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The genre of war cinema has taken many forms over the decades ever since it sprung up into being alongside narrative cinema itself. Whether by exploring real historical and present-day conflicts or fictional ones, movies have time and again proven capable of mining the tension, violence, and unimaginably high stakes of war for pathos, action, and political critique.

Incidentally, Netflix has a solid roster of great war films from across the decades available to subscribers, and we've compiled a list of the best. Each of these movies concerns itself with real-life wars (four of them being World War II movies), although some tell wholly fictional stories within those frameworks. The two earliest-set among them take place in ancient India and China, while another looks at the Democratic Republic of the Congo in the early half of the 2010s. From everywhere across the centuries,...

Studio Ghibli’s haunting masterpiece Grave Of The Fireflies will stream on Netflix in September, and here’s a new trailer.

Aside from Threads – a film we wrote about in detail here – Studio Ghibli's Grave Of The Fireflies is one of the most harrowing, dark, depressing films you can choose to sit through. It is also gorgeously animated and a fascinating historical document.

The film was released in 1988, the same year as Hayao Miyazaki’s wonderful My Neighbour Totoro. In fact in Japan the two films were played together in what must be the most tonally jarring cinematic double bill in history.

The synopsis reads as follows:

Grave of the Fireflies follows the story of Seita and Setsuko, two young Japanese siblings, living in the declining days of World War II. When an American firebombing separates the two children from their parents, the two siblings must rely completely on one...

"Why do fireflies have to die so soon?" One of the saddest films ever is getting a proper streaming release on Netflix this fall. Grave of the Fireflies is one of the masterpieces directed by the late Japanese animation master Isao Takahata. It never got a US theatrical release in 1988 when it initially opened, but it has since become a cult classic, known by all who love & appreciation animation. Based on Akiyuki Nosaka's Naoki Prize-winning short story, Grave of the Fireflies is set in Kobe near the end of World War II and depicts the tragic fate of war orphan siblings and the horrors of this period. It was made by Studio Ghibli and released by Toho, though it was also the same year as My Neighbor Totoro, which is why it never achieved the same amount of fame. Written and directed by Takahata, the film stars Tsutomu Tatsumi,...

The saddest, most heart-breaking movie in Studio Ghiblis profoundly emotional repertoire, Grave of the Fireflies, is all set to land on Netflix next month. Meaning that audiences everywhere will soon be able to share in the trauma. And while that may be a daunting prospect, Grave of the Fireflies is worth it, with the animation by far one of the most effective war films ever made, that is sure to leave you forever changed. Netflix has now picked up the rights to stream the deeply moving Grave of the Fireflies, with the platform making the movie available in over 190 countries, excluding Japan, from September 16.

Written and directed by Isao Takahata, and produced by Studio Ghibli, Grave of the Fireflies is based on Akiyuki Nosaka's Naoki Prize-winning short story and takes place in Kobe near the end of World War II. The animated movie depicts the tragic fate of war...

War is a living nightmare, wreaking its destruction on innocent lives and civilizations. It casts deep wounds that shape our history, present circumstances, and potential prospects for the future.

War has been a central theme in all of human history since its inception. It inspires both captivation and terror, with stories of bravery, resilience, and courage, as well as violence and death. It is the peak of danger – where any semblance of safety or security ceases to exist for those who fight. All that remains are humanity’s yearning for survival against insurmountable odds.

Hollywood has no shortage of war films meant to both awe and educate. Some promote the best humanity can offer as people come together for a common cause. Others reveal the horrific truth behind conflict’s brutality and man’s capacity for harm on an unimaginable scale.

Here is the ultimate fan selection of the top...

There was a beautiful time when film buffs, critics, and dudes with strong opinions could gather in the IMDb forums and debate everything from the oeuvre of Sir David Lean to the latest episode of "Charmed." Today, internet critics make their way to the easier-to-navigate Letterboxd. Boosted by the 2021 Covid pandemic lock-in, it's now the joint for people looking to curate their watch list with the cream of the cinephile crop.

On Letterboxd, you can log your film-viewing history, rate films on a 5-star scale, and share your thoughts. The reviews can be as pithy or insightful as a user desires, and collated scores help fans figure out what's the best of the best in a given section. With this much input from peers, the app's consensus should offer a fair reflection of a film's quality. This Ghibli fan is going to look over Letterboxd's top twelve animated Studio Ghibli features with you,...

It should come as no surprise that last week’s featured Blu-Ray release Brave has made a significant showing in the sales charts, while The Watch and Savages are having a tough time competing in the home release arena. If you’re still on the fence about adding the latter two to your Blu-Ray collection, be sure to head on over to our Blu-Ray Reviews section where our own Jeremy Lebens has covered both releases.

This week, The Expendables 2 makes an explosive entrance into your home, director Quentin Tarantino‘s eight most notable films come together to form a sweet collection, and Game of Thrones‘ first season is released in an epic Collector’s Edition.

Ready for this week’s Blu-Ray releases? Then read on.

The Expendables 2

Release Date: November 20th, 2012

Starring: Sylvester Stallone, Jason Statham, Bruce Willis, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Jean-Clause Van Damme, and Chuck Norris.

Director: Simon West...