here are some VERY GOOD war movies (different era's also) with action-galore! My faves:
PATHFINDER: A Viking boy is left behind after his clan battles a Native American tribe. Raised within the tribe, he ultimately becomes their savior in a fight against the Norsemen.
TROY: An adaptation of Homer's great epic, the film follows the assault on Troy by the united Greek forces and chronicles the fates of the men involved. Brad Pitt.
APOCALYPTO: As the Mayan kingdom faces its decline, the rulers insist the key to prosperity is to build more temples and offer human sacrifices. Jaguar Paw, a young man captured for sacrifice, flees to avoid his fate.
ALEXANDER: Alexander, the King of Macedonia and one of the greatest military leaders in the history of warfare, conquers much of the known world. Colin Ferrell, Angelina Jolie, Anthony Hopkins and Val Kilmer.
300: King Leonidas and a force of 300 men fight the Persians at Thermopylae in 480 B.C.
THE LAST SAMURAI: In Japan, Civil War veteran Captain Nathan Algren trains the Emperor's troops to use modern weapons as they prepare to defeat the last of the country's samurais. But Algren's passion is swayed when he is captured by the samurai and learns about their traditions and code of honor. Stars Tom Cruise and Ken Wantanabe. I lived in Japan for three years in the mid-80’s and this movie shows really depicts the pride and culture/customs of the Japanese people!
KINGDOM OF HEAVEN: Balian of Ibelin travels to Jerusalem during the crusades of the 12th century, and there he finds himself as the defender of the city and its people. Stars Orlando Bloom and Liam Neeson.
KING ARTHUR: The Roman Empire is stretched across many nations, including Britain. In their conquest for more land, the Romans went into Sarmatia where they fought the very brave Sarmatian cavalery. The Romans, impressed by the Sarmatian's weaponery and fighting skills, included them into their army as knights. After 15 years of serving and fighting for the Roman Empire the Sarmatian Knights, lead by Arthur/Artorious Castus, are about to receive their freedom as the Romans are leaving Britain. But the Knights must carry out one final order before they are free. A Roman priest and his family, especially his son Alecto, must be rescued from the invading Saxons. But there is another danger lurking on the road to freedom - the Woads, British rebels who hate the Romans.
BRAVEHEART: William Wallace, a commoner, unites the 13th Century Scots in their battle to overthrow English rule. Stars Mel Gibson.
GLADIATOR: When a Roman general is betrayed and his family murdered by a corrupt prince, he comes to Rome as a gladiator to avenge their deaths.
BAND OF BROTHERS (HBO mini-series): This is the story of "E" Easy Company, 506th Regiment of the 101st Airborne Division from their initial training starting in 1942 to the end of World War II. They parachuted behind enemy lines in the early hours of D-Day in support of the landings at Utah beach, participated in the liberation of Carentan and again parachuted into action during Operation Market Garden.
THE GREAT RAID: Taking place towards the end of WWII, 500 American Soldiers have been entrapped in a camp for 3 years. Beginning to give up hope they will ever be rescued, a group of Rangers goes on a dangerous mission to try and save them. Based on a true story. Stars Benjamin Bratt and James Franco.
WINDTALKERS: Two U.S. Marines in WWII are assigned to protect Navajo Marines who use their native language as an unbreakable radio cypher.
SAVING PRIVATE RYAN: Based on a World War II drama. US soldiers try to save their comrade, paratrooper Private Ryan, who's stationed behind enemy lines.
ENEMY AT THE GATES: Two Russian and German snipers play a game of cat-and-mouse during the Battle of Stalingrad. Stars Jude Law, Ed Harris, Rachael Weisz, Joseph Fiennes, Bob Hoskins and Ron Perlman.
PEARL HARBOR: Pearl Harbor follows the story of two best friends, Rafe and Danny, and their love lives as they go off to join the war.
WE WERE SOLDIERS: The story of the first major battle of the American phase of the Vietnam War and the soldiers on both sides that fought it.
TIGERLAND (2001): A group of recruits go through Advanced Infantry Training at Fort Polk, Louisiana's infamous Tigerland, last stop before Vietnam for tens of thousands of young men in 1971. Colin Farrell.
FULL METAL JACKET (1987): A pragmatic U.S. Marine observes the dehumanizing effects the Vietnam War has on his fellow Marine recruits from their brutal basic training to the bloody street fighting set in 1968 Hue, Vietnam.
PLATOON: A young recruit in Vietnam faces a moral crisis when confronted with the horrors of war and the duality of man.
STOP LOSS: A veteran soldier returns from his completed tour of duty in Iraq, only to find his life turned upside down when he is arbitrarily ordered to return to field duty by the Army.
THE KINGDOM: After a terrorist attack to an American housing compound in Saudi Arabia, where families and the spy Francis Manner are murdered, FBI agent Ronald Fleury blackmails the South Arabian consul to get five days of investigation in the location. He travels with agent Grant Sykes, Janet Mayes and Adam Leavitt to revenge their friend and try to find the responsible for the bombing. Stars Jamie Foxx, Chris Cooper, Jennifer Garner and Jason Bateman.
MASTER AND COMMANDER: During the Napoleonic Wars, a brash British captain (Russell Crowe) pushes his ship and crew to their limits in pursuit of a formidable French war vessel around South America.