There are movies and TV shows about war, but sometimes they don’t get a chance to capture the human drama that plays out during times of conflict. Miniseries about war create space to explore characters and their stories in greater depth. A miniseries is the perfect amount of time to introduce characters and explore their respective experiences. There are several miniseries set against the backdrop of war that are essential viewing for anyone who wants to better understand the human cost of conflict.
Many miniseries about war are based on true stories and highlight the challenges that real people faced as they fought to survive the violence of war. Other miniseries about war create fictional characters who experience real conflicts, and who provide a different context to these events. The best miniseries about war highlight the fact that war is always destructive, and that anyone who lives through war is never the same.
10’We Were the Lucky Ones' (2024)
Created by Erica Lipez
We Were the Lucky Onesis based on a true storythat was chronicled in authorGeorgia Hunter’s book of the same name. The story introduces the Kurcs, a Polish-Jewish family living in Poland at the outset of World War II. Although they are initially shielded from the worst of the violent antisemitism that ravages the country at the start of the war, they realize that they are not immune to the war’s destruction.
This is an essential miniseries about war because it highlights the toll that war always takes on civilians, particularly those being targeted for violence.We Were the Lucky Onesis a meditation on how the violence of war is never isolated to the battlefield. Instead, ordinary people often find themselves navigating the destruction and trying their best to survive. This series explores the loss that always accompanies war, and the fact that surviving such violence requires immense courage.
We Were the Lucky Ones
9’War & Peace' (2016)
Directed by Tom Harper
War & Peaceis an adaptation ofLeo Tolstoy’s seminal novel of the same name. Like the source material, the series follows a group of youngRussians coming of age during the Napoleonic War, and the fact that their privileged backgrounds make them ill-prepared to confront a changing world. The series highlights how each character processes the fact that their lives can never be the same as the war becomes all-consuming.
What makesWar & Peacesuch an essential miniseries about war is that, like the original novel, it emphasizes the fact that no one emerges from war unscathed. The series highlights the perspective of young people who watch their world completely change seemingly overnight. This brings an authenticity to the story, since those who come of age during war often have some of the most unique perspectives on how conflict upends society.
War & Peace
8’Catch-22' (2019)
Created by Luke Davies and David Michôd
Catch-22is based on the novel of the same name byJoseph Heller. The series introduces John Yossarian (Christopher Abbott), an American bombardier during World War II, who expresses frustration that he’s ordered to fly increasingly dangerous missions while so many people want to kill him. He asks to be discharged under a regulation which considers a request to be relieved of duty on the grounds that he can’t possibly be of sound mind if he continues to fly such life-threatening missions.
This version ofCatch-22is essential viewingbecause it captures the satirical tone of the source material. Rather than asking viewers to make any moral judgments about war in general and those who fight, the series asks viewers to consider how absurd violence can be.Catch-22is more accessible as a series because it allows viewers to get to know these characters, particularly Yossarian, on a deeper level.
7’Birdsong' (2012)
Directed by Philip Martin
Birdsongis based on the novel of the same name bySebastian Faulks. Unlike the novel, however, the series exclusively follows the events of World War I and its immediate aftermath.Eddie Redmaynestars asStephen Wraysford, a British soldier during World War I who has an affair with Isabelle Azaire (Clémence Poésy). He meets her years later, during the war, before he and his battalion fight in the critical Battle of the Somme.
Although this miniseries is only two episodes long, it offers a crucial perspective on the brutality of World War I. It’s a jarring representation of trench warfare, which was responsible for so many deaths during this conflict.Birdsongpresents a character who has to face physical and psychological wounds because of the horrors he survives. Ultimately, this series is a meditation on how war impacts memory and how time rarely heals all wounds.
6’Generation Kill' (2008)
Created by Simon Cellan Jones
Generation Killis based on journalistEvan Wright’s experiences as an embedded reporter with American Marines during the 2003 invasion of Iraq. Like the book, the series is told through Wright’s perspective as he witnesses the chaos of the initial days of the invasion and how ill-prepared American troops were as a whole. The series features a massive ensemble cast that are meant to represent members of the Second Platoon of the First Reconnaissance Battalion’s Bravo Company.
Generation Killis such an essential miniseriesabout war because it provides a unique perspective on modern warfare.Because the series was released so close to the actual events it portrays, it captures how many Americans perceived the invasion of Iraq. Rather than showing American soldiers as heroes who the Iraqi people welcomed with open arms, the series emphasizes the fact that the mission was a chaotic one from the very beginning.
