Best movies like Memorial Day

Two Generations. Two Wars. One Story

A unique, carefully handpicked, selection of the best movies like Memorial Day Starring Jonathan Bennett, James Cromwell, Jackson Bond, Emily Fradenburgh, and more. If you liked Memorial Day then you may also like: The Yellow Birds, The Victors, The Wall, War Pigs, The War Tapes and many more popular movies featured on this list. You can further filter the list even more or get a random selection from the list of similar movies, to make your selection even easier.

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Memorial Day, 1993. When 13-year-old Kyle Vogel discovers the World War II footlocker belonging to his grandfather, Bud, everyone tells Kyle to put it back. Luckily, he ignores them. Although Bud has never talked about the war, he finds himself striking a deal with his grandson: Kyle can pick any three souvenirs, and Bud will tell him the stories behind each one. Memorial Day not only takes us on a journey into Bud's complicated wartime past, but also into Kyle's wartime future. As the two men share parallel experiences in combat, they come to realize how that magical day on the porch shaped both of their lives. 

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The Yellow Birds

Two young soldiers, Bartle and Murph, 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.

The Victors

Intercutting dramatic vignettes with newsreel footage, the story follows the characters from an infantry squad as they make their way from Sicily to Germany during the end of World War II.

The Wall

An American sniper and his spotter engage in a deadly cat-and-mouse game with an Iraqi sniper.

War Pigs

A rag tag unit of misfits known as the War Pigs must go behind enemy lines to exterminate Nazis by any means necessary.

The War Tapes

Straight from the front lines in Iraq, THE WAR TAPES is the first war movie filmed by soldiers themselves. These soldiers bypassed Pentagon supervised media to share their experience like never before. Funnier, spicier, and more gut wrenching than news reports, this is Operation Iraqi Freedom as filmed by Sergeant Steve Pink, Sergeant Zack Bazzi and Specialist Mike Moriarty. Steve is a wisecracking carpenter who aspires to be a writer. Zack is a Lebanese-American university student who loves to travel and is fluent in Arabic. Mike is a father who seeks honor and redemption. Each leaves a woman behind - a girlfriend, a mother and a wife. Through their candid footage, these men open their hearts and take us on an unforgettable journey, capturing camaraderie and humor along with the brutal and terrifying experiences they face. These soldiers got the story that 2,700 embedded reporters never could.

When Trumpets Fade

In WWII Western Germany, Private David Manning reluctantly leaves behind a mortally wounded fellow soldier and searches for survivors from his platoon, only to learn from commanding officer Captain Pritchett that they have all been killed in action. Despite requesting a discharge on the grounds of mental disability, Manning is promoted to sergeant and assigned to lead a new platoon of young inductees.

The Negro Soldier

Documentary focusing on the contributions to the American war effort of African-American soldiers.

Only The Brave

A searing portrait of war and prejudice, 'Only the Brave' takes you on a haunting journey into the hearts and minds of the forgotten heroes of WWII - the Japanese-American 100th/442nd.

Attack

Battle of the Bulge, World War II, 1944. Lieutenant Costa, an infantry company officer who must establish artillery observation posts in a strategic area, has serious doubts about Captain Cooney's leadership ability.

Battle for Haditha

An investigation of the massacre of 24 men, women and children in Haditha, Iraq allegedly shot by 4 U.S. Marines in retaliation for the death of a U.S. Marine killed by a roadside bomb. The movie follows the story of the Marines of Kilo Company, an Iraqi family, and the insurgents who plant the roadside bomb.

San Pietro

This documentary movie is about the battle of San Pietro, a small village in Italy. Over 1,100 US soldiers were killed while trying to take this location, that blocked the way for the Allied forces from the Germans.

The Bridge at Remagen

In March of 1945, as the War in Europe is coming to a close, fighting erupts between German and American troops at the last remaining bridgehead across the Rhine.

Brothers at War

BROTHERS AT WAR is an intimate portrait of an American family during a turbulent time.  Jake Rademacher sets out to understand the experience, sacrifice, and motivation of his two brothers serving in Iraq. The film follows Jake’s exploits as he risks everything—including his life—to tell his brothers’ story.

The Captive Heart

A series of stories about the lives and loves of nine men in a Prisoner of War Camp over five years. Location shooting in the British occupied part of Germany adds believability. The main story is of Hasek (Redgrave) a Czech soldier who needs to keep his identity a secret from the Nazis, to do this he poses as a dead English Officer and corresponds with the man's wife. Upon liberation they meet and decide to continue their lives together. The other inmates' stories are revealed episodically.

Patton

"Patton" tells the tale of General George S. Patton, famous tank commander of World War II. The film begins with patton's career in North Africa and progresses through the invasion of Germany and the fall of the Third Reich. Side plots also speak of Patton's numerous faults such his temper and habit towards insubordination.

Hell Is for Heroes

World War II drama where the action centers around a single maneuver by a squad of GIs in retaliation against the force of the German Siegfried line. Reese joins a group of weary GIs unexpectedly ordered back into the line when on their way to a rest area. While most of the men withdraw from their positions facing a German pillbox at the far side of a mine-field, half a dozen men are left to protect a wide front. By various ruses, they manage to convince the Germans that a large force is still holding the position. Then Reese leads two of the men in an unauthorized and unsuccessful attack on the pillbox, in which the other two are killed; and when the main platoon returns, he is threatened with court-martial. Rather that face the disgrace, and in an attempt to show he was right, he makes a one-man attack on the pillbox.

The Young Lions

The Young Lions follows the lives of three soldiers: one German and two Americans, paralleling their experiences in World War II until they meet up at the end for a confrontation

Imitation General

An officer poses as a general after the death of his commanding officer and inspires his troops to victory.

