I dont know why I havent done this yet! So I have a thread of good movies to steal for heist games and there's a thread for good Spaghetti Westerns to steal for EotE - but nothing for Cool War Movies to steal for Age of Rebellion! Time to rectify that!

Are you stuck for ideas to throw your Rebel Agents into against the Evil Galactic Empire? Well, how about some good war movies, the breakdown if the movie is any good and how much a GM can shamelessly steal from it for a game. So go rent some flicks and have at it!

The Movie:

The Inglorious Bastards (The 1978 version, not the Tarantino version) starring Fred The Hammer Williamson

The Elevator Pitch:

In 1942, A squad of soldiers are sentenced to death for their assorted crimes and are shipped to a prisoners' camp During the journey, the prison convoy is attacked by a German air raid. The five criminals take advantage of the attack and escape. The commanding officer prison takes charge of the group and decides to find a way to neutral Switzerland.

How is it:

Really good. Enzo G. Castellari is one of my favorite italian exploitation directors and he really shines here.

Game suitability: 50%

Once you get past the set up - convicts behind enemy lines - it's a pretty smooth ride. Steal the MacGuffin, evade the enemy, get out alive. Not a bad story to steal.

The Movie:

The Guns of Navarone (1962) starring Gegory Peck

The Elevator Pitch:

A specialized commando team is organized in 1943 to sabotage and put out of commission the massive Axis gun emplacements on the mountainous Greek island of Navarone in the Aegean Sea before the Nazis can sink an allied convoy.

How is it:

A classic war flick! Top notch stars! Well worth your time to seek out.

Game suitability: 100%

If it's good enough for Battlestar Galactica to steal, it's good enough for you

The Movie:

Where Eagles Dare starring Richard Burton and Clint Eastwood

The Elevator Pitch:

Brigadier General Carnaby is captured by the Germans and taken for interrogation to the Schloss Adler, a fortress high in the Alps of southern Bavaria. A team of commandos is assembled. Their mission? Parachute in, infiltrate the castle, and rescue General Carnaby before the Germans can interrogate him.

How is it:

Considered to be a classic of the genre. Some top notch stars, great action, and a hell of a script.

Game suitability: 75%

The ending gets a little dicey with the crosses and double crosses, tough to pull off at a RPG table, but the basic premise is strong enough for a game idea.

The Movie:

Eagles Over London (1969) by Enzo G. Castellari

The Elevator Pitch:

During the Dunkirk evacuation in 1940, a team of German saboteurs assume the identities of dead British soldiers and are transported to England. Their mission? Cripple British air defenses by destroying key radar stations while a team of British soldiers is tracks them down - all in the shadow of the Battle of Britain

How is it:

It's Enzo Castellari, so you know it's going to be epic and totally gonzo. Castellari is also pretty clever in the use of his stock footage, making the inferior film stock work for his movie.

Game suitability: 25%

The tracking down German Spies may not work as well for a game, but the opening reel, the evacuation of Dunkurk, will easily work as a jumping off point to another story arc.

All my favorite WW2 films so far! What's your take on The Eagle Has Landed, and of course, The Dirty Dozen?

I think there was a guest on the Order 66 Podcast that I didn't listen to, where she pointed out the use of World War II documentaries as fodder for AoR campaigns. She specifically recommended looking into the Night Witches as good source material. Not sure if they ever got a movie, though.

Great idea, Desslok! I'll have to add a few when I get home from work.

• Kelly's Heroes . Heist during the war. Good ensemble cast.

For an ongoing series there was the Rat Patrol . An ongoing series about a commando unit taking it to the Nazis in North Africa.

Hmm.. this was harder than I first thought It would be. I find movies that focus on small commando units or resistance fighters to be the best suit for Rebellion insperation, but cant really think of any at the moment that I can recomend.
When it comes to war movies my collection at home is a bit thin and youve already mentioned Where Eagles Dare which is one of the best ones to check out.
Only two that come to mind are U571 which isnt a good movie, but could be a good fit and Memphis Belle which is a great movie, but maybe not the best fit.

Got an idea or two about non-war movies that can be insperational and a tv show or two, but that seems a bit off topic.

Black Sheep Squadron has been suggested to me for 'starfighter group' inspiration (a TV show, not a movie)

What's your take on The Eagle Has Landed, and of course, The Dirty Dozen?

I haven't seen the Dirty Dozen in years and years, so I cant comment on its game suitability, but I seem to recall loving it at the time. As for The Eagle Has Landed, I shouldn't be shocked that of all the hundreds of war flicks there are some that slipped past - but I've not seen it!

