Can You Guess the War Film from One Sentence?

ENTERTAINMENT

By: Olivia Cantor

6 Min Quiz

Image: Voltage Pictures Grosvenor Park Media

About This Quiz

With so many war-themed cinematic gems in pop culture today, we're sure that you have your favorites among them. Regardless if they depict WWI, WWII, the Vietnam War, the Gulf War and other wars in between, can you name these war films if we describe them in one sentence? Go ahead, try to ace this one!

A soldier already lost his other soldier-brothers in the war, so the US Army decided to send a mission to pull him out alive so that he could to return to his mother.

Saving Private Ryan was a 1998 film directed by Steven Spielberg. It won the Academy Award for best directing, cinematography, and editing.

Advertisement

As its tagline said, the first casualty of war is innocence; where a young college dropout faces moral dilemmas treading the line between good and evil in his Vietnam War army formation.

Platoon was a 1986 film directed by Oliver Stone. It was based on his own experiences during his own Vietnam War tour of duty as a soldier.

Advertisement

The story of an explosives/bomb disposal unit during the Iraq War, and their trials and tribulations brought about by their war jobs.

The Hurt Locker was a 2008 film directed by Kathryn Bigelow. She won best director for it, the first for a woman at the Oscars, and also won best picture.

Advertisement

The one where a platoon leader said " I love the smell of napalm in the morning."

Apocalypse Now is a 1979 film directed by Francis Ford Coppola. While the film is famous as a cinematic masterpiece, it's also famous for the behind-the-scenes problems it had, especially with its diva-like star, Marlon Brando.

Advertisement

A German businessman creates a record of Jewish workers whom he saves during the Holocaust.

Schindler’s List is a 1993 film directed by Steven Spielberg. It is shown in black and white, except for one scene where a girl wears a red coat.

Advertisement

It's about the land, sea, and air evacuation of many Allied soldiers trapped and surrounded by German forces in northern France.

Dunkirk was a 2017 film directed by Christopher Nolan. It has a host of good actors, including Kenneth Branagh, Tom Hardy, and Cillian Murphy.

Advertisement

A Seventh-Day Adventist man signs up to fight in WWII but does so as a conscientious objector who refuses to hold or fire a gun but saves lives as a medic.

Hacksaw Ridge is a 2016 film based on a real-life person's WWII accounts; it was directed by Mel Gibson.

Advertisement

It's about the date that will live in infamy, as the Japanese bombed this Hawaii-based naval base.

Pearl Harbor is the big budget 2001 film directed by Michael Bay. Kate Beckinsale and Josh Hartnett co-star with Ben Affleck.

Advertisement

Prisoners of war in a Japanese Imperial Army camp are ordered to create a structure that will connect a railway system.

The Bridge on the River Kwai is a 1957 WWII epic directed by David Lean. Its famous whistle-tune intro is still memorable to filmgoers today.

Advertisement

Brilliant English mathematician, Alan Turing, employs a host of mathematicians so they can try to crack the German Enigma communication machine during WWII.

The Imitation Game is a 2014 film directed by Morten Tyldum; it stars Benedict Cumberbatch and Keira Knightley.

Advertisement

An affluent spoiled brat of a British boy gets lost in war-torn Shanghai and learns life lessons the hard way during WWII.

Empire of the Sun is a 1987 film by director Steven Spielberg. It stars Christian Bale as a teenager, along with John Malkovich.

Advertisement

As the tagline said, it's about "the greatest manhunt in history" where US military search for Al Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden after the 9/11 attacks.

Zero Dark Thirty is a 2012 film. It was directed by Kathryn Bigelow and had Jessica Chastain as the lead.

Advertisement

It's about the first female soldier to train in a special warfare group of the US Navy.

G.I. Jane is a 1997 film directed by Ridley Scott. It starred Demi Moore, and it created a buzz for her because of the famous and controversial buzzcut scene.

Advertisement

A sub-group of Allied forces is tasked with a search and retrieve of historical and cultural artifacts stolen by the Nazis.

The Monuments Men is a 2014 film directed by George Clooney. It stars Matt Damon, Cate Blanchett, John Goodman, and Bill Murray.

Advertisement

A talented Jewish Polish musician survives a war-destructed Warsaw alone, during WWII.

The Pianist is a 2002 film directed by Roman Polanski. It starred Adrien Brody as the real-life pianist Władysław Szpilman.

Advertisement

A real-life story of Vietnam War veteran Ron Kovic who got paralyzed and became an anti-war activist afterwards.

Born on the Fourth of July is a 1989 film directed by Oliver Stone. He collaborated with real-life veteran Ron Kovic for this biopic, since it was based on Kovic's life story.

Advertisement

US Marines guard their own Navajo co-soldiers who use their own language as a secret code for radio communication during WWII.

Windtalkers is a 2002 film directed by John Woo. While the story is interesting in itself, it got criticized for inaccurate military depictions and how the Navajo characters were not as prominently featured as the non-Navajo ones.

Advertisement

It's about a very versatile marksman during the Iraq War.

American Sniper is a 2014 film directed by Clint Eastwood. While the whole film essayed the military career of real-life sniper Chris Kyle, its ending is baffling as it only summarized his accidental death in a subtitle, leaving some things hanging.

