War, of course, does not remain only on the battlefield. It reaches into numerous areas of culture and individual lives. Yet this list aims to stick as close to the direct treatment of war as possible. Unfortunately, this notion forces the omission of some great films, such as The Pianist, recently, and Doctor Strangelove, more historically. There are countless examples. In alphabetic order, here are ten films sure to stir the humanity within a viewer and get his or her noggin churning in ways he or she might never have imagined from the bluntness inherent in the presentation of a war:

All Quiet on the Western Front (1930)

Based on the novel of the same title by the German author, Erich Maria Remarque, All Quiet on the Western Front is the tale of German boys led into World War I by a nationlistic school teacher. As one might take from the title, the film is not the typical action jaunt, instead dipping into the horrors and fallacies of war and its propaganda. Much like Isaac Rosenberg's famous WWI poem, "Break of Day in the Trenches," where a rat knows not nor cares about the difference between the German and English hands it encounters, the film speculates on the faulty notion of "enemy." The enemy the boys discover are not faceless, nameless automatons but thriving humans, like themselves. Further, the carnage they face daily renders all "just causes" irrelevant and non-existent. Made during the relative infancy of moving-film, director Lewis Milestone gives All Quiet the era's stark, unflinching, realistic view of the landscape and the conflict.

Apocalypse Now (1979)

Another adaptation of a novel, this time from Joseph Conrad's classic, "Heart of Darkness." The novel focuses on a trip into the Congo during war, but Francis Ford Coppola transfers the action to the more contemporary setting of the Vietnam War. Deep in the Cambodian jungle a renegade colonel has broken off from the order of command and has set up his own rule and empire. Captain Benjamin Willard, played brilliantly by Martin Sheen, is sent to exterminate the "insane" Colonel Kurtz, the last great appearance by Marlon Brando. Away from the main skirmishes of Vietnam, the plot and Coppola's direction allow the war's bizarre effects on the human psyche take center stage. As Willard and his men move upriver, the lush foliage, the anthrax, the brutality, and the confusion of right and wrong distort what is seemingly a straightforward mission, however cruel. By the time Willard reaches Kurtz, both he and the viewer can understand how one might "go crazy" in such a situation and seek an alternative reality. Some critics view Apocalypse Now as the film which best captures the stunned, damaged aura of the Vietnam War and its lasting imprints on the soldiers who endured it. The ineffable nature of war is summed up perfectly by Conrad in the novel and delivered flawlessly by Brando's breathy death squall: "The horror, the horror."

Das Boot (1981)

Keith Loh called Das Boot a "Look into the claustrophobic and terrifying world of a German U-Boat crew." Claustrophobic is a perfect adjective for the film and its cinematography, both realistically and metaphorically. Directed by Wolfgang Petersen, the close confines of a submarine encroach heavily on a viewer. It is dark, it is wet, it is a lot like being in a windowless automobile made of cardboard as some unseen force drops bombs all around. Through all the invisible terror, the crew attempts to accomplish their missions. These missions, however, become just as much about survival as serving a country's orders, as they begin to feel the claustrophobic isolation of an undersea squad with no visual contact of the wars progress. Not a film for those who need quickness, Petersen plods along to emphasize the boredom and intense nervousness that goes along with waiting and being vulnerable. This film is also noteworthy because it lends a sympathetic glance toward the German soldier, something upon which only rare focus is applied.

Full Metal Jacket (1987)

Stanley Kubrick's take on Vietnam, Full Metal Jacket is sometimes referred to as the closest to capturing the true nature of a Marine's full trajectory in the war. Largely devoid of the usual onslaught of action in a war film, Kubrick instead divides the film into halves: the first half dedicated to boot camp, the second half to Vietnam. The opening part is a stark, horrific take on the dehumanization and cruelty inherent in all humanity, not just the battlefield. Kubrick's Drill Sergeant, famously played by R. Lee Ermey, shows no mercy to those who fall behind. In order to hack it, most trainees follow suit. The fate of one recruit highlights the ability to break the will of a person in the face of infinite non-compassion. The second part of the film is filled with perversions of down-time and mutant battles, punctuated with snipers instead of firestorms. Despite the tendency for a soldier to put up a harsh facade, in able to survive, the human bonds accumulated during the war come through as members of a platoon slowly die by sniper-fire. In a twist that Vietnam often threw at American forces, they are not killed by a man, but a woman. Beyond all the surface elements that sober a viewer and his or her thoughts, Kubrick, as he always does, allows major philosophic ideas to slip in just out of sight.

