Memorial Day is intended to preserve the memory of those who died while serving in the U.S. military. It was made a federal holiday in 1971 to commemorate the men and women lost whilst fighting the Civil War and both World Wars, as well as combat to come.
Observed on the last Monday in May, Memorial Day is a time to honor those who gave their lives for their country and to mourn. Over the years, filmmakers such as Steven Spielberg, Kathryn Bigelow and Clint Eastwood, among others, have used their films to explore the horrors of war and the heroism of our troops.
"I dedicate this to the women and men in the military who risk their lives on a daily basis, in Iraq and Afghanistan, and around the world," Bigelow said onstage when her film, The Hurt Locker, won at the 82nd Oscars. "May they come home safe."
Below, A.frame highlights 13 films to watch this Memorial Day weekend.
Francis Ford Coppola's seminal Vietnam War drama is a twofold journey, following Special Forces soldiers (Martin Sheen, Robert Duvall and Laurence Fishburne) as they venture into Cambodia to assassinate a renegade Special Forces colonel (Marlon Brando), as well as a journey into the depths of the human psyche. Apocalypse Now received eight Oscar nominations, including Best Picture and Best Director, and won Oscars for Best Cinematography and Best Sound.
The Best Years of Our Lives tells the story of three servicemen (Dana Andrews, Fredric March and Harold Russell) readjusting to civilian life upon returning home from World War II. The romantic war drama received eight Oscar nominations and went on to win seven Oscars, including Best Picture and Best Director, as well as an Honorary Award for WWII veteran Russell for "bringing aid and comfort to disabled veterans through the medium of motion pictures."
Based on journalist Mark Bowden's nonfiction book of the same name, Ridley Scott's account of the doomed 1993 raid in Mogadishu and the subsequent attempt to rescue downed Black Hawk crews stars an ensemble cast led by Josh Hartnett and Ewan McGregor, with Eric Bana, Tom Sizemore, Sam Shepard, William Fichtner, Jeremy Piven and Tom Hardy.
Black Hawk Down was nominated for four Oscars and won two: Best Film Editing and Best Sound.
Tom Cruise received his first Best Actor in a Leading Role Oscar nomination for his portrayal of Vietnam veteran-turned-anti-war activist Ron Kovic in this biopic. Born on the Fourth of July received eight Oscar nominations and went on to win two: Best Director for Oliver Stone and Best Film Editing.
This Spike Lee joint follows Black vets Paul (Delroy Lindo), Otis (Clarke Peters), Eddie (Norm Lewis), and Melvin (Isiah Whitlock Jr.) as they return to Vietnam to recover the remains of their former squad leader, "Stormin'" Norman (Chadwick Boseman), and the secret treasure that they buried while serving there. The war drama received an Oscar nomination for Best Original Score.
Clint Eastwood conceived of Flags of Our Fathers and Letters From Iwo Jima as companion pieces, portraying the same World War II battle from the opposing viewpoints of American and Japanese soldiers. Flags of Our Fathers tells the story of the six men involved in raising the flag at the Battle of Iwo Jima. The war drama was nominated for two Oscars: Best Sound Mixing and Best Sound Editing.
This biographical war drama was inspired by the true story of private first class Desmond T. Doss during the Battle of Okinawa. Andrew Garfield portrays the pacifistic WWII hero who saved 75 of his fellow soldiers without firing a single bullet. Doss went on to become the first conscientious objector to be awarded the Medal of Honor.
Hacksaw Ridge received six Oscar nominations, including Best Actor in a Leading Role for Garfield, and went on to win two Oscars: Best Film Editing and Best Sound Mixing.
This Iraq War thriller stars Jeremy Renner and Anthony Mackie as Army Explosive Ordnance Disposal experts tasked with diffusing IEDs in Baghdad. The Hurt Locker was nominated for nine Oscars and went on to win six, including Best Picture and Best Directing for Kathryn Bigelow — who made history by becoming the first woman to ever win the Oscar for Best Directing.
Robert Altman's dark comedy centers on a unit of medical personnel stationed in Uijeongbu during the Korean War, starring Donald Sutherland, Tom Skerritt, Elliott Gould and the late Sally Kellerman (who received a Best Actress in a Supporting Role Oscar nomination for her performance as Major Margaret "Hot Lips" Houlihan). The film received a total of five Oscar nominations and won for Best Adapted Screenplay.
Directed by Gabriela Cowperthwaite and starring Kate Mara, Megan Leavey is as much a biopic about the eponymous Marine corporal and Military Police K9 handler as it is about her canine partner, Rex, with whom she served two deployments in Iraq. Leavey was awarded the Purple Heart and later petitioned the Marine Corps to adopt Rex.
What Michael Bay's WWII epic may lack in historical accuracy — it's a fictionalized account of the 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor and the ensuing Doolittle Raid — it makes up for in sweeping romance, with Kate Beckinsale's Navy nurse torn between combat pilots played by Ben Affleck and Josh Hartnett. Pearl Harbor was nominated for four Oscars and won for Best Sound Editing.
Filmmaker Oliver Stone drew on his own experiences serving as an infantryman in Vietnam to write and direct this tale of an optimistic Army volunteer (Charlie Sheen) and the opposing sergeants (Tom Berenger and Willem Dafoe) vying for his soul. Platoon was nominated for eight Oscars and went on to win four, including Best Picture and Best Director.
Steven Spielberg's WWII drama follows Captain Miller (Tom Hanks) as he leads a troop of soldiers behind enemy lines to rescue Private Ryan (Matt Damon). Known for its graphic portrayal of war, including the frighteningly accurate depiction of the Omaha Beach assault on D-Day, Saving Private Ryan received 11 total Oscar nominations and went on to win five Oscars, including Best Director, Best Cinematography and Best Film Editing.
