Historical war films on DVD stacked beside a notebook and a history textbook.

Best War Movies for High School Students (Educational & Discussion-Worthy Picks)

Updated September 2026

The Short Answer: 17 War Movies for High School, With Honest Ratings

The best war movies for high school students are the ones that teach something true about a war and give a family or class something to argue about afterward. Our core list for a homeschool history year is Gettysburg, The Longest Day, The Hiding Place and Dunkirk. Those four are rated G, PG or PG-13.

We won't pretend the rest are gentle. Seven of the seventeen films below are rated R, most of them for realistic, graphic combat. We include them because they are among the most honest films ever made about war, and many families decide they are worth it for an older teen with a parent in the room. If your ninth grader isn't ready for that, our clean teen movies on DVD include true-story films like Remember the Titans and Glory Road that still carry real history. Every rating was checked against IMDb, Common Sense Media or Kids-In-Mind. Films made before the rating system began in 1968 are marked "Not rated."

Film War Year Rating Suggested
All Quiet on the Western Front WWI 1930 Not rated Grade 9+
Sergeant York WWI 1941 Not rated Grade 9+
Paths of Glory WWI 1957 Not rated Grade 9+
1917 WWI 2019 R Grade 11+
Glory Civil War 1989 R Grade 11+
Gettysburg Civil War 1993 PG Grade 9+
The Longest Day WWII 1962 G Grade 9+
Tora! Tora! Tora! WWII 1970 G Grade 9+
The Hiding Place WWII 1975 PG Grade 9+
Red Tails WWII 2012 PG-13 Grade 9+
Unbroken WWII 2014 PG-13 Grade 9+
Dunkirk WWII 2017 PG-13 Grade 9+
Schindler's List WWII 1993 R Grade 11+
Saving Private Ryan WWII 1998 R Grade 11+
Letters from Iwo Jima WWII 2006 R Grade 11+
Hacksaw Ridge WWII 2016 R Grade 11+
We Were Soldiers Vietnam 2002 R Grade 12

In this guide:

How to Use War Films in a High School History Course

A war movie works best as the second thing a student meets, not the first. Read the history, then watch the film, then talk about where the two disagree. Hollywood compresses timelines, invents composite characters and picks heroes. Spotting that is a history skill in itself.

  • Preview R-rated films yourself, or at least read a detailed parent guide. You will know where the hardest ten minutes are.
  • Watch together. Pause when needed. A remote control is a teaching tool.
  • Pair each film with a primary source: a letter, a speech, a memoir chapter. Novels count too, and our historical fiction books for students list has more to set beside these films.
  • End with one written question. Each film below has one to start with.

World War I: The War That Changed How Films Show War

All Quiet on the Western Front (1930, Not rated)

Based on Erich Maria Remarque's novel, it follows German schoolboys who enlist full of patriotism and are broken by the trenches. It won the Academy Award for Best Picture. Content note: trench combat, a pair of hands left on barbed wire after an explosion, and a long scene where the hero stabs a French soldier and stays with him as he dies. Restrained by modern standards but still haunting. Discuss: Why might it matter that the "enemy" here are the heroes?

Sergeant York (1941, Not rated)

Gary Cooper won Best Actor as Alvin York, a Tennessee farmer who struggled with his faith and his objection to killing before becoming one of the most decorated American soldiers of the war. Content note: battlefield shooting with very little blood, and a bar fight. Much milder than a modern PG-13. Discuss: How does York reconcile his faith with fighting, and do you find his reasoning convincing?

Paths of Glory (1957, Not rated)

Stanley Kubrick's film about a French general who orders an impossible attack, then has three soldiers tried for cowardice to cover his failure. Kirk Douglas plays their defender. Content note: battle scenes, wounded men and an execution by firing squad, but little blood. Discuss: Who is responsible when an order is wrong: the officer who gives it or the soldier who refuses it?

1917 (2019, R)

Two British soldiers must cross no-man's-land to deliver a message calling off an attack. It is filmed to look like one continuous shot, which puts the viewer in the mud with them. Content note: rated R for violence, disturbing images and language, including repeated f-words. Graphic wounds and bodies. Discuss: What does the single-shot style make you feel that a traditional war film doesn't?

The Civil War: Gettysburg and Glory

Gettysburg (1993, PG)

Adapted from Michael Shaara's novel The Killer Angels, it covers the three days of the battle, including Little Round Top and Pickett's Charge. At 254 minutes it is best watched over two or three sittings. Content note: huge battle scenes with a large body count but very little blood. Discuss: The film gives Confederate officers a lot of sympathy. What does it leave out about why they were fighting? Our Civil War history books guide is a good place to find the answer.

Glory (1989, R)

The story of the 54th Massachusetts, one of the first Black regiments in the Union Army, and its assault on Fort Wagner. Denzel Washington won an Oscar for his role. Content note: rated R for graphic battle violence, including a soldier's head blown off by cannon fire, a whipping, racial slurs and strong language. Common Sense Media suggests 16 and up. Discuss: Why did the men of the 54th fight for a country that did not treat them as equals?

World War II: The Great Battles

The Longest Day (1962, G)

D-Day told from the American, British, French and German sides, in black and white with an enormous cast. For reading to go with this section, see our World War II books for students. Content note: the final hour is continuous combat, with dead bodies but little gore. Discuss: What does showing the German point of view add?

