Alec Guinness in one of my all-time favorites, “The Bridge on the River Kwai.” 

If you google “best war movies,” you’ll find enough lists and opinions to fill your Netflix queue with lots of blood, guts, and glory. So let me contribute my share.

First a disclaimer–I haven’t seen some of the movies that are on a number of lists, such as “Full Metal Jacket,” “The Dirty Dozen,” “Stalag 17,” or “Saving Private Ryan.” I’m sure they’re great, but I can’t put a movie on my list that I haven’t seen, no matter how good I’m sure it is.

I don’t like picking a pure number one, since it’s hard to compare movies that are so different, so I’ll just go alphabetically.

“Apocalypse Now” (1979) It’s a little unwieldy and doesn’t always work, but that still makes it a lot more interesting than many other movies.

“The Best Years of Our Lives” (1946) Whenever this movie is on TV, I think, “Oh, I don’t want to watch that.” But then I start watching it and find myself caught up in it. A movie about the difficulties faced by soldiers after war ends, it beautifully portrays the quiet anguish of men who survived the war but lost something of themselves nonetheless. This post-war movie might be my choice for the greatest American war movie.

“The Bridge on the River Kwai” (1957) Okay, if I was going to have a tie for number one, this might be it. I can watch this movie over and over. It’s about pride and obsession and just all around brilliant.

“Casablanca” (1942) A lean, efficient, and truly entertaining a movie that really lives up to its classic billing. Most people would probably categorize this as a romance rather than a war movie, but it is the compromises people make to survive during wartime, and the many ways a person can become a hero.

“Gallipoli” (1981) A movie that wrenchingly shows how the price for the stupidity and stubbornness of leaders is paid by the soldiers who have to follow their orders.

“Henry V” (1989) When you read Shakespeare’s script for this play, it is almost frightening how much it resembles a screenplay; it’s so far ahead of its time. Kenneth Branagh’s adaptation shows the dank, muddy, misery of war, but it’s impossible to stop watching.

“Stairway to Heaven” (1946) Also known as “A Matter of Life and Death.” This is a fantasy made by the fantastic Michael Powell-Emeric Pressberger partnership. It’s about a British fighter pilot who’s shot down and seemingly dies, but it turns out “Heaven” made a mistake and it wasn’t his time yet. He’s just fallen in love and decides to argue with a heavenly court that he should be given a second chance at life. It’s a little melodramatic, very British stiff upper-lippish, a little strange, but always fun and watchable. It features a great cast of actors who you’ll know from other Powell-Pressberger movies.

“The Third Man” (1949) This movie is already famous for what may be the most fantastic entrance of a character ever (if you don’t know what I’m talking about, then you need to see this movie), but it’s also fascinating as a movie that vividly portrays postwar life. It was filmed in bombed out Vienna only a couple of years after the war ended, and many scenes take place with the rubble of still unbuilt and uncleared buildings in the background. It also shows the constant misery of life for people in an occupied territory: people have to be ready to present their papers, and mobility, let alone escape, is a bureaucratic nightmare. Joseph Cotten also gives an often hilarious performance.

“Waterloo Bridge” (1931) The original, not the dreadful 1940 version with Vivien Leigh and Robert Taylor (two actors I really like, but the post-Code changes to the story made it a mess). Again, most people think of this as a romance–it’s about a soldier on leave in London during World War I who meets and falls in love with a prostitute. There are the expected complications (they have about 24 hours together, his family–including a young Bette Davis–disapprove of her), but you get a real feel for life during that war, and the terror that comes with the constant bombing of the city. Sure, parts of it feel very stagebound and stiff, but it has an authenticity about it. The actors are so dreadfully young, and it reminds you once again that so much of war rests on the shoulders of very young.

Well, there you go. There are many others to choose from, and some I’m sorry I haven’t seen yet that people have recommended; “The Great Escape” and “Battleground” are two titles that come to mind. If you have any more recommendations let me know. And of course, I hope you enjoyed your weekend and the kickoff to summer, but remember the real meaning behind this holiday. Thanks people who fought the wars, because god knows I would have messed things up.

If you’re unaware of the phenomenon that is Tony Jaa then I urge you to seek out Ong Bak, the original (and I would say best) movie in the trilogy. At least if you’re partial to kick-ass martial arts delivered at a blistering pace.

Unfortunately, it may be a while until we get to see Jaa in any new films, as Twitch reports he has quit acting to become a monk.

Jaa was reportedly officially ordained as a monk at a Buddhist temple in Surin, Thailand on Friday after riding an elephant to the temple, shaving his head, and taking vows. Which is actually fairly common practice in Thailand, but still a surprise for one of the most popular Asian film stars.

Then again, Jaa is known for doing things not quite by the book. In July 2008, he disappeared for two weeks during the filming of Ong Bak 2, before reappearing on a TV chat show and apologizing for his hiatus.

It’s supposed that Jaa will one day make a return to acting, but when is the key question. It’s suggested that it will be after his 10-year contract with production house Sahamongkol comes to an end. Either way, make the most of his current filmography as it may not be added to for some time.

Life Of Pi is a book by Yann Martel first released in 2001. It tells the allegorical story of a shipwrecked teenager stuck on a raft with an orangutan, a zebra, a hyena, and a Bengal tiger as his only company. And it won many awards, including the Man Booker Prize for Fiction.

There have been many efforts to bring Life of Pi to the big screen with M. Night Shyamalan, Alfonso Cuaron, and Jean-Pierre Jeunet all having attempted to adapt the book into a workable movie screenplay in the last few years. But none have quite managed to pull it off.

Last October saw Ang Lee given a chance. And shooting was set to begin in August of this year. However, according to First Showing, Fox 2000 have decided not to proceed until the budget has been reduced from its current $70 million.

$70 million doesn’t seem excessive considering the difficulty of bringing this particular story – CG animals, all set at sea – to life. But like so many studios, Fox 2000 isn’t taking any chances these days, and doesn’t want to shell out more money than it can guarantee recouping.

I have a feeling Life Of Pi will never make it to the big screen. It’s too delicate a story to be handled in the wrong way, and it needs some money throwing at it in order to have any chance of mainstream success. And I just can’t see that happening in the current climate.