Some Netflix recommendations for the week ahead

Having given our picks of the best horrors, action movies, thrillers and more, we're looking at the best war movies on Netflix this week.

In recent weeks, we covered the best romantic comedies, sci fi movies and musicals on Netflix. We've gone in a totally different direction again for this week, looking at war movies on Netflix.

There's actually a huge selection of war movies on the streaming platform. They have made plenty of their own Originals, such as 'Operation Finale', 'Sand Castle' and 'Extraction', which are all fairly mediocre.

You've got some big headliners too between the likes of 'Troy' with Brad Pitt and 'Valkyrie' with Tom Cruise.

These are our picks for the best war movies on Netflix now.

 

The Hurt Locker

Easily the best film based around the conflict in Iraq, 'The Hurt Locker' is an absolutely cracking piece of cinema. Starring the likes of Jeremy Renner, Anthony Mackie, Guy Pearce and Ralph Fiennes, director Kathryn Bigelow sets out her stall from the start - anyone can die, and they do, because simply put, this is war. Twelve years on, it still packs a punch.

 

Beasts of No Nation

If you haven't watched 'Beasts of No Nation' yet, you're missing out. We follow Agu, a child soldier fighting in the civil war somewhere in Africa. Idris Elba plays the Commandant who comes to be his mentor. It's a haunting, compelling narrative and it's no wonder that its director Cary Joji Fukunaga (whose other major credits would be 'True Detective' and Netflix sci fi series 'Maniac') would go on to get the 'No Time to Die' gig.

Fury

Directed by David Ayer who made the brilliant 'End of Watch' (and the pretty poor 'Suicide Squad'), 'Fury' sees Brad Pitt return to World War II for the first time since 'Inglorious Basterds'. Pitt plays a veteran American sergeant leading a tank crew. They're tasked with one final dangerous mission in the last few months of the war. The presence of an inexperienced new recruit in the team raises tension.

The Siege of Jadotville

Based on a true story, 'The Siege of Jadotville' follows a battalion of Irish UN peacekeepers dispatched to the Congo during the 1960s. Jamie Dornan plays their commandant, Pat Quinlan, who leads a siege against the forces of 3000 Congolese troops led by French and Belgian mercenaries working for mining companies. One of the better war movies on Netflix that's an original for the streamer.

 

A Private War

'A Private War' is based on the life of the late American-born British war correspondent for the Sunday Times, Marie Colvin. Rosamund Pike of 'Gone Girl' fame plays Covin while Jamie Dornan plays photographer Paul Conroy, and Stanley Tucci and Tom Hollander also star. We follow the personal sacrifices Colvin makes over her decade-long career. We also witness the trauma she experiences because of the horrors she sees.

 

Da 5 Bloods

If you're looking for something brand new to check out on Netflix, Spike Lee's 'Da 5 Bloods' has just been added. According to our review, "Spike Lee's follow-up to 'Blackkklansman' is another sharply-realised, evocative drama." It is a "striking historical drama that earnestly attempts to confront the demons of war and the legacies they leave behind."

 

Schindler’s List

This harrowing movie based on real life events bagged an impressive seven Academy Awards out of twelve nominations. It stars Liam Neeson as Oskar Schindler, an Austrian businessman who strives to save as many Jews as he can from concentration camps after witnessing the clearing of the Krakow Ghetto (that little red coat, *sobs*), by employing them in his factory.

 

Bridge of Spies

'Bridge of Spies' is probably best-known, if you know your Oscar winners anyway, as featuring the surprise best supporting actor performance from Mark Rylance which "robbed" (depending on what camp you're in) Sylvester Stallone of the prize for 'Creed'. As a Cold War thriller directed by Steven Spielberg, it's obviously awards bait-y. But at the same time, it's dramatic, exciting, and provides an interesting lesson in history.

 

Stripes

'Stripes' is our one war comedy entry on the list. It is also one of Bill Murray's earlier movies after his stint on 'Saturday Night Live'. It sees him play opposite some major names of the day - like Harold Ramis, Warren Oates, Sean Young, and John Candy. Murray plays a cab driver who after losing his job, apartment and girlfriend, joins the army. He convinces his friend to do the same.

 

The Imitation Game

'The Imitation Game' relates the untold story of mathematician Alan Turing and his efforts in World War II. His work involved translating seemingly unbreakable Nazi codes as well as pioneering the development of computer technology. In the years following the war, his life would be destroyed as his homosexuality was discovered. Benedict Cumberbatch, Keira Knightley, Charles Dance and Matthew Goode star.

 

First They Killed My Father

Angelina’s Jolie’s latest directorial outing looks at the horrors of the Cambodian Genocide. It is based on the memoir of Loung Ung. It follows her younger self as she experiences the horrific genocide and the Khmer Rouge regime, during which she was forced to become a child soldier while her siblings were sent to labour camps. This will undoubtedly shake you up.