Ten great World War II films to watch this bank holiday weekend

VE Day is nearly upon us so we asked the film experts from MetFilm School based at the world-famous Ealing Studios, which top WWII films they would recommend to entertain and enlighten us in the run-up to the 75th anniversary of Victory in Europe on Friday, May 8.

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Jonny Persey, film producer and director at MetFilm School said: “It was a tough job.

“Our top picks include British classics, box office hits, old familiars, non-traditional choices and one from the German point of view.”

1. Darkest Hour

Gary Oldman stars as Winston Churchill, who must decide whether to negotiate with Adolf Hitler, or fight on

Youtube link: Darkest Hour

2. The Imitation Game

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Benedict Cumberbatch is the English mathematical genius Alan Turing who tries to crack the German Enigma code.

Youtube link: The Imitation Game

3. Dunkirk

Tom Hardy, Kenneth Branagh, Mark Rylance and Harry Styles in the tale of allied soldiers being evacuated during a fierce battle.

Youtube link: Dunkirk

4. In Which We Serve

Noël Coward and John Mills star in David Lean’s story of the British destroyer HHS Torrin.

5. Bridge On The River Kwai

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Alec Guinness and Jack Hawkins in a the classic tale of British POWs forced to build a railway bridge across the River Kwai for their Japanese captors.

6. The Great Escape

Steve McQueen, James Garner, Richard Attenborough lead the prisoners escaping from a German camp during World War II.

YouTube Link: The Great Escape

7. The Longest Day

John Wayne and Robert Mitchum star as the events of D-Day are told on a grand scale from both the Allied and German points of view.

YouTube Link: The Longest Day

8. Downfall

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Chances are you’ll have seen a clip of this film – the one with a very ‘shouty ‘Adolf Hitler. The story of Hitler’s final days in his Berlin bunker.

YouTube link: Downfall

9. The Boy in the Striped Pajamas

David Thewlis and Sheila Hancock in the tale of a German camp commandant’s son who befriends a Jewish boy.

10. Charlotte Gray

Cate Blanchet in a young Scottish woman who joins the French Resistance to rescue her RAF boyfriend who is lost in France.

YouTube: Charlotte Gray

11. Carrying The Light

A short by MetFilm’s Guy Natanel.

12. Auschwitz On My Mind

A short by MetFilm’s Assaf Machnes.

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