich, Julian Sands
Rated R

The Killing Fields is a 1984 British-American drama film directed by Roland Joffé, based on the experiences of two journalists, Cambodian Dith Pran and American Sydney Schanberg, during the Khmer Rouge regime. It stars Sam Waterston, Haing S. Ngor and John Malkovich. The film follows the journey of Pran and Schanberg as they get caught up in the Cambodian Civil War and are forced to flee the country. Pran is subsequently captured by the Khmer Rouge and put into a labor camp, while Schanberg is able to escape to the United States. The film follows his desperate search for Pran, which culminates in a reunion after Pran's eventual escape from the labor camp. The film shows the brutality of the Khmer Rouge regime and the horrors of war, but is ultimately a story of hope and courage. It received critical acclaim and Academy Award nominations for Best Picture, Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Supporting Actor (Ngor).

From Ted Kotcheff, starring Sylvester Stallone, Brian Dennehy, Richard Crenna, Bill McKinney
Rated R

First Blood is a 1982 action film directed by Ted Kotcheff and starring Sylvester Stallone as John Rambo, a veteran of the Vietnam War. After being wrongfully arrested and harassed by the sheriff of a small town in Washington state, Rambo goes on a violent rampage, using his military training to outwit and outmatch the local police. Rambo's former commanding officer, Colonel Samuel Trautman, is sent to bring him in, and the two must ultimately confront each other and Rambo's own inner demons. The film is renowned for its themes of post-traumatic stress disorder, intervention in Vietnam, and the glorification of violence.

From Sidney Lumet, starring River Phoenix, Christine Lahti, Judd Hirsch, Jonas Abry
Rated PG-13

Running on Empty (1988) is a drama directed by Sidney Lumet and starring River Phoenix, Judd Hirsch, Christine Lahti and Martha Plimpton. It tells the story of a family on the run from the FBI after they are caught during an anti-war protest in the 1960s. The family, consisting of father Arthur Pope (Hirsch), mother Annie Pope (Lahti), son Danny Pope (Phoenix) and daughter Annie Pope Jr. (Plimpton), moves from town to town, trying to stay one step ahead of the FBI. With each move, they have to give up a part of themselves and their dreams in order to remain free. The film follows Danny as he struggles to find his identity and purpose in life, while also trying to remain loyal to his family. Along the way, he meets a young woman named Lorna (Jami Gertz) who helps him understand the importance of making his own choices. Ultimately, Danny has to decide whether he will stay with his family or pursue his own dreams.

From Milos Forman, starring John Savage, Treat Williams, Beverly D'Angelo, Annie Golden
Rated PG

Hair (1979) is an adaptation of the popular Broadway musical of the same name. Directed by Milos Forman, the film follows the culture clash of a naive Midwesterner, Claude Hooper Bukowski (John Savage) who is drafted into the Vietnam War. After fleeing to New York City, he joins a "tribe" of hippies, led by the charismatic George Berger (Treat Williams). Claude soon finds himself captivated by Berger's free-spirited lifestyle and falls for Sheila (Beverly D'Angelo), a free-spirited member of the tribe. As tensions with the military and the hippies’ counter-culture grow, Claude is forced to choose between his new life and his duty to his country. The movie sheds light on the cultural divide between the hippies’ pacifist and anti-war mindset and the conservative military mindset. Ultimately, it is a story of friendship, love, and understanding, as Claude finds a way to bridge the gap between the two cultures.

From Adrian Lyne, starring Tim Robbins, Elizabeth Peña, Danny Aiello, Matt Craven
Rated R

From Barry Levinson, starring Robin Williams, Forest Whitaker, Tom. T. Tran, Chintara Sukapatana
Rated R

From Hal Ashby, starring Jane Fonda, Jon Voight, Bruce Dern, Penelope Milford
Rated R

From Julie Taymor, starring Evan Rachel Wood, Jim Sturgess, Joe Anderson, Dana Fuchs
Rated PG-13

From Werner Herzog, starring Christian Bale, Steve Zahn, Jeremy Davies, Zach Grenier
Rated PG-13

From Oliver Stone, starring Tom Cruise, Bryan Larkin, Raymond J. Barry, Caroline Kava
Rated R

From Alan Parker, starring Matthew Modine, Nicolas Cage, John Harkins, Sandy Baron
Rated R

From Randall Wallace, starring Mel Gibson, Madeleine Stowe, Greg Kinnear, Sam Elliott
Rated R

From Brian De Palma, starring Michael J. Fox, Sean Penn, Don Harvey, John C. Reilly
Rated R

From Joel Schumacher, starring Colin Farrell, Matthew Davis, Clifton Collins Jr., Tom Guiry
Rated R

From Sidney J. Furie, starring Stan Shaw, Andrew Stevens, James Canning, Michael Lembeck
Rated R

From John Flynn, starring William Devane, Tommy Lee Jones, Linda Haynes, James Best
Rated R

From John Irvin, starring Anthony Barrile, Michael Boatman, Don Cheadle, Michael Dolan
Rated R

From Karel Reisz, starring Nick Nolte, Tuesday Weld, Michael Moriarty, Anthony Zerbe
Rated R

From George P. Cosmatos, starring Sylvester Stallone, Richard Crenna, Charles Napier, Steven Berkoff
Rated R

From Peter Markle, starring Gene Hackman, Danny Glover, Jerry Reed, David Marshall Grant
Rated R