Leigh Paatsch presents the best WW1 movies to watch right now

FROM contemporary releases to acclaimed classics, Leigh Paatsch profiles some unforgettable films about the Great War as we pay tribute to those who served.

ON the 100th anniversary of the armistice of World War One, you may feel inclined to commemorate the significance of the occasion on screens large or small.

Leigh Paatsch takes a look at eight ways you can pay tribute today to those who served selflessly in World War I in cinemas and on various streaming platforms.

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THEY SHALL NOT GROW OLD

IN CINEMAS NOW

They Shall Not Grow Old reinvigorates period footage to impressive effect.

This widely acclaimed new documentary by decorated filmmaker Peter Jackson (The Lord of the Rings trilogy) explores life (and death) on the battlefields of WWI France from the perspective of ordinary soldiers. Jackson’s masterstroke is how he makes ancient footage of the long-running conflict come alive and speak to modern audiences. This is achieved by a dazzling transformation of the once-grainy imagery into both full colour and 3D, resulting in a you-are-there immediacy never before experienced in a wartime documentary. The lively, warm and moving narration of the film comes from interviews with British soldiers recorded several decades ago.

This image of officers eating their rations shows the difference between the restored and original footage used in the They Shall Not Grow Old.

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LAWRENCE OF ARABIA

FOXTEL - ALL PLATFORMS

Omar Sharif and Peter O’Toole in Lawrence of Arabia.

A character whose enigmatic nature has long eluded the grasp of biographers and historians alike, T.E. Lawrence (played by a neon-blue-eyed Peter O’Toole in his screen debut) was a mid-ranking British officer who, extraordinarily, found himself the leader of an Arab revolution during World War One. A prismatic portrait of one of history’s stranger heroes casts a captivating spell through the unbridled power of its visuals, framed in intricate detail by “big film” specialist David Lean.

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BENEATH HILL 60

AMAZON, GOOGLE PLAY, ITUNES

Brendan Cowell in a scene from Beneath Hill 60.

An inspirational (and largely unknown) tale of Australian wartime heroism on the Western Front in WWI. On the evening of June 7th, 1917, the biggest man-made explosion in world history to date was unleashed at the Messines Ridge in Belgium. A small unit of Australian soldiers played a key role in detonating the monstrous blast, widely credited with changing the course of the war. Stars Brendan Cowell, Gyton Grantley.

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PATHS OF GLORY

STAN

Kirk Douglas in the 1956 film Paths Of Glory.

The setting is one of the most casualty-heavy fronts in France during WWI. A reluctant officer (Kirk Douglas) is ordered to oversee a pointlessly impossible mission, and many of his men die instantly as a result. The whiff of failure is so pungent that the army’s top brass move quickly to send the blame elsewhere by means of a hasty court-martial. Master director Stanley Kubrick (2001: A Space Odyssey) powerfully proves there are two sides to every war story, even when fighting on the same side. Just ask the enlisted men who always fight the battles, and their superiors who always take the credit.

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THE WATER DIVINER

GOOGLE PLAY, ITUNES

Dylan Georgiades and Russell Crowe in a scene from The Water Diviner.

This sobering, yet uplifting ANZAC drama directed by and starring Russell Crowe is an unconventional reading of the Gallipoli experience. Crowe plays Joshua Connor, an Australian farmer still mourning the tragic loss of all three of his soldier sons on the same fateful night at Gallipoli in August 1915. With the whereabouts of their remains still classified as unknown in late 1919, Connor travels alone to Turkey to find closure on his own terms. A number of well-shot combat sequences drive home the dire consequences of war with great intensity and soulful insight.

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TESTAMENT OF YOUTH

SBS ON DEMAND

Alicia Vikander and Kit Harrington in a scene from the Testament Of Youth.

This genuinely moving British drama is adapted from the 1933 memoirs of Vera Brittain, who penned one of the few books that addressed World War One from a purely female perspective. The film charts the heartbreaking journey of Vera (an impressive Alicia Vikander) through a torrid spell as a military nurse on the frontlines in France. Vera’s broken bond with her fiance (Game of Thrones star Kit Harington) - and her valiant attempt to repair it by putting her own life in danger - charges the film with an emotional power that transcends that of a mere love story. Co-stars Emily Watson, Dominic West.

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GALLIPOLI

NETFLIX

A re-enactment of the battle of Krithia at Helles, a scene in the documentary Gallipoli.

Calling upon a potent combination of rigorous research and impeccable presentation, this intensely affecting 2005 documentary deserves to be regarded as the definitive cinematic chronicle of the Gallipoli story. Achieves a legitimately balanced overview of the tragic battle by narrowing its primary focus to the written and oral recollections of those who were there. Narrated by Jeremy Irons and Sam Neill.

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JOURNEY’S END

IN CINEMAS NOW

Scene from the World War I drama movie Journey's End.

In this worthy, if slightly stilted screen adaptation of the classic 1928 stage play by R.C. Sherriff, we are transported to the trenches of Aisne in northern France as World War One is about to draw to a close. A small band of British soldiers are going about their business as usual, despite knowing deep down their next assignment has the makings of a suicide mission. Sheriff’s long, wordy exchanges remain as beautifully written and quietly powerful as ever. Stars Sam Claflin, Asa Butterfield and Paul Bettany.

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