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Top 10 War Movies of All Time in 2027

By Kory White · Updated Oct 2026 · 4 min read
Schindler's List
Direct answer

Schindler’s List (1993) is the top war movie of all time: it won 7 Academy Awards, including Best Picture, and holds a 98% Tomatometer. The Bridge on the River Kwai (7 Oscars) and Saving Private Ryan (5 Oscars) follow.

At a glance

#PickOscars wonBest for
1Schindler's List7 (incl. Best Picture)Viewers who want the war film with the most Oscars and the highest critics’ score
2The Bridge on the River Kwai7 (incl. Best Picture)Fans of classic Hollywood epics, and the least graphic film here
3Saving Private Ryan5 (incl. Best Director)The single best-known World War II combat film
4Platoon4 (incl. Best Picture)A ground-level Vietnam War story
5Dunkirk3 (Sound Editing, Sound Mixing, Film Editing)A tense, short-on-dialogue film that is easier on the stomach than most here
619173 (Cinematography, Sound Mixing, Visual Effects)A World War I story with a race-against-time plot
7Apocalypse Now2 (of 8 nominations)Viewers who want Vietnam as a hallucinatory river journey
8Das Boot0 (6 nominations)A claustrophobic submarine drama told from the German crew’s side
9Come and See0 (Soviet entry, not accepted as a nominee)Viewers ready for a harrowing, anti-war Soviet drama
10Full Metal Jacket0 (1 nomination: Best Adapted Screenplay)Kubrick fans and anyone curious about boot camp to Vietnam

Pick by what you want

Best overall
Schindler's List
Best classic epic
The Bridge on the River Kwai
Best combat film
Saving Private Ryan
Best for a lighter rating
Dunkirk
Best submarine drama
Das Boot

The ranking

1

Schindler's List

Schindler's List
Answrs VerdictSeven Oscars and a 98% Tomatometer.
Oscars won: 7 (incl. Best Picture)Tomatometer: 98% (135 reviews)Director, year: Steven Spielberg, 1993Box office: $322.2 million worldwide

Steven Spielberg’s 1993 Holocaust drama won 7 Academy Awards, including Best Picture, and holds a 98% Tomatometer from 135 reviews. It earned $322.2 million worldwide. It is a war film about the people caught inside it, not about battles.

Go ifViewers who want the war film with the most Oscars and the highest critics’ score
Skip ifYou want battle scenes - it is a Holocaust drama
Why #1 over #2: Its 98% Tomatometer edges The Bridge on the River Kwai at 96%; both won 7 Oscars.
2

The Bridge on the River Kwai

The Bridge on the River Kwai
Answrs VerdictSeven Oscars, tied with Schindler’s List.
Oscars won: 7 (incl. Best Picture)Tomatometer: 96% (102 reviews)Director, year: David Lean, 1957Box office: $30 million (by October 1960)Rated: PG

David Lean’s 1957 film won 7 Academy Awards, including Best Picture, and has a 96% Tomatometer from 102 reviews. It is rated PG. By October 1960 it had earned $30 million worldwide.

Go ifFans of classic Hollywood epics, and the least graphic film here
Skip ifYou want a historically exact account of the Burma railway
Why #2 over #3: Its 7 Oscars beat the 5 won by Saving Private Ryan.
3

Saving Private Ryan

Saving Private Ryan
Answrs VerdictFive Oscars and the biggest box office among the older films here.
Oscars won: 5 (incl. Best Director)Tomatometer: 94% (149 reviews)Director, year: Steven Spielberg, 1998Box office: $481.8 million worldwide

Steven Spielberg’s 1998 World War II film won 5 Academy Awards, including Best Director, and holds a 94% Tomatometer from 149 reviews. It grossed $481.8 million worldwide.

Go ifThe single best-known World War II combat film
Skip ifGraphic battlefield violence is a dealbreaker
Why #3 over #4: Its 5 Oscars beat the 4 won by Platoon.
4

Platoon

Platoon
Answrs VerdictFour Oscars, including Best Picture.
Oscars won: 4 (incl. Best Picture)Tomatometer: 89% (122 reviews)Director, year: Oliver Stone, 1986Box office: Over $138 million in the US

Oliver Stone’s 1986 Vietnam War film won 4 Academy Awards, including Best Picture, and has an 89% Tomatometer from 122 reviews. It grossed over $138 million in the US.

Go ifA ground-level Vietnam War story
Skip ifYou want a lighter, less bleak watch
Why #4 over #5: Its 4 Oscars beat the 3 won by Dunkirk.
5

Dunkirk

Dunkirk
Answrs VerdictThree Oscars and the highest-grossing film here.
Oscars won: 3 (Sound Editing, Sound Mixing, Film Editing)Tomatometer: 92% (469 reviews)Director, year: Christopher Nolan, 2017Box office: $530 million worldwideRated: PG-13

Christopher Nolan’s 2017 film won 3 Academy Awards: Sound Editing, Sound Mixing and Film Editing. It holds a 92% Tomatometer from 469 reviews, is rated PG-13, and grossed $530 million worldwide.