Advertisement

In the throes of a Nigerian civil war, a US Navy Seals team try to rescue a US doctor before she gets caught in the crossfire.

Tears of the Sun is a 2003 film directed by Antoine Fuqua. It stars Bruce Willis and Monica Bellucci.

Advertisement

An army radio DJ provides comedic relief to solider-listeners during the Vietnam War.

Good Morning, Vietnam is a 1997 film directed by Barry Levinson. Lead star Robin Williams' comedic improvisations were heavily used in the broadcast scenes here.

Advertisement

Two different plots to kill the Nazi leaders in WWII are being hatched by a cinema owner and a bunch of American Jewish soldiers.

Inglourious Basterds is a 2009 film written and directed by Quentin Tarantino. It proved to be a worldwide box-office hit for the director, despite its convoluted storytelling.

Advertisement

The film follows the life of new army recruits from their harsh basic training up until their Tet Offensive participation in the Vietnam War.

Full Metal Jacket is a 1987 film directed by Stanley Kubrick. It was based on a novel by co-screenwriter Gustav Hasford called The Short-Timers.

Advertisement

This WWII US bomber aircraft was termed after its pilot's Tennessee-based girlfriend.

Memphis Belle is a 1990 film directed by Michael Caton-Jones. It starred Matthew Modine, Eric Stoltz, and a host of other actors, including crooner Harry Connick Jr., in his first acting gig.

Advertisement

Its title refers to helicopter types used by US soldiers on a mission in war-torn Somalia.

Black Hawk Down was a very controversial 2001 film directed by Ridley Scott. People from countries and cultures depicted in the film, such as Malaysia and Somalia, criticized the film for its inaccuracies and US-heavy storylines that sidetracked other participating nations in the conflict.

Advertisement

A Clint Eastwood-directed WWII twin film project, with the first one narrating the Japanese viewpoint of a specific battle, using correspondence.

Letters from Iwo Jima is a 2006 film project by Clint Eastwood. It stars Japanese actors Ken Watanabe and Kazunari Ninomiya; the film was largely filmed in Japanese as well.

Advertisement

A Clint Eastwood-directed WWII twin film project, with the second film showing the American viewpoint of a specific Japanese battle, using flying banners in poles.

Flags of Our Fathers is touted as the 2006 companion film to Clint Eastwood's Letters from Iwo Jima film. The two projects were shot at the same time.

Advertisement

The story of soldiers involved in the WWII Guadalcanal Campaign who treaded the border between mad and insane, as the title suggests.

The Thin Red Line is a 1998 film directed by Terrence Mallick. The star-studded cast included George Clooney, John Cusack, Woody Harrelson, Nick Nolte, Adrien Brody, Jared Leto, John C. Reilly, John Travolta, and Elias Koteas.

Advertisement

It's about the life of specific US Marines, where the title used is a slang term to refer to them.

Jarhead stars Jake Gyllenhaal as the real-life US Marine Anthony Swofford. This 2005 film is directed by Sam Mendes.

Advertisement

About the D-Day events which really stretched the hours in the Normandy battle for the Allied and Axis forces in WWII.

The Longest Day is an epic 1962 film by legendary Hollywood producer Darryl F. Zanuck. Some of the early Hollywood royalty that appeared in this film include John Wayne, Richard Burton, Sean Connery, Henry Fonda, Red Buttons, Robert Mitchum, Rod Steiger, George Segal, Robert Wagner, and Paul Anka.

Advertisement

During the Battle of Stalingrad, a Russian sniper and a German sniper duke it out within battle borders.

Enemy at the Gates is a 2001 film by director Jean-Jacques Annaud. It stars Jude Law and Joseph Fiennes.

Advertisement

An American major trains a specific number of convicts for a special mission to assassinate German army enemies during WWII.

The Dirty Dozen is a 1967 film. Based on a novel penned by E. M. Nathanson, the film adaptation features Ernest Borgnine, Charles Bronson, John Cassavetes, Telly Savalas, and Donald Sutherland in its cast.

Advertisement

A black comedy film about the life of humorous medical personnel in a field hospital during the Korean War.

MASH was actually a film before it became a hit TV series. The 1970 film was directed by Robert Altman.

Advertisement

About a group of US Army Special Forces wearing distinctly-colored headgear and their South Vietnam mission during the Vietnam War time.

The Green Berets is a huge 1968 pro-military film starring John Wayne. Critics actually panned this one.

Advertisement

The one about British prisoners of war trying to secretly flee the German prison camp during WWII.

The Great Escape is a 1963 film adaptation of a 1950 book. It featured Steve McQueen in the lead.

Advertisement

About a controversial US general named George during his World War II participation.

Patton is the 1970 biofilm about Gen. George S. Patton, the real-life US general who served during WWII. The film depicted him as a snarky controversial personality who defied odds and orders.

Advertisement

Explore More Quizzes

About Zoo

Our goal at Zoo.com is to keep you entertained in this crazy life we all live.

We want you to look inward and explore new and interesting things about yourself. We want you to look outward and marvel at the world around you. We want you to laugh at past memories that helped shape the person you’ve become. We want to dream with you about all your future holds. Our hope is our quizzes and articles inspire you to do just that.

Life is a zoo! Embrace it on Zoo.com.