The DU Lounge

Aristus

(72,006 posts)

94. Kevin Reynolds' "The Beast Of War" from 1988.

Sun Mar 1, 2026, 03:55 PM

12 hrs ago

It’s about the crew of a Soviet tank in Afghanistan in 1981. It’s widely considered by tankers and tank enthusiasts to be the best tank movie of all time.

Outside of those circles, though, it’s barely known. For some reason, the studio buried the film on release, opening it in a tiny number of theaters for a short time before sending it to video.

Edit history

Please sign in to view edit histories.

Recommendations

0 members have recommended this reply (displayed in chronological order):

107 replies

= new reply since forum marked as read

Highlight:

Know any great but little-known movies? [View all] red dog 1 Feb 19 OP

"Local Hero"... wcmagumba Feb 19 #1

I love that one greatauntoftriplets Feb 19 #7

First title to pop into my head. FalloutShelter Feb 20 #52

The gods must be crazy. Woodwizard Feb 19 #2

THAT one, I did see. some_of_us_are_sane Feb 19 #4

Those look GREAT! some_of_us_are_sane Feb 19 #3

Prospect is my sleeper rec crud Feb 19 #5

Thanks. Never saw it some_of_us_are_sane Feb 19 #10

Cradle Will Rock SleeplessinSoCal Feb 19 #6

Hearts and Souls LogDog75 Feb 19 #8

++1. Moreover, a fine ensemble interaction. Tetrachloride Feb 22 #76

The Secret of Roan Inish. greatauntoftriplets Feb 19 #9

YES! Bayard Feb 20 #36

A brilliant and haunting John Sayles movie nuxvomica Feb 20 #65

Black Robe bluedigger Feb 19 #11

This was an excellent film JoseBalow Feb 19 #16

Excellent film! markodochartaigh Feb 20 #37

Indeed! ZZenith Feb 20 #43

Melody (1971) Wiz Imp Feb 19 #12

This one? BootinUp Feb 19 #13

Peanut Butter Falcon Coolgoober Feb 19 #14

love that movie Skittles Feb 19 #15

Andrei Rublev (1966) JoseBalow Feb 19 #17

Nothing But a Man 68er Feb 19 #18

Welcome to DU! red dog 1 Feb 21 #68

Thank you, Red Dog! 68er Feb 22 #84

Or this one? BootinUp Feb 19 #19

"Happy Accidents" skypilot Feb 19 #20

I don't know if it's great, but My Favorite Year chowmama Feb 19 #21

that is definitely a little jewel of a comedy. I loved it nt yellowdogintexas Feb 20 #26

Go tell the Spartans question everything Feb 19 #22

agreed, I had it lower in the thread -- JT45242 Feb 20 #54

One of my FAVORITES.... from 1949 some_of_us_are_sane Feb 19 #23

I'll second that one. Jeebo Feb 20 #33

"The Conversation" with Gene Hackman directed by Francis Ford Coppola mucifer Feb 19 #24

that is a great and very tense movie nt yellowdogintexas Feb 20 #28

LA SORCIRE (1956) -- THE BLONDE WITCH Marina Vlady's Dark Spell French Film Noir question everything Feb 20 #25

The Magie of Belle Isle yellowdogintexas Feb 20 #27

Beautiful movie. niyad Feb 20 #41

A Man Called Ove (original Swedish version, NOT the American A Man Called Otto) chia Feb 20 #29

I love the Swedish version so much! HeartsCanHope Feb 20 #47

Yes, Lassgrd was perfect, and unforgettable. chia Feb 20 #59

I'm not sure this one is exactly little known - Starman... 3catwoman3 Feb 20 #30

Bottle Shock... Enter stage left Feb 20 #31

One of my favourites. niyad Feb 20 #40

Mel Brooks named Bottle Shock as one of his favorite movies, too. blm Feb 22 #82

I saw that a few years ago. Aristus 12 hrs ago #95

A similar tale, from Oregon's Pinot Noir region NeoTrajan 11 hrs ago #103

Hammett. boonecreek Feb 20 #32

The Wall Jeebo Feb 20 #34

Until the End of the World. fierywoman Feb 20 #35

Two with Johnny Depp Bayard Feb 20 #38

Another one from Johnny Depp: "Cry Baby". When John Waters went mainstream. Wiz Imp Feb 20 #49

