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Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times was perhaps the best-known and most widely celebrated American film critic in history, as well as a legendary film historian, screenwriter, and author. His multi-hyphenate was indeed a man of many talents, and one of those talents was being able to detect a war movie masterpiece that was truly beyond reproach.
Over the course of his career, Ebert never explicitly called any war movie downright perfect, but he gave a few of history’s best war films such glowing reviews that it’s easy to deduce that he thought they were free of any substantial issues. From international classics released before his lifetime, like Battleship Potemkin, to more modern Hollywood classics like Schindler’s List, these are the war movies that Ebert thought were the best ever.
10
‘Pan’s Labyrinth’ (2006)
Yes, Guillermo del Toro‘s Pan’s Labyrinth is just as much of a fantasy masterpiece as anyone would expect from the Mexican auteur. It is, in fact, easily one of the darkest fairy tale movies of all time. It’s also undeniably a war film through and through, however, taking place in Francoist Spain and very overtly critiquing the irrationality of fascism, authoritarian power, and war as a whole.
Ebert reviewed the movie in 2006 and then did another write-up to introduce it to his Great Movies list in 2007. In the former text, he called the movie “one of the cinema’s great fantasies, rich with darkness and wonder,” and in the latter, he said it was “one of the greatest of all fantasy films, even though it is anchored so firmly in the reality of war.” He had nothing but praise for how del Toro’s unique imagination elevated the war genre elements of the story.
9
‘Paths of Glory’ (1957)
Stanley Kubrick is widely regarded as one of the greatest, if not the greatest American filmmaker in history. Even still, and even though it definitely is hailed as one of the greatest war movies in the genre’s history, Paths of Glory still deserves even more praise than it gets. It’s one of the most perfect and timeless war movies ever, and Ebert was someone who undoubtedly agreed.
The Chicago Sun-Times critic greatly admired Kubrick, including several of his masterpieces in his Great Movies list. But as far as the director’s oeuvre in the war genre went, Ebert was particularly fond of Paths of Glory. In his review of the movie, he expressed tremendous love for the simplicity of its plot and the complexity of its themes, saying that this was “the film by which Stanley Kubrick entered the ranks of great directors, never to leave them.”
8
‘Schindler’s List’ (1993)
Steven Spielberg is both the father of blockbusters and one of the most important filmmakers in modern Hollywood history, and Roger Ebert had great admiration for his ability to captivate audiences. But Spielberg’s best movie to date happens to be not a crowd-pleasing blockbuster at all, but rather an Oscar-winning anti-war film unlike any other that the ’90s ever saw: Schindler’s List.
It’s also one of the best biopics of all time, and Ebert praised it as such in his review. In it, he praised how “subtlety is Spielberg’s strength all through the film.” And in his 2001 text to induct the film into his Great Movies list, he called it “haunting and powerful,” defending Spielberg’s ability to work within his lane, making a film that proves that “accessible” war movies can be every bit as powerful as darker, more arthouse-coded ones.
7
‘Patton’ (1970)
One of only a few precious masterpieces ever to have won seven Academy Awards, Franklin J. Schaffner‘s Patton is one of the greatest war dramas of the 1970s. It’s also one of the best American war movies ever, a masterful biopic anchored by an Oscar-winning lead performance by George C. Scott at the very top of his game.
Largely thanks to the New Hollywood movement that birthed masterpieces like Patton, Ebert usually agreed with the consensus that the 1970s were the best-ever decade for cinema. In support of that view, Ebert called Schaffner “a master of bold, uncluttered canvases” in his review of Patton, calling the movie “electrifying” and offering endless love for Scott’s masterful performance.
6
‘The Battle of Algiers’ (1966)
Gillo Pontecorvo‘s Italian-Algerian masterpiece The Battle of Algiers dramatizes the rebels’ fight against the French government during the Algerian War, and it does so with a newsreel style so powerfully realistic that the film has been known to be used by revolutionary guerrilla groups for training purposes. It’s just that groundbreaking of a war movie.
