Modern Warfare Films
This list contains movies depicting modern warfare methods and practices. Some of them are clearly propagandistic in tone while others are made with a clear scope for entertainment or are filled with anti-war sentiments.
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- DirectorTed KotcheffStarsSylvester StalloneBrian DennehyRichard CrennaA veteran Green Beret is forced by a cruel Sheriff and his deputies to flee into the mountains and wage an escalating one-man war against his pursuers.
- DirectorTed KotcheffStarsGene HackmanPatrick SwayzeRobert StackTen years after his son went M.I.A. in Vietnam, U.S. Marine retired Colonel Jason Rhodes assembles a private rescue team to find Americans held in P.O.W. camps in Laos.
- DirectorJoseph ZitoStarsChuck NorrisM. Emmet WalshDavid TressColonel Braddock launches a mission deep into the jungles of Vietnam to find the POW camp that he escaped from and free the Americans still held captive there.
- DirectorMark L. LesterStarsArnold SchwarzeneggerRae Dawn ChongDan HedayaA retired Special Forces colonel tries to save his daughter, who was abducted by his former subordinate.
- DirectorMenahem GolanStarsChuck NorrisLee MarvinMartin BalsamAfter a plane is hijacked by terrorists, The Delta Force is sent in to resolve the crisis.
- DirectorTony ScottStarsTom CruiseTim RobbinsKelly McGillisAs students at the United States Navy's elite fighter weapons school compete to be best in the class, one daring young pilot learns a few things from a civilian instructor that are not taught in the classroom.
- DirectorClint EastwoodStarsClint EastwoodMarsha MasonEverett McGillHard-nosed, hard-living Marine Gunnery Sergeant Tom Highway clashes with his superiors and his ex-wife as he takes command of a spoiled recon platoon with a bad attitude.
- DirectorJohn McTiernanStarsArnold SchwarzeneggerCarl WeathersKevin Peter HallA team of commandos on a mission in a Central American jungle find themselves hunted by an extraterrestrial warrior.
- DirectorPaul GreengrassStarsTom BellRita TushinghamDavid ThewlisSurviving soldier is accused of cowardice and desertion. His former comrades-in-arms decide to judge him bypassing the law.
- DirectorLewis TeagueStarsCharlie SheenMichael BiehnJoanne WhalleyA battle-hardened SEAL Team set off on a mission to destroy a shipment of US-built Stinger missiles that have fallen into terrorist hands.
- DirectorShimon DotanStarsRob LoweGale HansenTracy GriffithTwo soldiers form a lasting bond during training to be Navy Seals but soon grow apart as they are sent off to fight in Desert Storm.
- DirectorAndrew DavisStarsSteven SeagalGary BuseyTommy Lee JonesAn ex-Navy Seal turned cook is the only person who can stop a group of terrorists when they seize control of a U.S. battleship.
- DirectorLuis LlosaStarsTom BerengerBilly ZaneJ.T. WalshA veteran US Marine sniper is partnered with a rookie sniper as his spotter to take out a politician and a rebel leader in the jungles of Panama.
- DirectorTony ScottStarsGene HackmanDenzel WashingtonMatt CravenOn a U.S. nuclear missile sub, a young First Officer stages a mutiny to prevent his trigger happy Captain from launching his missiles before confirming his orders to do so.
- DirectorEdward ZwickStarsDenzel WashingtonMeg RyanLou Diamond PhillipsA U.S. Army officer, despondent about a deadly mistake he made, investigates a female chopper commander's worthiness for the Medal of Honor.
- DirectorDavid O. RussellStarsGeorge ClooneyMark WahlbergIce CubeIn the aftermath of the Persian Gulf War, four soldiers set out to steal gold that was stolen from Kuwait, but they discover people who desperately need their help.
- DirectorJohn MooreStarsGene HackmanOwen WilsonGabriel MachtA disillusioned pilot shot down over war-torn Bosnia goes on the run from the local military and an assassin, as his commanding officer risks all to save him.
- DirectorRidley ScottStarsJosh HartnettEwan McGregorTom SizemoreThe story of 160 elite U.S. soldiers who dropped into Mogadishu in October 1993 to capture two top lieutenants of a renegade warlord, but found themselves in a desperate battle with a large force of heavily armed Somalis.
- DirectorKathryn BigelowStarsHarrison FordSam SpruellPeter StebbingsWhen Russia's first nuclear submarine malfunctions on its maiden voyage, the crew must race to save the ship and prevent a nuclear disaster.
- DirectorAntoine FuquaStarsBruce WillisCole HauserMonica BellucciA Special-Ops commander leads his team into the Nigerian jungle in order to rescue a doctor who will only join them if they agree to save 70 refugees too.