Looks like I'll have some renting to do next 2-for-1 Wednesday at the video store!

I think there was a guest on the Order 66 Podcast that I didn't listen to, where she pointed out the use of World War II documentaries as fodder for AoR campaigns. She specifically recommended looking into the Night Witches as good source material. Not sure if they ever got a movie, though.

Great idea, Desslok! I'll have to add a few when I get home from work.

And i'm about 70% done with a module for GamernationCon 2015 titled "The Guns of Nova Rain". So this makes for a very timely post for me.

Black Book: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0389557/

About the resistance in occupied Holland towards the end of the war. A young Jewish woman (Carice van Houten of GoT fame) infiltrates the local Nazi command by seducing a German officer. Also focuses heavily on intrigue within the ranks of the resistance. And it's a great film!

The Keep ( book / film ) would make an interesting adventure mixing aspects from all three lines. A discovery by the Empire of an ancient fortress containing a Sith Force ghost and the group of fringe/rebel/force characters sent to investigate. There was even an adventure made for use with D&D and other games from way back.

God, I havent thought about the Keep in forever. I read it back in highschool - the book was great, the film . . .. well, consdierably less so. Mind you this is going off 30 year old memories now, so who knows if I was right or not.

Still the SS vs Vampires - not a bad combo!

The Movie:

The Dam Busters (1955)

The Elevator Pitch:

In the early years of the Second World War, the allies are struggling to develop a means of attacking Germany's dams in the hope of crippling German heavy industry. They work out a daring plan to develop a bouncing bomb which would skip over the water to avoid protective torpedo nets and strike the dam, blowing it up.

How is it:

Mostly it's a novelty to see how the scenes match up with the Trench Run from New Hope

Game suitability: 10%

The R&D parts of the movie, designing and testing the bomb, would make a dull game. The climax of delivering the bomb to the target - the players would instantly identify it as the Battle of Yavin. However, as an exercise in stripping off the serial numbers and retooling other war movies, it works as a template of how it's done.

Saving Private Ryan would work: The House of Nayr is a powerful noble family that is one of the major financial contributors to the Rebellion. The sons of the family's patriarch also actively serve the Alliance. But disaster strikes and all but one of the Nayr sons are killed in combat. And nobody knows exactly where the remaining one is serving. He needs to be tracked down and brought back safely to his family. Or the House of Nayr will cease supporting the Rebels, something they can't afford to lose.

What's your take on The Eagle Has Landed, and of course, The Dirty Dozen?

I haven't seen the Dirty Dozen in years and years, so I cant comment on its game suitability, but I seem to recall loving it at the time. As for The Eagle Has Landed, I shouldn't be shocked that of all the hundreds of war flicks there are some that slipped past - but I've not seen it!

Looks like I'll have some renting to do next 2-for-1 Wednesday at the video store!

Stop on by this weekend. We'll have a marathon!

The Hunt for Red October and Apocalypse Now.

As much as I love the Hunt for Red October I don't think it would work well as a Star Wars story. At least not in the OT era. What's the Empire going to do call up Mon Mothma and tell her a new Imperial supership has gone rogue and will attack the Alliance? Or maybe Leia will call up some grand moff and warn them that an Alliance prototype has gone renegade and is about to attack the Empire.

It would work much better in the Clone Wars era and might work in the sequel era though.

As much as I love the Hunt for Red October I don't think it would work well as a Star Wars story. At least not in the OT era. What's the Empire going to do call up Mon Mothma and tell her a new Imperial supership has gone rogue and will attack the Alliance? Or maybe Leia will call up some grand moff and warn them that an Alliance prototype has gone renegade and is about to attack the Empire.

It would work much better in the Clone Wars era and might work in the sequel era though.

Something like this would work better with the captain of some prototype ship trying to escape with it and give it to the Rebels. It then becomes a race to see who can get the ship first.

Well, the Rebels could have a contact in the Empire, a spy who finds out that the Super Duper Prototype Cap Ship is trying to defect and the Empire is trying to stop them. It's easy enough to tip off the Rebels that shenanigans are afoot.

Starship troopers!

NUKE EM',LUKE!

HAN, YOU ARE RELIEVED OF SQUAD COMMAND!

**** TROOPERS WHACKED US, CHEWIE!

ANY GOOD TROOPER IS A DEAD TROOPER!

You could incorporate most of Tom Clancey's stories without much hassle. It would not have to be Empire vs Rebel Alliance. It can be Empire vs A Planetary/ Sector Government. Example: Empire vs Corellian Sector. With the Rebel Alliance just being a 3rd Party in that conflict.