It is, indeed, one of the best anti-war movies of all time, a statement that Ebert would have most definitely agreed with. In his review, he called it “a deeper film experience than many audiences can withstand,” while in his write-up to add the film to his Great Movies list, he referred to it as “the crucial film about [modern warfare].” His admiration for the film’s anti-war sentiments and historical impact was almost palpable when he wrote about it.
5
‘Come And See’ (1985)
It’s not just Roger Ebert: Virtually anyone and everyone who has been brave enough to watch the horrifyingly realistic anti-war masterpiece that is Elem Klimov‘s Come And See should agree that it’s one of the genre’s very best. It’s the second-highest-rated war movie of all time on Letterboxd, and for good reason, seeing as it’s one of the most perfect war epic movies ever made.
A film he called “one of the most devastating films ever about anything.”
This was far and away one of Ebert’s favorite international war movies ever, a film he called “one of the most devastating films ever about anything” in his detailed review. Expressing admiration for the relentless way in which Klimov barrages the audience with the irrational horrors of war, Ebert was deeply moved by the film’s blend of devastating realism and nightmarish exaggeration.
4
‘Lawrence of Arabia’ (1962)
There has never been a filmmaker more capable of making masterful epics than David Lean, and the director never made an epic more widely acclaimed and universally considered timeless than Lawrence of Arabia. Part war epic with a tremendous sense of scale, part intimate character study with a profoundly personal sense of scope, it’s 100% one of the greatest motion pictures ever created.
It’s also one of the most rewatchable epic movies of all time, and if ever Ebert showed anything, it’s that rewatching movies can enhance one’s understanding and appreciation of them marvelously. In his review of Lawrence of Arabia, the Chicago Sun-Times critic labeled it “a bold, mad act of genius,” and no one could have possibly put it more eloquently. Praising Lean’s direction, Peter O’Toole‘s lead performance, and the airtight narrative, Ebert typically considered this one of the greatest films in history.
3
‘Grave of the Fireflies’ (1988)
Roger Ebert would have very likely been more than willing to fight anyone who dared to call animation a lesser medium; and as undeniable evidence of that, there’s the fact that it was an animated movie that Ebert considered one of the most perfect war movies ever made. It is, of course, Studio Ghibli’s Grave of the Fireflies that we’re talking about, one of the heaviest animated movies in history.
Ebert included several animated masterpieces in his Great Movies list, and though he never outright called any of them the single greatest animated movie ever made, one could reasonably claim that this was the one he considered the most perfect. After all, in his review, he called Grave of the Fireflies “an emotional experience so powerful that it forces a rethinking of animation,” celebrating its ability to demonstrate that this isn’t a medium just for kids.
2
‘Battleship Potemkin’ (1925)
It’s no exaggeration to say that the Soviet war thriller Battleship Potemkin, directed by the absolutely legendary Sergei Eisenstein, is not just one of the most groundbreaking war films ever, but perhaps even one of the most important movies in history. Eisenstein was a pioneer of modern film editing, and there is no better movie to learn about the evolution of editing than Battleship Potemkin.
It’s one of the best war thrillers of all time, and Ebert had copious amounts of love, admiration, and respect for both its quality and its historical relevance. In his review, he talked about how difficult it often is to see history’s most celebrated landmarks as something more than just historical documents, but praised Battleship Potemkin‘s ability to “come alive for [him].” He considered it one of cinema’s great masterpieces, and he no doubt would have called it a must-see for anyone who loves movies.
1
‘Apocalypse Now’ (1979)
Even in spite of the shortcomings that he’s shown throughout his career, Francis Ford Coppola will forever be remembered as one of the greatest filmmakers in history, one of the most important voices for the whole New Hollywood movement. Whether or not Apocalypse Now is his best work is up for debate, but what’s far more difficult to deny is that it’s easily and by far the greatest Vietnam War movie ever made.
It is, of course, one of the most universally acclaimed war movies of all time, and Ebert was a vital part of that acclaim. In his review, he hailed it as “a good and important film — a masterpiece;” while in his Great Movies write-up, he called it “one of the key films of the century,” as well as “the best Vietnam film [and] one of the greatest of all films.” Ebert wasn’t typically one for such superlatives, so when he did employ them, it meant that the film was truly worthy of being called “perfect.”
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Diego Pineda Pacheco
Almontather Rassoul