- DirectorSam MendesStarsJake GyllenhaalJamie FoxxLucas BlackA psychological study of Marine's state of mind during the Gulf War. Told through the eyes of a U.S. Marine sniper who struggles to cope with boredom, a sense of isolation, and other issues back home.
- DirectorPeter BergStarsJamie FoxxChris CooperJennifer GarnerA team of U.S. government agents are sent to investigate the bombing of an American facility in the Middle East.
- DirectorRobert RedfordStarsTom CruiseMeryl StreepRobert RedfordInjuries sustained by two Army rangers behind enemy lines in Afghanistan set off a sequence of events involving a congressman, a journalist and a professor.
- DirectorSylvester StalloneStarsSylvester StalloneJulie BenzMatthew MarsdenIn Thailand, John Rambo joins a group of mercenaries to venture into war-torn Burma, and rescue a group of Christian aid workers who were kidnapped by the ruthless local infantry unit.
- DirectorRidley ScottStarsLeonardo DiCaprioRussell CroweMark StrongA CIA agent on the ground in Jordan hunts down a powerful terrorist leader while being caught between the unclear intentions of his American supervisors and Jordan Intelligence.
- DirectorKathryn BigelowStarsJeremy RennerAnthony MackieBrian GeraghtyDuring the Iraq War, a Sergeant recently assigned to an army bomb squad is put at odds with his squad mates due to his maverick way of handling his work.
- DirectorPaul GreengrassStarsMatt DamonJason IsaacsGreg KinnearDiscovering covert and faulty intelligence causes a U.S. Army officer to go rogue as he hunts for Weapons of Mass Destruction in an unstable region.
- DirectorMike McCoyScott WaughStarsAlex VeadovRoselyn SanchezNestor SerranoAn elite team of Navy SEALs embark on a covert mission to recover a kidnapped CIA agent.
- DirectorWilliam FriedkinStarsTommy Lee JonesSamuel L. JacksonGuy PearceAn attorney defends an officer on trial for ordering his troops to fire on civilians after they stormed a U.S. embassy in a Middle Eastern country.
- DirectorStéphane RybojadStarsDiane KrugerDjimon HounsouBenoît MagimelA French journalist in Afghanistan is kidnapped by the Taliban.
- DirectorPeter BergStarsMark WahlbergTaylor KitschEmile HirschMarcus Luttrell and his team set out on a mission to capture or kill notorious Taliban leader Ahmad Shah, in late June 2005. Marcus and his team are left to fight for their lives in one of the most valiant efforts of modern warfare.
- DirectorJohn IrvinStarsChristopher WalkenTom BerengerColin BlakelyMercenary James Shannon, on a reconnaissance job to the African nation of Zangaro, is tortured and deported. He returns to lead a coup.
- DirectorGavin HoodStarsHelen MirrenAaron PaulAlan RickmanCol. Katherine Powell, a military officer in command of an operation to capture terrorists in Kenya, sees her mission escalate when a girl enters the kill zone triggering an international dispute over the implications of modern warfare.
- DirectorClint EastwoodStarsBradley CooperSienna MillerKyle GallnerNavy S.E.A.L. sniper Chris Kyle's pinpoint accuracy saves countless lives on the battlefield and turns him into a legend. Back home with his family after four tours of duty, however, Chris finds that it is the war he can't leave behind.
- DirectorMichael BayStarsJohn KrasinskiPablo SchreiberJames Badge DaleDuring an attack on a U.S. compound in Libya, a security team struggles to make sense out of the chaos.
- DirectorNicolai FuglsigStarsChris HemsworthMichael ShannonMichael Peña12 Strong tells the story of the first Special Forces team deployed to Afghanistan after 9/11; under the leadership of a new captain, the team must work with an Afghan warlord to take down the Taliban.
- DirectorRod LurieStarsScott EastwoodCaleb Landry JonesOrlando BloomA small team of U.S. soldiers battles against hundreds of Taliban fighters in Afghanistan.
- DirectorKathryn BigelowStarsJessica ChastainJoel EdgertonChris PrattA chronicle of the decade-long hunt for al-Qaeda terrorist leader Osama bin Laden after the September 2001 attacks, and his death at the hands of the Navy S.E.A.L.s Team 6 in May 2011.
- DirectorGuy RitchieStarsJake GyllenhaalDar SalimSean SagarDuring the war in Afghanistan, a local interpreter risks his own life to carry an injured sergeant across miles of grueling terrain.
- DirectorAlexandre MoorsStarsAlden EhrenreichDaniel Jose MolinaMikey CollinsTwo young soldiers, Bartle (21) and Murph (18) navigate the terrors of the Iraq war under the command of the older, troubled Sergeant Sterling. All the while, Bartle is tortured by a promise he made to Murph's mother before their deployment.