Favorite military-related videos, documentaries, films, and/or tv series... and why?

Wings of Russia is a really good documentary about Soviet Aviation. Although it's not American, I feel like it is one of the better military tv series out there.

What a thought provoking question. I find it is not that easy to answer. Just the various categories bring up numerous choices for me. I am not sure how I missed this question I see it was posted over seven months ago...I will have to come back with some of the which ones and why:), Endre

OMG! Do you have time? At 71 I have had the time to view many films/videos, some good, some bad, most mediocre. My problem is too much knowledge. What most others enjoy, I can't because I'm too distracted by the technical details. Sloppy salutes. Atomic hand grenades. Contrived and convoluted history. Etc. Etc. Etc.

The good: What should I name? Band of Brothers. Patton. Saving Private Ryan. Any of the countless WWII propaganda films and documentaries. War in the Pacific.

The bad: Almost anything made about the war in Vietnam, especially documentaries produced by newsmen and organizations promoting an antiwar ideology.

The really great: Strangely, just one does stand out. It reeks of authenticity. The smell of fear almost overpowers the audience. Das Boot

In the documentary realm:

Atomic Cafe: it is spliced together training films and archival footage from the 40s, 50s, and 60s of nuclear tests, training for WWIII, and training films. Struck me as odd how little we understood. Also funny as famous actors from the era appear throughout (watch for Ward Cleaver aka Hugh Beaumont). Best watched after reading Atomic America by Todd Tucker.

Soldier for Hire: shows a couple different sides to the age old question of mercenaries. Was on the History Channel before we got 24hr pawn shop coverage. depicts clear examples of when PMCs have worked. Best watched after reading "Corporate Warriors" by PW Singer.

Lost Honor: USMC sexual assault prevention video. Well done and effective. We used for our Sharp training. It is on YouTube.

Sir, I would have to say my personal favorite is "Momma Dog". It's a YouTube video featuring a Marine. It is my favorite because I feel as though everyone who has served, is serving, or will serve, experiences something similar while on watch at one point or another.

I have a couple.

My father, being a huge classic movie fan, introduced me to classic cinema. I was always interested in the WWII movies. My favorites include, Stalag 17, The bridge over River Qui, The Longest Day, Casablanca, Patton, and 13 Rue Madelene.

As I got older I enjoyed MASH, Stripes, and Private Benjamin.

Since I have been in the military I have seen and loved, Blackhawk Down, The Hurt Locker, and Zero Dark Thirty.

But my all time favorite is hands down Band of Brothers. When I graduated from Airborne school it was common practice for WWII paratroopers to attend the graduations. As I was standing in formation an older gentleman approached me and started to recount his jumps….Normandy and Market Garden….I was in awe. It was a history lesson to be sure. When I saw Band of Brothers I imagined that that little old man was there. Can you imagine the guts those guys had? Needless to say I asked him if he would pin my wings on, which he did.

This is worth taking a few minutes to watch, it's a really interesting video entitled "On Broken Wings" provided courtesy of TSgt Kohler, check it out here: http://artofabandonment.com/2014/05/chanute/

Also, you can tune into the discussion thread here: https://www.rallypoint.com/answers/do-you-like-art-related-to-military-places-here-is-a-discovery-i-just-had-this-morning-on-broken-wings-chanute-air-force-base

Rat Patrol and COMBAT!! with Vic Marrow.
Combat was where I got my inspiration to learn French and German, which I still speech haltingly today.
My German in better than my French.
There was a lot of German spoken Rat Patrol also.
I my grade school there was a big push to learn Spanish, but after spending 2 years not learning Spanish I thought is was time for a change.

Saving Private Ryan provided a realistic view of combat in the scenes where they landed on Omaha Beach. All that was missing was the smell. Another film tha captures the psychological aspect of war is Apocalypse Now, and adapation of Conrad's Heart of Darkness. The imagery gets darker as the story progresses until the end when the evil in men's hearts is revealed in the most primal of all instincts, kill to survive, and the picture is nearly black to illustrate the black heart. I also like the documentary, "The World At War", released in the 1970s but often aired on the Military and History Channels.

Every Military History Documentary, I'm a Junkie for the Stuff, Anything with a Navy Theme, Go Figure and of course the TV Show and Movie MASH since I came from a Military Community that was very similar, Technicians, Scientist, Geeks and not really that Military. My first born is named William Christopher for the Actor who Portrayed Father Mulcahy on the show.