Navarone. I don't consider SPR entirely fictional since it had many elements of actual fact-i.e., there were elements of the 2d Ranger Battalion that landed on Omaha Beach instead of Point du Hoc. Lincoln's letter to the grieving Mom was completely accurate. In Harm's Way might be second for me, although it had elements of actual stuff-Pearl Harbor and all. The basic story was fiction. Difficult line to draw, but films like Navarone and The Eagle Has Landed or Eye of the Needle, have only a very tenuous connection with fact. Ever notice that in Navarone, Irene Pappas' Sten gun has a silencer?
What comes to mind quickly is a less serious of a film on the surface, Final Countdown. I like the hypothetical situations raised by it and it is cool to see what would likely happen if a modern jet came up against a Zero in the air. Heck, one jet could have thwarted the entire Pearl Harbor attack and decimated the entire Japanese fleet. Forget about a whole carrier worth of jets. People would freak out in the same way as well.
Good call. Loved the movie and it would be hard to get more fictional than time travel in a Nimitz class carrier; excuse me, the Nimitz itself.
Band of Brothers Saving Private Ryan When Trumpets Fade The Great Escape Bridge on the River Kwai Catch 22 EDIT: Oh wait. You said fictional. Ahh, screw it.
The Flying Misfits (yes, based on Pappy Boyington, but really, that's about where it stops) The Dirty Dozen Von Ryan's Express Guns of Navarone Force 10 from Navarone Kelly's Heroes
In Harm's Way is my favorite Navy movie. Great choice. Enemy at the Gates wouldn't be my favorite, but there are some aspects of that movie I really liked. The siege of Stalingrad really did occur, so I don't know if that disqualifies it or not. Das Boot was fantastic. Stalag 17 holds up really well. I recently watched The Caine Mutiny. That has some good aspects to it. It's fun watching Fred MacMurray playing a cad.
Where Eagles Dare-great cast, intriguing storyline, somewhat plausible, and plenty of Germans being killed
It's not a combat film, but The Best Years of Our Lives is a great movie about returning soldiers. 12 O'clock High is another good one in addition to some that have been named.
King Rat is another POW movie, about Americans on the Japanese side. Based on a novel by Shogun author James Clavell, it's not nearly as good as Stalag 17, but it's still an interesting character study about a guy who succeeds in the POW environment, even though he doesn't have the skills to succeed outside of it. The cast is great, and the eggs frying scene towards the beginning is very powerful.
I would have to go with The Best Years of Our Lives. It's one of my favorite movies regardless of genre. For a movie that takes place during the war, I would pick Stalag 17.
Saving Private Ryan is my favorite movie of all time. But if we're not counting that, then definitely Kelly's Heroes. Donald Sutherland is hilarious in it and Clint Eastwood is Clint Eastwood.
Does anyone remember The Keep? Not exactly a war movie but it takes place during WWII and has some Nazis in it. One of those movies that is so bad that it is good. My date and I snuck a six pack into the theatre and by the end of the show we thought it was a classic.
I loved a Bridge Too Far, but it's certainly one of those that's completely founded and built around an actual event.
The Longest Day had: Richard Burton John Wayne Sean Connery Henry Fonda Robert Mitchum Rod Steiger Robert Wagner
All of you who are mentioning Guns of Navarone, Force 10 from Navarrone, Where Eagles Dare, Ice Station Zebra, etc should realize that Alistair McClean wrote them all. He is a very underrated author.
Kelly's Heroes without a doubt. The Longest Day and a Bridge Too Far were faithfully based on books by Cornelius Ryan that were about as non-fiction as they come.
The Americanization of Emily - James Garner is about perfect in this movie and James Coburn is terrific.
