Most laughably inaccurate war movies ever

[neilmpenny]

Two good ones: Deer Hunter and Das Boot.

[leib10]

Saw it when in first came out and really liked it. It's filmed on location and Cage does a good "War Lord". ;)

I still laugh thinking about the scene where he realizes he's about to get caught with a whole load of contraband cargo and so lands on a dirt road and dumps it out for all the locals to take. Sometimes you have to be able to think on your feet!

Him bribing the border guards replicated a personal incident I would just as soon forget.

Yeah, that scene was classic.

[Guest]

the most inaccurate would be 300 ;)

the three most accurate IMHO would be

Japan's Longest Day
Tora, Tora, Tora
The Longest Day

[pdf27]

Longest Day was probably helped by the fact that a number of the cast had been in the same roles in the real one. Bill Millin, for instance, the piper who landed with 1 Commando Brigade on Sword Beach played himself in that film.
Same applies (probably to a greater extent) in A Bridge Too Far, although as that operation wasn't a success there was probably a bit of reputation-polishing going on there with people trying to airbrush out some of their less good decisions.

[SnowLeopard]

What I always remember as a great example of Hollywood inaccruacy was a seen from "Rat Patrol" where the hero for that episode approaches a German tank with a heck of a potato masher and blows it up.

Add to that the various sci-fi military shows that either cross terms right and left without regard, such as Jordi being the commanding officer of engineering in ST:TNG, CO's berating members of their crew as essentially lousy scum on a constant basis like it was accepted that it was just the way it is, or the star doing massive military mistakes that should get him relieved but the next show, they are still in charge. Granted, it is sci-fi, it is a different military, perhaps, system, but what is done for the story does stretch the creditbility of it.

And I HATE JAG with a passion.

That said, let's see, movie wise? Well, leaving out the movies that were horribly made to begin with such as "The Soldier",

Well, saw a lot of WWII movies when I was a child and they were fun ...... for a child. These days, however, they seem questionable such as

Mosquito Squadron (could one really have long hair like that)
The Last Escape (train pacificists as a commando unit, skills is one thing, but the spirit or the will?)

But these days, the ones I would put at the top (or is it the bottom) of the list are:

WarGames .... when the movie opens up with a missile silo officer openly talking about, essentially supporting, that his girlfriend (or former) grows weed with the other silo officer ...... you know the film was done by someone with a quite interesting view of the military.

AND

any military style movie with Michael Dudikoff in it. He's okay for a bouncy crime movie, but after seeing Crash Dive, I've learned to avoid any movie with his name on it like the Plague. Which, in a way, is unfortunate, because the secondary cast usually consists of familar, well liked faces. But with all the attention applied to him and things written so he comes out the hero regardless (which is often the story with a lot of movies), it becomes very painful to watch.
--------------------------------------------
("I find that (story) as difficult to swallow as this potage au gelee."--Hugh, (w,stte), "What's Up, Doc?")

[TopHatter]

WarGames .... when the movie opens up with a missile silo officer openly talking about, essentially supporting, that his girlfriend (or former) grows weed with the other silo officer ...... you know the film was done by someone with a quite interesting view of the military.

If you should happen to watch that movie again, very carefully note the scene where David (Matthew Broderick) is locked in the NORAD dispensary and uses that tape recorder to mimic the door's keypad tone and escape.

When he first pulls the tape recorder out of the drawer, he clicks it on for a second or two and you hear what is apparently a physician (actually director John Badham) giving a medical report about somebody, either Air Force or civilian contractor (assuming that they have them at NORAD). The doctor is detailing symptoms that he says are consistant with heavier drugs than pot. (like PCP)

AND
any military style movie with Michael Dudikoff in it.

Michael Dudikoff

I envy the guy for making a steady career in film, but still...

[soutie]

yeah zulu was fairly accurate except that the zulu,s disputed one fact that it was the men with the white lines on their arms the NCO,S that organised the defence of rorkes drift,but i geuss we will never know.

[soutie]

i do not think this was a hollywood movie but after meeting someone who had survived a japanese prisoner of war campThe Most inaccurate was the bridge over the river kwai.

[glyn]

How about ANY film that shows artillery bursts to consist of huge orange balls of flame? Try doing an AOP where all you can see for those brief seconds you are exposed above the skyline is a briefer blur! Equally flames coming from the ground when only machine guns rifles or pistols are being fired! Why do so many cars and other road vehicles erupt in flames when it is such a rare event in real life? The amazing accuracy at extreme ranges of pistol shooters in some westerns is jaw dropping. Let's face it, film makers take little pains to get things right.They run the dream factories that pander to 'artistic' interpretation and the stars ego and know the paying public won't know or care in the majority of cases. They do know how to make money, however. Let's give them credit for that at least.

[soutie]

yeah i know ;) plus a six shooter that holds about 20 rounds ,plus you never see him reloading

[glyn]

i do not think this was a hollywood movie but after meeting someone who had survived a japanese prisoner of war campThe Most inaccurate was the bridge over the river kwai.

The real Lt Col portrayed in the film by Alec Guinness died only a few years ago. There was a TV production which interviewed ex-POWs and the guards. Those interviewed maintained the film was a travesty of the truth. Go to the cinema for entertainment. Do not expect to find accuracy or 'truth'.

[T_igger_cs_30]

a slightly different perspective ,my grandfather who was there ....RIP...told me after wacthing the film with him, I asked "is that how it was grandad"....he replied....."no son but I am glad they did not show you the truth and reality"...

[tankie]

The one where the Americans supposedly captured the Enigma Machine .

the great escape ,

and anything with John Wayne and James Cagney in em ;)

[leib10]

yeah i know ;) plus a six shooter that holds about 20 rounds ,plus you never see him reloading

There's a great one of those in Open Range; he fires his Colt SAA at least 10 times.

[TopHatter]

The one where the Americans supposedly captured the Enigma Machine.

Well, technically the Americans did capture an Enigma machine, one of many captured (by the RN) during the war. I've seen it in person and also "manned" the periscope of the U-Boat that it was captured off of.

But I know you mean, and don't worry, thanks to things like The History Channel, many Americans are aware of places like Bletchley Park ;)