Generation Kill
5’The Pillars of the Earth' (2010)
Directed by Sergio Mimica-Gezzan
The Pillars of the Earthis based on the novel of the samename byKen Follett. The story is set in 12th-century England and chronicles the construction of a grand cathedral in the fictional town of Kingsbridge. The lives of a stonemason, Tom Builder (Rufus Sewell), a visionary monk, Prior Philip (Matthew Macfadyen), and a noblewoman, Lady Aliena (Hayley Atwell), become entwined as a civil war known as The Anarchy sweeps through England.
The Pillars of the Earthis an essential miniseries about war because it highlights how the chaos of war extends far past the frontlines. The series presents a broader view of the impact of war and violence in the context of a small town with people who are clearly just trying to live their lives.The Pillars of the Earthis another example of a miniseries that focuses on the human cost of war rather than on the drama that plays out on battlefields.
The Pillars of the Earth
4’The Sympathizer' (2024)
Created by Park Chan-wook and Don McKellar
The Sympathizeris based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel of the same name byViet Thanh Nguyen. Like the novel, the series follows the Captain (Hoa Xuande), a North Vietnamese spy serving in the South Vietnamese army. At the end of the Vietnam War, the Captain is forced to flee to the United States with other Vietnamese citizens.The Sympathizerchronicles the Captain’s new lifein Southern California as he continues to report back to the Communist Vietnamese government.
The Sympathizeris an essential war miniseries because it provides a long-overdue perspective on the Vietnam War through the eyes of a Vietnamese character. Rather than centering on an American narrative, the series explores how the war impacted the Vietnamese people and how many ordinary Vietnamese people saw it as their duty to support the Communist government.The Sympathizeralso succeeds in bending genres, and is a drama, a satire, and a spy thriller.
The Sympathizer
3’The Vietnam War' (2017)
Directed by Ken Burns and Lynn Novick
The Vietnam Waris a PBS docuseriesbyKen BurnsandLynn Novick. The series is an unflinching look at the realities of the Vietnam War and the root causes that started it. In 10 episodes, Burns and Novick examine the colonial roots of the conflict and the American policies that led to the deployment of thousands of American troops in the country.The Vietnam Waralso examines the lasting legacy that the war has left in the decades since its end.
This series is essential viewing because it stays away from simplistic narratives about the Vietnam War and instead invites viewers to consider how catastrophic this conflict was to anyone who lived through it. The series invites viewers to consider the moral and ethical challenges faced by those who lived through the Vietnam War.The Vietnam Warultimately succeeds in presenting all sides of the conflict and allowing viewers to come to their own conclusions about who was and wasn’t justified in their actions.
The Vietnam War
2’The Pacific' (2010)
Created by Bruce C. McKenna
The Pacificis a companion series toBand of Brothers, and follows the operations of US Marines in the Pacific Theater of World War II. The series specifically focuses on the experiences of three Marines,Robert Leckie(James Badge Dale),Eugene Sledge(Joseph Francis Mazzello), andJohn Basilone(Jon Seda).The Pacificfeatures real battlesthat defined America’s experience on the Pacific Front, including the Guadalcanal campaign and the Battle of Iwo Jima.
What makesThe Pacificsuch an essential miniseries about war is the fact that it’s an unflinching look at the brutality of the Pacific Front, and the courage that it took to survive. The series also looks at how war transforms individuals. For example, Sledge’s transformation from a sweet, religious young man into a hardened fighter is particularly heartbreaking.The Pacificis also a realistic and compassionate look at the struggles many veterans face when returning to civilian life after living through the horrors of war.
The Pacific
1’Band of Brothers' (2001)
Created by Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks
Band of Brothersfollows the soldiers of Easy Company, a unit of the U.S. Army’s 101st Airborne Division, from their training at Camp Toccoa to some of the major battles in Europe during World War II. These soldiers jump into Normandy on D-Day, experience the brutal fighting in Operation Market Garden, and survive the horrors of the siege of Bastogne during the Battle of the Bulge. The series intersperses interviews with veterans of these battles with a fictionalized representation of Easy Company’s experiences.
Band of Brothersstands out as a miniseries about war because of its commitment to historical accuracy. The series is also an important one because it never glorifies war. Rather, it emphasizes the sacrifices that so many made during World War II.Band of Brothersis one of the best miniseries about war because it set the standard for how any future miniseries can use a limited number of episodes to present complex stories about those who live through some of the worst violence people inflict on each other.
