10 Incredible War Movies About Doomed Missions
2. Warfare
Announcing himself as one of the genre's most exciting new directors with 2024's Civil War, Alex Garland decidedly did not remove his foot from the gas for 2025's Warfare. Based on former Navy SEAL Ray Mendoza's recollections of a real-life disastrous encounter with insurgents following the Battle of Ramadi during the American-led occupation of Iraq, the film follows a supposedly routine overwatch mission that swiftly morphs into unabated chaos.
Clocking in with a superb Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer Score of 93%, critics were effusive in their praise of this heart-pounding A24 war entry. From the exceptional performances of the cast to the raw intensity of the film's action sequences, Garland and Mendoza's work captivates, thrills and horrifies in equal measure.
While Alpha One and Alpha Two eventually make it to safety under heavy insurgent fire, one would be hard pressed to call their original reconnaissance mission anything but a spectacular failure. Multiple American soldiers suffered horrific, life-changing injuries during the attack, to say nothing of an unfortunate Iraqi translator who found himself blown to kingdom come by an IED explosion.