Waging war is as old as humanity itself, but in the scope of such history, filmmaking is a new form of art. Dependent on the technologies of capturing light and sound, feature films are only a little more than 100 years old. The technological and stylistic advances in the 1920s and 1930s were astounding, but another world war slowed things to a crawl through the 1940s and 1950s. In the 1960s, war movies began to ask compelling questions, fighting for space among two decades worth of black-and-white perspectives and political propaganda.
The 1970s were a unique time in the evolution of the Hollywood war film. The United States was facing its first losing war in Vietnam, and the questions being raised in the 1960s were trying to be answered by filmmakers in the 1970s. On its way to winning the Oscars for Best Picture, Best Director and Best Actor, and Best Screenplay (Based on Factual Material), Patton explored the complexity and brutality of the heroic ideal. That same year, in 1970, MAS*H — an irreverent protest of war, the military, and authority in general — was also nominated for Best Picture and Best Director, and won its own Best Screenplay Oscar (Based on Material from Another Medium).
But whether they chronicle war or question it, war movies are not an easy thing to bring to the screen. For every war film that climbs to critical acclaim, there are a dozen that fall flat. One reason is the heightened importance of historical accuracy — even tiny mistakes can feel like a form of disrespect. Another is the challenge of telling a meaningful story about something that can mean extremely different things to different people.
With such an elusive target to hit, it’s no surprise that sometimes a decent war movie gets thrown out with the bathwater. This happened a number of times with war films of the 1970s, relatively overlooked movies that should have gotten more recognition than they did. Here are five war movies from that decade that were conspicuously underrated.
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5 The Ironic Contrast of Von Richthofen and Brown
United Artists
The intense popularity of movies like Top Gun and Top Gun: Maverick reveal that fighter pilots and dogfights hold a special place in the hearts of modern culture. This romantic attraction goes all the way back to the earliest days of aerial warfare, and was born in the story of the Red Baron. Baron Manfred Von Richthofen believed in honor and humanity, even in war. Roy Brown, the allied pilot who finally shot him down, represented the ruthless victory. When Von Richthofen is gone, Germany also heads down the ruthless path with his replacement, Hermann Göring, who would eventually lead Hitler’s Luftwaffe.
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Why Von Richthofen and Brown Is Underrated
It took a different kind of courage to fly in World War I, when fighter planes were made of stretched fabric over wooden frames, little more than engines designed to keep a man in the air with a mounted machine gun. In its flying sequences, Von Richthofen and Brown astoundingly captures what it was like to take to the skies in the first days of mortal combat in midair.
It’s also worth watching what legendary independent filmmaker Roger Corman could do with a big studio budget. Sadly, studio pressures and the tragic death of a pilot during filming drove Corman from the director’s chair until Frankenstein Unbound, his final movie as a director in 1990.
4 The Dark Absurdity of Catch-22
Paramount Pictures
The insanity of war is the overarching theme of Catch-22, in which a World War II bombardier is absolutely convinced he will die if he flies another mission. But the paralyzing fear that should keep him grounded only proves he’s not insane, so he can’t be grounded. It’s the men who want to keep flying missions that are insane, and they don’t want to be grounded. It’s a funny premise, but it reveals an uncomfortable truth. The sane man’s life is in the hands of the insane and untrustworthy men around him.
Why Catch-22 Is Underrated
Directed by Mike Nichols, Catch-22 is closer in style to his earlier film, The Graduate, than his later films like Working Girl, The Birdcage, or, most recently, Charlie Wilson’s War. Nichols takes Catch-22 from the comic absurdity of an impossible situation to its tragic consequences, all bathed a dark satire that audiences recognized as a slap to the face of the military, and to some extent, capitalism. But even as unsettling as audiences in 1970 found it, there are moments when the script is wonderfully witty and thought-provoking, and the amazing performance by Alan Arkin as Captain Yossarian, the man whose insane fear only proves he’s sane, is a sheer delight.
3 The B-Side Hit of Force 10 from Navarone
Columbia Pictures
Unlike many 1970s war movies, Force 10 from Navarone was not an anti-war film. This long-time-coming sequel to the 1961 masterpiece, The Guns of Navarone, might have failed to strike while the iron was hot, but it still held its own as a World War II thriller that sees a small company of unlikely allies go deep into enemy territory to accomplish the impossible and stop the Nazis from slaughtering an army of resistance fighters.
Why Force 10 from Navarone Is Underrated
As one might expect from a sequel with a 17-year gap, Force 10 from Navarone had little more in common with its classic, Best Picture-nominated forefather than a couple character names and a bunch of Nazis to defeat. Nevertheless, the Alistair MacLean story directed by Guy Hamilton (who also directed the James Bond films Goldfinger, Diamonds Are Forever, Live and Let Die, and The Man with the Golden Gun) is filled with plenty of action and intrigue. If anyone could step into the shoes of a role initially played by the great Gregory Peck, it’s Robert Shaw, and it’s fun to watch Harrison Ford and Carl Weathers try to keep up with him, both story-wise and acting-wise.
2 The Creepy Suspense of The Beguiled
Universal Pictures
The Civil War is a favorite among war historians, but rarely does one get to see warfare and war crimes from the perspective of a school for women. That atypical setting, and the slow pace of a suspense story instead of combat action, are probably what makes The Beguiled a film that’s easy to overlook or misunderstand. But setting the expectations of cannon fire and cavalry charges aside, this film shows what happens when decisions of war intrude into the home of those considered the most vulnerable.
Why The Beguiled Is Underrated
Clint Eastwood, then king of the Westerns, is known for his heroic, tough-guy roles, so it’s hard to imagine him playing a slimy, manipulative wounded soldier trying to survive behind enemy lines. The level of discomfort he evokes is enough to make any audience squirm. The story is also one of human decency, exploring ideas about what the rules of war allow for in even the most far-reaching places war touches.
1 The Historic Elegance of The Duelists
The Duelists is the story of two French Hussar soldiers, trapped in an unresolved conflict throughout the entire course of the Napoleonic wars. The Hussars considered themselves elite cavalry, and held themselves to strict codes of honor, at times resorting to dueling when honor was perceived as slighted. This intriguing screenplay came from a short story by Joseph Conrad (of Apocalypse Now fame) that was itself based on the true story of two French officers. The film explores the idea of the possibility of rules in war, and the importance and abuse of personal honor, even when on the same side of a war.
Why The Duelists Is Underrated
Two years before becoming a household name with the release of Alien, and five years before gaining even more momentum with Blade Runner,Ridley Scott directed his first feature film, The Duelists, in 1977. All the reasons Scott went on to earn Academy Award nominations for Best Director for Thelma & Louise, Black Hawk Down, and Gladiator are seen in this film’s historical accuracy, impeccable locations, and stunning attention to detail.
Not only is there a history lesson to be learned in The Duelists, the struggles of two people to figure out the boundaries of personal honor will resonate in many parts of life, and the story of the making of this film is an inspiration to all future filmmakers.
