What is the best film about the U.S. military?
(3 votes, average: 4.33 out of 5) 
Loading ...The Springfield News-Sun posits the question, "What is the best film ever made about the U.S. military?" and gets some interesting results. Personally I find it telling that most of the answers are more-or-less recent films....
So what's your answer? Here's a few of theirs....
STEVE BILLINGSLEY, Fairborn: “It would be ‘Saving Private Ryan’ and ‘Glory,’ the Civil War movie.”
ALAKYA MATHANKERI, Kettering: “’Pearl Harbor.’ It just hit home because of the stuff we saw when we were in Hawaii. It was emotional, because the events took place in the States.”
LYNN SCHUTTE, Miamisburg: “’Patton.’ For the story line, and because George C. Scott was a great actor. It showed the life of a general and his shortcomings, as well as his attributes.”
Link: What is the best film ever made about the U.S. military? | Chatterbox
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I think most people are interpreting the question to be “What is your favorite war movie?”; Which is not what it is asking. A film about the military may not necessarily be a combat picture. “The Great Santini” is an example of film that realistically portrays how a life in the Marine Corps affects a man’s family. This is a military movie but on a very personal scale. If your looking for a large scale military movie I think the best example would be “The Hunt for Red October”. There are virtually no battle scenes but its scope of characters and technical authenticity really capture the essence of how the U.S. military would respond to a nuclear crisis. Then of course you have movies that portray the military in a negative light. The first movie that comes to mind in this category is “Full Metal Jacket”; Especially the first half where we see in grueling detail the Marine Corps basic training. Every attempt is made to beat the humanity and individuality of these men to prepare them for combat. This proves too much for one character, someone who probably didn’t have the mental/emotional aptitude in the first place and should have been rejected at screening. He is always lagging behind, getting in trouble, He just can’t seem to get things right. The Drill Sergeant decides to punish the entire platoon every time he messes up. The members of the platoon take matters in their own hands and punish the hapless recruit in their own way. This pushes him over the top. The next time you see him you know something has snapped. The irony is though he actually starts to perform better. He does his drills perfectly, he’s dead on with his markmanship; but all this with a sort of insane detachment from reality. Shortly before the platoon is ready to deploy he blows away his Drill Sergeant and then blows his own brains out. Again this is great film about the military but one with a definite political agenda.