Glory (1989)

Glory is the tale of the now-renowned 54th regiment, the first group of black soldiers to fight in the Civil War. An amazing cast fills out this film, including Matthew Broderick, Denzel Washington, Cary Elwes, Morgan Freeman, and Andre Braugher. Broderick portrays Colonel Robert Shaw, who carries both the old-world stiffness of military society and the tenderness of a man who clearly understood the importance of the equality of race. Washington is brilliant as Trip, an uneducated but stellar soldier, who fights for the freedom of his life and those like him. Director Edward Zwick seamlessly combines the battlefield aspects of the war with the emotional undercurrents of the human situations involved. Watching Glory is a slow build of swelling pride, sadness, and joy. As the plot moves forward, a viewer is reduced to a mere ball of emotion and when the critical mass hits the effect is stunning. Perhaps the best essay and movie on the Civil War yet put to film.

Paths of Glory (1957)

Stanley Kubrick's second film on the list, Paths of Glory finds its location in World War I's trenches. One of the greatest notions to come out of World War I is the absolute desolation and futility of trench-warfare. That idea looms as the crux of this film, as a General orders a group of soldiers to attack through the trenches to capture a position. The reason behind this order is not for positional progress but to win the General a promotion. The problem with the order is that the attack is impossible and certainly will become fatal for any soldier who dares attempt it. The group, led by Kirk Douglas, refuses the attack. In retaliation for refusing orders, the General decrees that three men must die for the crime of cowardice to serve as a lesson for the rest of the men in the future. The quiet and waiting that Kubrick imposes on the film are truly nerve-wracking, as Douglas does his best to save the men. The notion of absurdity - death as the result of one action, but also the result of the opposite action - hits like a punch to the nose. Not as comical as Joseph Heller's "Catch-22," Kubrick instead focuses on the intense soberness of death as a result of this absurdity.

Saving Private Ryan (1998)

Often hailed as the most realistic portrayal of the beach invasions of World War II, Saving Private Ryan is Steven Spielberg's classic look into the individual in the face of a mass of expendable bodies. Post invasion the film centers on the search for one man, Private Ryan, because his three brothers had all been killed in action and the government decided to attempt to relieve the family of the terrible trauma it would incur if all four of its sons were killed. Tom Hanks leads a group of soldiers on a chase for Ryan, who risk their lives for the sake of an individual. How many lives are worth the salvation of one man? Is one man worth risking able bodies when "more important" missions loom? What motivates an individual in a war that is often viewed as a nationalistic cause? The film manages to mix together the macroscopic and microscopic better than perhaps any other.

Schindler's List (1993)

Another Spielberg film, Schindler's List is a harrowing tale of a man on the Nazi side attempting to spare as many innocents as possible. The tale is based on the acts of Oskar Schindler, who turned his factory into a haven for Jews, in all saving approximately 1100 from the concentration camps. The starkness of the situation comes across well in Spielberg's black and white film. Schindler, unbelievably brought to life by Liam Neeson, transforms from greed to compassion in the face of terrible personal peril. The usage of symbolism in the film - visually through the spare usage of color and intangibly - rouses deep human emotion. Although the film eschews the battlefield, it is perhaps more about "war" than any other period piece that avoids action, for it illustrates that wars can happen in any locale, with bullets or without.

Stalag 17 (1953)

This film takes place in a German Prisoner of War camp and focuses on a group of American soldiers attempting to survive to the end of the war. The group attempts various escapes, but each one is somehow snuffed out. They begin to suspect a spy within their own ranks. The action is intensified from this point onward, as men who battled one enemy start to turn upon themselves in the confines of a prison camp. Billy Wilder directs Stalag 17 as much as a mystery as a war movie, but never lets one or the other take over. The situation of war is always present, but the larger human situation of survival twists the reality into mystery. The film is full of wonderful film-personalities that smack you in the face with their bravado, a trait much lacking in contemporary cinema. William Holden plays Sefton, the stoic patsy, as hard as sandpaper. An often overlooked gem, Stalag 17 offers something for fans of all sorts of films.

Thin Red Line (1998)

Thoroughly absorbing, Thin Red Line is based on a 1960s novel set during the battle of Guadalcanal. The film spans the spectrum on the reach of a war. It leaves out nothing: the battles, the waiting, the personal struggle, the notion of an enemy's struggle, following orders, the natural landscape, the philosophical strain. At the center of the film is Private Witt, the breakout role for Jim Caviezel, a man who seems to live in harmony with the world, only tossed into the blender of war. The other men worry about home, their careers, the war itself. Through Witt's eyes we see the effect of war on the flora and fauna, the effect on the human will, the absurdity of it all, the oneness of all humankind, and the ability to connect with the world as if we are only a mere part of its living, breathing self. Terrence Malick's screenplay is perhaps the most poetic look into war ever created and John Toll's cinematography is awe-inspiring. Moments exist in this film that approach the limits of language; descriptions often fall short. A contemporary film that receives extremely little praise and viewership, Thin Red Line is essential to everyone, not just film nuts.