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15+ Patriotic Movies Worth Watching

Memorial Day is a great time to reflect on America and your patriotism. Check out this great list of 15+ Patriotic Movies worth watching to use your long weekend right.

For more tips, check out all our posts about Memorial Day Weekend.

A Sgt. Stubby DVD in front of other DVD's with the words "Patriotic Movies Worth Watching" digitally written on top.

It’s Memorial Day Weekend, which is more than a three-day weekend. It’s not an excuse to eat hamburgers and drink beer. Instead, you really should be thinking about the country, the men and women who have given up their lives for us to be free.

The weekend is about those brave souls, not about mattress sales.

At least, it should be.

My favorite Ronald Reagan quote, part of a speech he gave at Arlington National Cemetery on Veterans Day 1985, summarizes that “holiday” perfectly (although it does focus on “men” and “boys” instead of incorporating the female soldiers as well, but the sentiment is still there). So of course, it bears repeating:

“It is, in a way, an odd thing to honor those who died in defense of our country, in defense of us, in wars far away. The imagination plays a trick. We see these soldiers in our mind as old and wise. We see them as something like the Founding Fathers, grave and gray haired. But most of them were boys when they died, and they gave up two lives — the one they were living and the one they would have lived. When they died, they gave up their chance to be husbands and fathers and grandfathers. They gave up their chance to be revered old men. They gave up everything for our country, for us. And all we can do is remember.”

If you want, you can read his entire remarks on the VA website.

If you are thinking more of the red, white, and blue of the flag rather than red, white, and blue shots, you are probably thinking of patriotic movies.

At least, I am.

So, now is a great time to check out a few movies off our patriotic movies list. I put together over 15 great ones to watch. You can watch these patriotic movies on Amazon Prime and links to streaming is below.

15+ Patriotic Movies To Watch

Affiliate links are included in this post and Drugstore Divas may make a small commission if you use them.

Flags of Our Fathers (Widescreen Edition).

Flags Of Our Fathers

Flags Of Our Fathers tells the story of the six men who raise the flag at The Battle Of Iwo Jima.

A screen grab from the movie Mr Smith Goes To Washington.

Mr. Smith Goes To Washington

Mr. Smith Goes To Washington is a 1939 film, staring James Stewart, about a senator who stands up to corrupt politicians.

Born on the Fourth of July [Blu-ray].

Born On The Fourth Of July

Tom Cruise stars in Born On The Fourth Of July as a Vietnam Veteran who returns home from war as a quadriplegic.

Yankee Doodle Dandy (Two-Disc Special Edition).

Yankee Doodle Dandy

Yankee Doodle Dandy, a musical staring James Cagney, tells the story of entertainer George M. Cohan, the first entertainer awarded the United States Congressional Medal of Honor. He was awarded this for composing “You’re a Grand Old Flag” during wartime.

Independence Day movie cover.

Independence Day

Extraterrestrials come to Earth, which is protected by few survivors (protected by one of the best punches to the face I’ve seen: “Welcome to Earth”.). Independence Day doesn’t seem like a patriotic movie beyond the title, but you’ll understand when you watch it.

Lincoln DVD.

Lincoln

Daniel Day Lewis stars in Lincoln, the award-winning movie based on the life of Abraham Lincoln.

Glory movie cover.

Glory

Glory is about the first black fighting unit in America’s Civil War.

The Patriot (Extended Cut).

The Patriot

The Patriot is about a South Carolina farmer, played by Mel Gibson, who is needed to fight the British during the American Revolution.

Gettysburg DVD.

Gettysburg

Gettysburg, which was filmed on the actual battlefield, tells the story about the Battle of Gettysburg.

John Adams movie cover.

John Adams

The seven-part mini series John Adams shows the second president’s pivotal roll in the American Revolution and in the foundation of the United States.

Air Force One [Blu-ray].

Air Force One

In Air Force One, the president’s plane is hijacked by terrorists (side note: This movie came out years before the September 11th attacks).

Letters From Iwo Jima - Blu-ray.

Letters From Iwo Jima

Letters From Iwo Jima tells the story of the battle of Iwo Jima, but from the Japanese side and soldiers’ perspective.

Saving Private Ryan (Single-Disc Special Limited Edition).

Saving Private Ryan

Saving Private Ryan embodies the saying “no man left behind.” It has been called the greatest war movie of all time, but keep in mind that part of the praise is because of its realistic portrayal of war.

Patton movie cover.

Patton

Patton is a biography of the controversial World War II hero General George S. Patton.

The Muppet Studio presents Stars And Stripes movie cover.

The Muppet Studio presents Stars And Stripes

Stars And Stripes is a short, featuring the Muppets, that teach young kids about the flag.

Men of Honor (2000).

Men Of Honor

This is the true story of the Navy’s first African-American master diver.

More Patriotic Movies on Amazon Prime

Of course, these aren’t all the patriotic movies out there. I mean, Stg. Stubby: An American Hero, is in our main photo but not even in this list.

Luckily, you can check out a list of Patriotic Movies on Amazon Prime so you can choose your favorite to stream. Some are included with Prime and some require and additional fee, so be sure to keep that in mind as you search.

A man holding an American flag with the words "How To Celebrate Memorial Day At Home" digitally written on top.

Tips For Memorial Day At Home

If you’re going to watch one of these movies, there’s a good chance that you’re staying in for July 4th. Which is basically the way we’re spending every holiday in 2020.

So, we have a couple tips to help you celebrate Memorial Day at home.

Red, white and blue chocolate stars.

Make Patriotic Movie Snacks

If you’re planning on staying in, your menu can still be cute and filled with red, white, and blue foods. A couple of our favorites:

Set Up Patriotic Decor

You can still decorate for the holiday. I put out our patriotic kitchen towels, even though the only people who will see them are me and Pete.

Set up banners, tablecloths, flags, and more. And, if you do make a patriotic wreath for your front door, at least the people who drive by will be able to check it out.

Three toilet paper rolls painted patriotically and wrapped in twine.

Make Patriotic Crafts

If you’re staying home this weekend, that gives you time to make some really cute patriotic crafts. Some of our favorites are:

Three bags of Old Salt coffee.

Support Military and Veteran Owned Businesses

Memorial Day means something so different for veterans, something we’ll never understand. We can, of course, support them with our “thoughts and prayers” as we do. But, we can also support them with our wallets by shopping.

And if your wallet can’t support them (which we totally understand and respect), you can support them with social media shares, likes, and comments.

And, if your wallet can support them, check out our list of Top Military And Veteran Owned Businesses To Support.

What Patriotic Movies are your favorite? Comment below and let us know.

David Elliott

Thursday 30th of May 2019

These are all classic war movies. If I were to pick one, Glory would be my all-time favorite. Having both Denzel and Morgan Freeman is pretty awesome in it's own right. And it's such a powerful story.

Lyosha

Wednesday 29th of May 2019

Nice list of movies! Movies are a lot of fun even if its educational. Great list overall

Ivan Jose

Wednesday 29th of May 2019

Happy Memorial Day! I am only familiar with Saving Private Ryan, Air Force One, and Men of Honor. This is an interesting list though so I might just do a research on the other movies.

Karen Monica

Wednesday 29th of May 2019

Sucha great list of movies. There are quite a few that I haven't had a chance to watch yet. Will add it to my movie watching list for next month.

Tiffany Meiter

Tuesday 28th of May 2019

I actually haven't seen that many of these. I looooved The Patriot and of course Independence Day. I will have to check out some of the other ones.