Film

The General

Name: The General
Genre: Drama, History, War, Action
Released: 2019
Cast: Goran Višnjić, Mustafa Nadarević, Tarik Filipović, Goran Navojec, Boris Svrtan

Other titles called The General: the 1926 film.

Action

A Croatian war drama following Ante Gotovina, a Foreign Legion veteran who becomes a pivotal military figure during the 1990s War of Independence. Gritty, character-driven, and steeped in the moral complexities of a nation fighting for survival. For viewers seeking unflinching accounts of lesser-known conflicts and the men shaped by them.

Should you watch it?

Watch it if you want a war film built around a commander's ambition and the politics surrounding a real military campaign, and you're happy with a big, sweeping canvas rather than intimate trench-level detail.

Skip it if you want a lean, fast action picture, since at nearly two and a half hours its political scenes may feel slow beside the battles.

What it asks of you: Roughly two and a half hours of measured pacing, with strategy talk and slow buildups before the fighting, and a grave mood that rarely lightens.

Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.

If you liked this

Come and See1985

A devastating Soviet masterpiece about a boy conscripted into WWII. Unflinching, visceral, and morally uncompromising—it refuses to sentimentalize war or those who wage it. Essential viewing.

But Brutally difficult to watch. The violence is not stylized, and the film's despair can feel almost unbearable for two hours.

Coriolanus2011

Ralph Fiennes directs and stars in Shakespeare's tragedy of a brilliant warrior undone by pride and political machination. Modern-set, kinetic, and deeply intelligent about power, loyalty, and the gap between soldiers and politicians.

But Shakespeare dialogue might feel distant. Some find the militaristic staging excessive, and the ending offers no comfort.

Under Fire1983

Nick Nolte as a war photographer in Nicaragua during the Sandinista conflict. Thoughtful, tense, and genuinely interested in how ordinary people navigate extraordinary circumstances. A film about witness and complicity.

But Dated in some technical respects. The pacing is deliberate rather than propulsive, which some find slow.

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from The General

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

The Death of Stalin2017

Both examine how men of action navigate political systems larger than themselves—how military skill or cunning becomes currency in halls of power, and how that transaction corrupts or defines them.

Armando Iannucci's black-and-white satirical comedy about the Soviet power vacuum following Stalin's death. Brilliantly written, genuinely hilarious, and structurally tight. It finds dark comedy in institutional brutality and historical inevitability without diminishing either.

But Satire this sharp will infuriate those invested in the historical moment. The comedy undercuts gravity in ways that feel flippant to some. Shot in black and white, which modern audiences sometimes resist.

The Hurt Locker2008

Katheryn Bigelow's Oscar-winning study of an EOD technician in Iraq. Claustrophobic, expertly constructed tension, and a rare film that understands military devotion without endorsing everything the military does.

But Occasionally criticized for its geopolitical framework. The action-thriller elements might overshadow the character work for some viewers.

Four Lions2010

Chris Morris's darkly comic film about bungling British jihadists. Audacious, painfully funny, and morally sophisticated—it finds humanity in people without excusing them. Fearless filmmaking.

But The tonal whiplash will alienate many. Joking about extremism, even this intelligently, remains controversial and upsetting to some.

In the Name of the Father1993

Daniel Day-Lewis in Jim Sheridan's account of the Guildford Four miscarriage of justice. Powerful, angry, and structurally brilliant—it dramatizes both personal betrayal and systemic corruption with equal force.

But Heavy-handed at moments. The trial sequences can feel like procedural by-the-numbers compared to the human core.

The Square2017

Ruben Östlund's Palme d'Or winner about Swedish institutional hypocrisy during the Arab Spring. Scathing, brilliant, and increasingly absurd—a film that trusts satire over sentiment to expose uncomfortable truths.

But Deliberately uncomfortable and occasionally nasty. Some sequences are designed to alienate, and the three-hour runtime tests patience.

Dunkirk2017

Nolan's propulsive account of the 1940 evacuation. Technically masterful, visually stunning, and structured like a thriller rather than a history lesson. Genuinely captures chaos and fear.

But Characterization is thin—people are almost abstracted into function. Some find the sound mixing muddles dialogue, and the emotional distance can feel cold.

A Prayer Before Dawn2018

Joe Cole in an aggressive, visceral true story of an American boxer imprisoned in Thailand and fighting his way out. Raw, unglamorous, and absolutely committed to its protagonist's spiral and redemption.

But Extremely violent in a way that feels punitive rather than cinematic. The repetitive fight sequences exhaust rather than exhilarate some viewers.

Nueba Yol: Por fin llegó Balbuena1995

Both are about men displaced from home, trying to impose order and identity in chaos. Gotovina chooses his war; this protagonist has war chosen for him. Different registers, same essential loneliness.

A Cuban film about an immigrant in New York, shot with documentary realism and emotional precision. It's a completely different conflict and geography, but it captures the disorientation of finding yourself on foreign soil fighting for survival with extraordinary empathy and specificity.

But Subtitled. Slow-paced by modern standards. Not a war film at all—some will find the comparison tenuous, others will feel impatient with its quietness.

Nueba Yol: Por fin llegó Balbuena poster

Paths of Glory1957

Both examine the machinery of military hierarchy and how it transforms individuals into instruments. Paths of Glory shows the rot from the top down; The General shows how it radiates from a charismatic center outward.

Kubrick's 1957 masterpiece about a WWI general ordering a suicidal attack then presiding over the cover-up. Formally perfect, caustic, and devastatingly clear-eyed about how institutions sacrifice individuals for abstraction. A film that has aged into prophecy.

But Black and white, from 1957. Some find Kubrick's formalism emotionally distant. The court-martial finale can feel didactic rather than dramatically earned.