Movies Similar to A Bright Shining Lie

Apocalypse Now(1979)

At the height of the Vietnam war, Captain Benjamin Willard is sent on a dangerous mission that, officially, "does not exist, nor will it ever exist." His goal is to locate - and eliminate - a mysterious Green Beret Colonel named Walter Kurtz, who has been leading his personal army on illegal guerrilla missions into enemy territory.

8.3

Land of Plenty(2004)

After living abroad, Lana returns to the United States, and finds that her uncle is a reclusive vagabond with psychic wounds from the Vietnam War.

6.2

City of Hope(1991)

This gritty inner-city film follows various people living in a troubled New Jersey setting, most notably Nick Rinaldi, a disillusioned contractor who has been helped along his whole life by his wealthy father. Other characters in this ensemble drama about urban conflict and corruption include Asteroid , an unstable homeless person, and Wynn, an idealistic young politician.

6.7

Full Metal Jacket(1987)

A pragmatic U.S. Marine observes the dehumanizing effects the U.S.-Vietnam War has on his fellow recruits from their brutal boot camp training to the bloody street fighting in Hue.

8.1

First Blood(1982)

When former Green Beret John Rambo is harassed by local law enforcement and arrested for vagrancy, he is forced to flee into the mountains and wage an escalating one-man war against his pursuers.

7.5

Rambo: First Blood Part II(1985)

John Rambo is released from prison by the government for a top-secret covert mission to the last place on Earth he'd want to return - the jungles of Vietnam.

6.6

Cobra Mission 2(1988)

A Vietnam vet who specializes in freeing POWs goes behind enemy lines on a rescue mission with a group of mercenaries.

2.0

Forrest Gump(1994)

A man with a low IQ has accomplished great things in his life and been present during significant historic events—in each case, far exceeding what anyone imagined he could do. But despite all he has achieved, his one true love eludes him.

8.5

Brothers in Blood(1987)

War is Hell... especially NAM. A group of battle weary soldiers in Vietnam are trapped behind enemy lines. There is no way back. No help on the way. It's only a matter of time and these guys intend to "Die Fighting". Bo Svenson and Peter Hooten together again (Inglorious Bastards) join the Late, great Werner Porchat (as a part-time drag queen commando) in this explosive Italian commando film.

5.0

Platoon(1986)

As a young and naive recruit in Vietnam, Chris Taylor faces a moral crisis when confronted with the horrors of war and the duality of man.

7.7

Good Morning, Vietnam(1987)

A disk jockey goes to Vietnam to work for the Armed Forces Radio Service. While he becomes popular among the troops, his superiors disapprove of his humor.

7.3

JFK(1991)

Follows the investigation into the assassination of President John F. Kennedy led by New Orleans district attorney Jim Garrison.

7.6

The Assassination of Richard Nixon(2004)

It’s 1974 and Sam Bicke has lost everything. His wife leaves him with his three kids, his boss fires him, his brother turns away from him, and the bank won’t give him any money to start anew. He tries to find someone to blame for his misfortunes and comes up with the President of the United States who he plans to murder.

6.5

Missing in Action 2: The Beginning(1985)

Prequel to the first Missing In Action, set in the early 1980s it shows the capture of Colonel Braddock during the Vietnam war in the 1970s, and his captivity with other American POWs in a brutal prison camp, and his plans to escape.

5.7

Firefight(1983)

A squad of Marines on a hilltop in Vietnam calls for a Medevac after a sniper wounds one of them. Before the Medevac helicopter can come down for a landing, the Marines are attacked by a large force of Vietcong. After a brutal battle, resulting in more wounded Marines, they're able to repel the attack, but then the helicopter is hesitant to land.

0.0

Birdy(1984)

Two young men are seriously affected by the Vietnam War. One of them has always been obsessed with birds - but now believes he really is a bird, and has been sent to a mental hospital. Can his friend help him pull through?

7.1

We Were Soldiers(2002)

The story of the first major battle of the American phase of the Vietnam War and the soldiers on both sides that fought it.

7.1

Casualties of War(1989)

During the Vietnam War, a soldier finds himself the outsider of his own squad when they unnecessarily kidnap a female villager.

7.2

Air America(1990)

Air America was the CIA's private airline operating in Laos during the Vietnam War, running anything and everything from soldiers to foodstuffs for local villagers. After losing his pilot's license, Billy Covington is recruited, and ends up in the middle of a bunch of lunatic pilots, gun-running by his friend Gene Ryack, and opium smuggling by his own superiors.

5.8

Rescue Dawn(2007)

A US Fighter pilot's epic struggle of survival after being shot down on a mission over Laos during the Vietnam War.

7.0