Go for Broke!

A tribute to the U.S. 442nd Regimental Combat Team, formed in 1943 by Presidential permission with Japanese-American volunteers. We follow the training of a platoon under the rueful command of Lt. Mike Grayson who shares common prejudices of the time. The 442nd serve in Italy, then France, distinguishing themselves in skirmishes and battles; gradually and naturally, Grayson's prejudices evaporate with dawning realization that his men are better soldiers than he is.

Grace Is Gone

Upon hearing his wife was killed in the Iraq war, a father takes his two daughters on a road trip, all the while searching for the right time and place to tell them about their mother's fate.

Gunner Palace

American soldiers of the 2/3 Field Artillery, a group known as the "Gunners," tell of their experiences in Baghdad during the Iraq War. Holed up in a bombed out pleasure palace built by Sadaam Hussein, the soldiers endured hostile situations some four months after President George W. Bush declared the end of major combat operations in the country.

D-Day Assassins

In 1944, group of rebellious American soldiers known as "The Filthy Thirteen" parachute into Normandy to carry out a deadly mission.

The Mark of Cain

After a bomb kills their company commander in Iraq, British soldiers Treacle and Shane are ordered to round up suspects and use torture on the detainees. Back home, the press gets the story and the pair achieves instant infamy.

Wartorn: 1861-2010

With suicide rates among active military servicemen and veterans currently on the rise, this documentary brings urgent attention to the invisible wounds of war. Drawing on personal stories of American soldiers whose lives and psyches were torn asunder by the horrors of battle and PTSD, the documentary chronicles the lingering effects of combat stress and post-traumatic stress on military personnel and their families throughout American history, from the Civil War through today's conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan.

American Soldiers

Iraq, 2004: during a routine sortie a US patrol is ambushed and the young soldiers are forced to put their training and skills into action fast. A determined foe with superior local knowledge, the Fedayeen insurgents soon draw them into close quarter combat and a desperate fight for survival.

Crossfire

When National Guard soldier Samantha Harrison returns from the front lines of Iraq, she realizes that none of her training helps her deal with PTSD or the struggles of returning to a normal life. Samantha comes home to find out she's being blamed for a friendly fire incident that killed two Americans and she becomes the target of an obsessed soldier seeking revenge for their deaths. She tries to reassemble her fragmented memories of that horrific night in order to convince everyone, including herself, that she didn't do it. Who do you turn to when you can't trust your own memories and the few people you do trust are being killed off one by one?

The Last Rescue

World World II: Shortly after D-Day, three American soldiers and two Army Corps nurses are stranded behind enemy lines. They take a high-ranking German officer as their prisoner and try to orchestrate an escape.

A Marine Story

Marine officer Alexandra is tough enough to kick any guy's ass in a bar fight, but there's one opponent she can't beat: military policy. When she returns to her conservative hometown from Iraq with a mysterious personal life, she finds herself charged with preparing a tempestuous teenage girl to boot camp.

Sniper: Inside the Crosshairs

The deadliest weapon on the battlefield is neither the bullet nor the gun-it's the lone sniper. Through the scopes of the world's most precise marksmen SNIPER: INSIDE THE CROSSHAIRS takes you on a journey to discover the science and psychology behind the most extreme shots in military history. Deconstruct well-known missions from Vietnam to Iraq to Afghanistan by hearing firsthand recollections from the soldiers who were there and whose fingers pulled the triggers. Finally meet Canadian sniper Rob Furlong who for the first time on American television tells the story of his history-making shot in Afghanistan-striking a Taliban fighter from 1.5 miles away. Ballistics tactics weaponry stalking--this feature-length special examines these critical components in vivid detail and uses compelling interviews cinematic reenactments CGI technology and modern-day shooting demonstrations to put you squarely inside the crosshairs.

A Bad Deal - My Vietnam War Story

In 1966, Iowa native Jim Hamlyn was drafted into the U.S. Army where he served a year-long tour of duty during the heart of the Vietnam War. Using an 8mm camera, Hamlyn - a recipient of the Bronze Star for valor in combat with the U.S. Army 196th Light Infantry Brigade - documented his war experiences. Now, for the first time in television history, Hamlyn's war footage is being released for public broadcast. A Bad Deal - My Vietnam War Story highlights this never-before-seen footage, along with a rare interview with Hamlyn, to offer a revealing glimpse into the story of one American war veteran, as seen through the lens of his film camera. Featuring a haunting, original score by Joe Maddock, A Bad Deal takes you back in time to relive one of America's most divisive conflicts.

Resistance

It is 1944 and the D-Day invasion has failed, Germany's army have successfully invaded England and the Nazi war-machine is now heading west towards Wales. A group of women in an isolated Welsh village near the English border wake up to discover all of the their husbands have mysteriously vanished. They have headed into the mountains to join the Resistance.

Foxhole

Unfolding over the span of 36 hours in three separate wars – The American Civil War, World War I, and Iraq – FOXHOLE follows five soldiers confined in a foxhole as they grapple with morality, futility, and an increasingly volatile combat situation. Casting the same five actors in each episode, the film depicts the shifting roles of race and gender over time against the backdrop of the seemingly endless human struggle for power and domination. (Olivia Belluck)

Battle of the Bulge: Winter War

Lt. Robert Cappa and his platoon of 2nd Infantry Division soldiers must defend a vital supply depot from being captured by attacking German soldiers.

The Bloody Hundredth

Meet the real-life airmen who inspired Masters of the Air as they share the harrowing and transformative events of the 100th Bomb Group.

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