Who Spoke Eloquently

 The most striking aspect of the commemorative events marking the 75th anniversary of the D-Day landings on 6 June 2019 was the testimony of the veterans who participated in the conflict and who spoke eloquently and movingly about the events of 6 June 1944.

These interviews should be compulsory viewing so people understand the courage and sacrifice of a generation of men and women who displayed the “unconquerable resolve” the Queen spoke about during her speech in Portsmouth.

The film world has, of course, brought us many depictions of the Normandy landings and the subsequent battles. You will find a number of those titles in this list of the 20 greatest Second World War films.

These 20 movies only scratch the surface of the countless number made about the momentous event, but remind us of the horrors and sacrifices made during the devastating global conflict.

1 Schindler’s List (Steven Spielberg, 1993)

Spielberg’s deeply personal masterpiece is perhaps the most moving war film ever made. All the more so with the knowledge that it was based on the true story of Oskar Schindler, who originally set out to make his fortune by exploiting cheap Jewish labour in Krakow.

However, as Schindler witnesses the unfolding horror of the Holocaust, his motivation changes and he bribes Nazi leaders to keep his employees out of the extermination camps, saving more than 1,100 lives. The winner of seven Oscars, Schindler’s List does full justice to Thomas Keneally’s source novel and remains just as powerful and relevant today.

2 Casablanca (Michael Curtiz, 1942)

The romantic drama par excellence spends most of its running time in Rick’s nightclub, apart from the glorious climax at the airport, but with its war-torn setting and those nasty Nazis, Casablanca is undoubtedly a classic war film too. Stars, script, director and music all align perfectly to create one of Hollywood’s greatest, most loved and most legendary films.

3 Come and See (Elem Klimov, 1985)

One of the most harrowing films ever made, this Russian masterpiece drew on the experiences of the film’s writer, Ales Adamovich, who witnessed many of the atrocities portrayed. A surreal, nightmarish experience as we witness the transition of a carefree 14-year-old Belarusian boy become a resistance fighter, traumatised by the barbarism of the invading Nazi forces.

4 Saving Private Ryan (Steven Spielberg, 1998)

Until SavingPrivate Ryan, with its shockingly realistic opening half hour on Omaha Beach during the Normandy landings, no Hollywood film had shown the carnage of warfare quite so graphically. Spielberg then poses the question “how do you find decency in the hell of warfare?” as Tom Hanks’s troop go deep behind enemy lines to rescue one man so he can return home to his grieving mother who has lost all three of her other sons. Occasionally sentimental, undeniably manipulative, but a film that virtually reinvented the genre.

5. Dunkirk (Christopher Nolan, 2017)

Nolan’s retelling of the Dunkirk evacuation is a stunning achievement, which on release immediately entered the pantheon of great war movies. Three separate stories – the soldiers on the beach and one young Tommy in particular, the Spitfires overhead, and the brave civilians who risk their lives to cross the Channel in their boats to help with the rescue, are intertwined to a wall-of-sound backdrop for one of the most immersive films you could ever wish to experience.

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6 Grave of the Fireflies (Isao Takahata, 1988)

Heartbreaking and thought-provoking anime from Studio Ghibli about brother and sister Japanese orphans desperately trying to survive in the dying days of the war. A haunting anti-war statement almost without peer, adapted from the story by Akiyuki Nosaka and based on his own experiences in the firebombed city of Kobe.

7 Das Boot (Wolfgang Petersen, 1981)

A masterful ultra-realistic account of a German U-Boat crew during the Battle of the Atlantic, which favours suspense and tension as much as thrillingly authentic battle scenes. Das Boot incorporates a strong anti-war message while emphasising the sailors’ contempt for the Nazis as they (and the audience) experience the long days of tedium and claustrophobic horror of underwater warfare.

8 Rome, Open City (Roberto Rossellini, 1945)

A classic of Italian neorealism with many unforgettable images full of raw immediacy, and featuring an immense performance from Anna Magnani. Open City is a stark, brutal account of the Italian resistance during the Nazi occupation of Rome, which the director shot in piecemeal fashion in a ravaged city only recently liberated by American forces.