With nearly every line of its script engraved on the collective unconscious, and its central performances from Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman defining iconic cool, Casablanca is an exultant classic. With its romantic story, the songs performed by Dooley Wilson, a fantastic script and, of course, the incredibly poignant climactic sequence at the airport, Casablanca has rightly become one of the most popular - if not the most popular - films of all time.

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A monumentally reverential treatment of the famous period of conflict which turned the tide of the Second World War. A horde of British thespians, including Michael Caine, Trevor Howard, Laurence Olivier and Ralph Richardson, plus numerous vintage aircraft, recreate the key event from the war to dramatic effect. Stirring stuff.

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Jude Law, Joseph Fiennes and Rachel Weisz star as three slightly improbable young Soviet soldiers in Jean-Jacques Annaud's spectacular drama-romance set during the Nazi siege of Stalingrad in 1942-3. The film's focus is a love triangle between Soviet political officer Danilov (Fiennes), sharp shooting farmboy Vassili (Law) and educated soldier Tania (Weisz). Through his propaganda activities, Danilov makes Vassilli a morale-boosting mythic hero. This draws Nazi attention, and expert marksman major Konig (Harris) is sent in. A duel amid the city's rubble ensues.

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With its 12 angry men, relentless pace and explosive violence The Dirty Dozen is a glorious, gung-ho, authority-baiting action epic. Robert Aldrich's direction repeatedly goes for the balls but he's also alert to the ironies and hypocrisy of military politics. Big, brutal and expertly executed, the result is a quintessential, made-for-men war flick.

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Fondly remembered as a Sunday TV fixture, this Second World War yarn about the crew of an army ambulance stuck in the desert achieves classic status through its powerfully straightforward storytelling and a quality supporting cast. John Mills is dying for a beer and allows a mysterious passenger (Anthony Quayle) onboard their lost vehicle simply because he's carrying a case of gin. The combination of an increasingly irrational Mills, the chance to Quayle might be a spy and the presence of the German army all around them makes for a tense war classic.

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