Memorial Day Movie Marathon
One of the most important aspects of being an American is remembering what we have gone through as a nation. It’s a truly amazing story filled with highs and lows, wars and peacetime advancements, trips to the moon and federal overreach and free abortions for everyone. Recently, there are have been far more lows than highs, but we only have to look into our short history to see that we haven’t always been a country at odds with itself and it’s typically on days like Memorial Day that we can all rally around the same flag and unify ourselves behind the veterans that have made it possible for 98% of our population to have escaped the sacrifices needed in order for us to live in a free society.
Memorial Day isn’t just about parking your fat body behind a grill or finally having the community pools open up so you can dip your fatness into chemical laden water and watch kids dive into the spot where you just peed. Memorial Day in America is about remembering and honoring those men and women who paid the ultimate price in order for us all to drape ourselves in red, white, & blue, eat 6 hotdogs, and drink enough beer to drown an endangered animal. As you stumble into your homes late in the afternoon, sunburned and tired, why not park your smelly ass in front of the air conditioner and watch one of these movies that will make you feel patriotic down to your core. These are my go-to Memorial Day movies.
Band of Brothers
Wow. I can barely get through two episodes of Band of Brothers without calling up my local Army recruiter and signing up for another four years. The series adapts American historian Stephen Ambrose’s work so well that you’ll get a deeper appreciation for what it means to be an American soldier during World War 2.
American Sniper
Watch Bradley Cooper go through some serious shit while his wife listens to it on a satellite phone. Did that really happen? Who knows? But it’s an incredibly moving story about the effects of warfare on those involved with it and those who are at home waiting for the soldiers to return.
First Blood
Maybe the greatest action character played by possibly the greatest action star to ever live. No big deal. John Rambo returns to the States, a place that no longer feels familiar to him after spending time as a prisoner of war in Vietnam. First Blood is an action film which will sneakily tell you all about the lingering effects of warfare on a man.
Uncommon Valor
The father of a P.O.W. in Vietnam gathers former comrades of his son to return and attempt to rescue any prisoners who were left in the camps. Gene Hackman and Fred Ward lead an incredible cast in what is the most moving and entertaining films I’ve ever seen on the subject.