Never heard of that one Bayard Feb 21 #70

My daughter's favorite movie as a kid. Rachel Sweet sings the female lead. blm Feb 22 #81

James Intveld does the singing for Johnny Depp. Wiz Imp Feb 22 #87

Cry-Baby is an awesome movie! Mad_Dem_X 12 hrs ago #93

Agreed on all of those. MuseRider 11 hrs ago #101

"A Woman Rebels" and "Grace Quigley", both with Katharine Hepburn. niyad Feb 20 #39

The Lobster 2015 jgo Feb 20 #42

Bizarre, soul-crushing little film. Aristus 12 hrs ago #96

Big Night deserved way more accolades than it got. ZZenith Feb 20 #44

The final five minutes or so rank high in the best silent acting ever. Aristus 12 hrs ago #97

Agreed. ZZenith 11 hrs ago #100

A Room with a View. CTyankee Feb 20 #45

"The World's Fastest Indian" starring Anthony Hopkins... GReedDiamond Feb 20 #46

'La Pacte des Loups' OldBaldy1701E Feb 20 #48

Lonely are the Brave VGNonly Feb 20 #50

The Adventures of Baron Munchausen; The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Ferrets are Cool Feb 20 #51

Two classic foreign films: Das Boot and Au Revoir Les Enfants JT45242 Feb 20 #53

I loved Jo Jo Rabbit genxlib Feb 20 #55

"Meantime" film by Mike Leigh. Onthefly Feb 20 #56

"The Commitments" bringing soul music to Dublin Ritabert Feb 20 #57

Great movie! red dog 1 Feb 22 #73

Good to know. Ritabert Feb 22 #74

"Romeo is Bleeding" w/Gary Oldman & Lena Olin. CrispyQ Feb 20 #58

I LOVE this movie. skypilot Feb 20 #66

7 Up. Documentary crew visits people every seven years and document their lives. Midnight Writer Feb 20 #60

One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest Emile Feb 20 #61

Little Known? red dog 1 Feb 21 #69

Aronofsky's Pi markodochartaigh Feb 20 #62

I loved Pi. Darren Aronofsky was finally able to get the rights back TexasBushwhacker Feb 21 #72

Dave Made a Maze (2017) nuxvomica Feb 20 #63

The other night I came across a movie called 25th Hour milestogo Feb 20 #64

Closely Watched Trains (1966) JoseBalow Feb 20 #67

Matewan 1987 VGNonly Feb 21 #71

The Arrival. An alien invasion flick starring Charlie Sheen. I found it very entertaining. Borogove Feb 22 #75

Mucize (Turkish) The Miracle. (2015) Tetrachloride Feb 22 #77

Never Cry Wolf Tetrachloride Feb 22 #78

Trollhunter Tetrachloride Feb 22 #79

Breaking Away UpInArms Feb 22 #80

Sordid Lives. nt Trueblue Texan Feb 22 #83

I love that film LearnedHand 19 hrs ago #91

Some Girls (1988)... LuvLoogie Feb 22 #85

Some Girls. Aristus 12 hrs ago #98

That hair. That face. Her aloofness. LuvLoogie 11 hrs ago #99

So many great one here and some I'm adding to my must see list EverHopeful Feb 22 #86

A Boy And His Dog Movie came out in 1975 Bluestocking Feb 22 #88

Rare Exports (2010): Finland Morbius Feb 22 #89

Several that I like -misanthroptimist Saturday #90

Start the Revolution Without Me LogDog75 13 hrs ago #92

Kevin Reynolds' "The Beast Of War" from 1988. Aristus 12 hrs ago #94

Avenue Montaigne Lulu KC 11 hrs ago #102

The Death of Stalin The Blue Flower 11 hrs ago #104

My parents took me to see "Robin And Marian. I was seven. Aristus 7 hrs ago #107

The Quiet Girl KT2000 10 hrs ago #105

Man from Earth Dear_Prudence 9 hrs ago #106