Go ifA tense, short-on-dialogue film that is easier on the stomach than most here
Skip ifYou want deep character backstories
Why #5 over #6: Its 92% Tomatometer beats 1917 at 88%; both won 3 Oscars.
6

1917

1917
Answrs VerdictThree Oscars from ten nominations.
Oscars won: 3 (Cinematography, Sound Mixing, Visual Effects)Tomatometer: 88% (474 reviews)Director, year: Sam Mendes, 2019Box office: Over $446 million worldwide

Sam Mendes’ 2019 World War I film won 3 Academy Awards: Cinematography, Sound Mixing and Visual Effects. It holds an 88% Tomatometer from 474 reviews and grossed over $446 million worldwide.

Go ifA World War I story with a race-against-time plot
Skip ifYou want a sprawling ensemble cast
Why #6 over #7: Its 3 Oscars beat the 2 won by Apocalypse Now.
7

Apocalypse Now

Apocalypse Now
Answrs VerdictTwo Oscars: Best Cinematography and Best Sound.
Oscars won: 2 (of 8 nominations)Tomatometer: 91% (150 reviews)Director, year: Francis Ford Coppola, 1979Box office: $150 million worldwide

Francis Ford Coppola’s 1979 Vietnam War film won 2 of its 8 Academy Award nominations, for Best Cinematography and Best Sound. It holds a 91% Tomatometer from 150 reviews and grossed $150 million worldwide.

Go ifViewers who want Vietnam as a hallucinatory river journey
Skip ifYou want a conventional combat story
Why #7 over #8: It won 2 Oscars; Das Boot won none.
8

Das Boot

Das Boot
Answrs VerdictNo wins, but a 98% Tomatometer and 6 nominations.
Oscars won: 0 (6 nominations)Tomatometer: 98% (55 reviews)Director, year: Wolfgang Petersen, 1981Box office: Nearly $85 million worldwideRated: R

Wolfgang Petersen’s 1981 German submarine film received 6 Academy Award nominations without a win. It holds a 98% Tomatometer from 55 reviews, is rated R, and grossed nearly $85 million worldwide.

Go ifA claustrophobic submarine drama told from the German crew’s side
Skip ifYou dislike subtitled films
Why #8 over #9: Its 98% Tomatometer beats Come and See at 90%.
9

Come and See

Come and See
Answrs VerdictThe hardest watch here, with a 90% Tomatometer.
Oscars won: 0 (Soviet entry, not accepted as a nominee)Tomatometer: 90% (60 reviews)Director, year: Elem Klimov, 1985Box office: Nearly $21 million worldwide

Elem Klimov’s 1985 Soviet film was the Soviet entry for Best Foreign Language Film but was not accepted as a nominee. It holds a 90% Tomatometer from 60 reviews and took nearly $21 million worldwide.

Go ifViewers ready for a harrowing, anti-war Soviet drama
Skip ifYou want something easy to watch
Why #9 over #10: Its 90% Tomatometer edges Full Metal Jacket at 89%.
10

Full Metal Jacket

Full Metal Jacket
Answrs VerdictKubrick’s Vietnam film, nominated for 1 Oscar.
Oscars won: 0 (1 nomination: Best Adapted Screenplay)Tomatometer: 89% (88 reviews)Director, year: Stanley Kubrick, 1987Box office: $120 million worldwide (by 1998)

Stanley Kubrick’s 1987 Vietnam War film was nominated for 1 Oscar, Best Adapted Screenplay, and holds an 89% Tomatometer from 88 reviews. It grossed $120 million worldwide by 1998.

Go ifKubrick fans and anyone curious about boot camp to Vietnam
Skip ifYou dislike harsh language and bleak endings

How we ranked these

We ranked the 10 films by the number of Academy Awards each won, as listed on Wikipedia, and broke ties with the Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer (critics’ score) as shown on each film’s Rotten Tomatoes page. Box office figures come from each film’s Wikipedia article. We did not use our own opinion scores. Facts are taken from each maker's own published information; check the official site before you buy.

Questions people ask

What is the greatest war movie of all time?

By Oscars, Schindler’s List (1993) and The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957) lead with 7 each, and Schindler’s List breaks the tie with a 98% Tomatometer against 96%.

Which war movie has the highest Rotten Tomatoes score?

Schindler’s List and Das Boot both hold a 98% Tomatometer, followed by The Bridge on the River Kwai at 96% and Saving Private Ryan at 94%.

Which of these war movies is the least graphic?

The Bridge on the River Kwai is rated PG and Dunkirk is rated PG-13, the two lowest ratings among the films above that list one on Rotten Tomatoes. Das Boot is rated R.

What is the highest-grossing war movie on this list?

Dunkirk (2017) made $530 million worldwide, ahead of Saving Private Ryan at $481.8 million and 1917 at over $446 million.

Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer (critics) at a glance

191788 %
Platoon89 %
Full Metal Jacket89 %
Come and See90 %
Apocalypse Now91 %
Dunkirk92 %
Saving Private Ryan94 %
The Bridge on the River Kwai96 %
Schindler's List98 %
Das Boot98 %
Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer (critics), as published by each maker. Picks without a published figure are left off.

Official sites

Sources

Prices, specs and availability change; confirm on the official site before you buy.