Tora! Tora! Tora! (1970, G)

An American-Japanese production showing the lead-up to Pearl Harbor from both governments' sides, with a long recreation of the attack. Content note: bombing, explosions and deaths, but no graphic injuries. Discuss: List the warnings the Americans missed. Which one should have been caught?

Dunkirk (2017, PG-13)

Christopher Nolan's account of the 1940 evacuation, told across land, sea and air on three different timescales. Light on dialogue, heavy on tension. Content note: drowning, burning and bombing with little blood, plus at least two f-words. Common Sense Media suggests 14 and up. Discuss: Why do the British treat a retreat as a victory?

Red Tails (2012, PG-13)

The Tuskegee Airmen escorting bombers over Europe while fighting segregation at home. Content note: intense aerial combat, a racial slur, drinking and a romance with one scene in bed. Discuss: How does the film connect the war abroad to civil rights at home?

Saving Private Ryan (1998, R)

A squad is sent behind the lines after D-Day to bring home a paratrooper whose brothers have all been killed. The opening Omaha Beach sequence is one of the most realistic combat scenes ever filmed. Content note: extremely graphic violence, with men shot and dismembered, and heavy profanity. Discuss: Is it right to risk eight lives to save one?

Letters from Iwo Jima (2006, R)

Clint Eastwood's film shows the battle from the Japanese side, in Japanese with English subtitles. Content note: close-range combat and soldiers killing themselves with grenades. Very little profanity. Discuss: How does seeing the enemy's letters home change the way you view the battle?

Hacksaw Ridge (2016, R)

The true story of Desmond Doss, a Seventh-day Adventist medic who refused to carry a weapon and was awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions on Okinawa. Content note: rated R for intense, graphic war violence with grisly images. The first half, set at home and in training, is much milder and includes domestic violence. Discuss: Is refusing to carry a rifle cowardice, courage or something else?

World War II: Courage Off the Battlefield

The Hiding Place (1975, PG)

Corrie ten Boom's Dutch family hid Jews in their home, were arrested, and were sent to concentration camps. A standard in Christian homeschool circles, and one of the milder films here. Younger siblings can start with our historical movies for homeschool families instead. Content note: a shooting death, restrained but frank camp cruelty including whippings, and a brief reference to prostitution. Discuss: How does Corrie's faith change the way she responds to her guards?

Unbroken (2014, PG-13)

Olympic runner Louis Zamperini survives a plane crash, weeks adrift in the Pacific and brutal Japanese prison camps. Based on Laura Hillenbrand's book. Content note: beatings and cruelty in the camps, shark attacks, and prisoners forced to undress (non-sexual). Discuss: The film ends before his later life. Read ahead: what happened to his anger?

Schindler's List (1993, R)

Steven Spielberg's Best Picture winner about Oskar Schindler, a German businessman who saved more than a thousand Jews by employing them in his factories. Content note: point-blank shootings and mass killing, full-frontal nudity in camp scenes, some sexual content, and anti-Semitic slurs. This is the hardest film on the list. Discuss: Schindler begins as a profiteer. At what point does he change, and why?

Vietnam: We Were Soldiers

We Were Soldiers (2002, R)

Mel Gibson plays Lt. Col. Hal Moore at the Battle of Ia Drang in 1965, one of the first major battles between American and North Vietnamese troops. It also shows the wives at home receiving telegrams. Content note: relentless, graphic close-up combat and many deaths. Common Sense Media suggests 17 and up. Discuss: What does the film say about who carries the cost of a war?

Questions That Work for Any War Film

  • Whose point of view does the film take, and whose is missing?
  • What did the filmmakers change from the historical record? Why do you think they did?
  • Does the film make war look exciting, horrible or both? How?
  • Which character made a moral choice you disagree with?
  • If you could ask one veteran of this war a question, what would it be?

Building a History Shelf on DVD

Our War & History DVDs are where most of these turn up, with some in Drama. Search for Sergeant York, Glory, Saving Private Ryan, Hacksaw Ridge or Schindler's List. Shipping is free on orders over $15.

Frequently Asked Questions

What war movies are appropriate for high school students?

Gettysburg (PG), The Longest Day (G), The Hiding Place (PG), Sergeant York (not rated, mild) and Dunkirk (PG-13) are the safest starting points for most ninth graders.

Is Saving Private Ryan appropriate for a 15-year-old?

It is rated R for extremely graphic combat and strong language. Common Sense Media suggests 16 and up. Some families show it to a mature 15-year-old with a parent present, often after previewing the opening.

Is Hacksaw Ridge okay for teens?

It is rated R for intense, graphic war violence. The story of Desmond Doss is inspiring, but the Okinawa battle scenes are among the goriest on this list. We suggest 16 and up with a parent.

What is the best Civil War movie for students?

Gettysburg (PG) for younger high schoolers. Glory is the more powerful film but is rated R for violence and language, so it fits juniors and seniors.

Are there clean World War II movies for homeschool?

Yes. The Longest Day and Tora! Tora! Tora! are rated G, and The Hiding Place is PG. Dunkirk is PG-13 with little blood but a couple of f-words.

Should students read the book before watching a war movie?

Where there is one, yes. All Quiet on the Western Front, The Killer Angels and Unbroken are all strong high school reads, and comparing book and film makes for good discussion.

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