Les Carabiniers

At his funniest and most brutal, Godard’s first war film is also the true anti-war film that avoids portraying violence as something exciting or sexy. Consciously making it ugly and alienating, Godard portrays two naive and ignorant peasants joining the King’s army with promises of riches, as they leave their wives and embark on a war. All they did was sending postcards home detailing their conquests, which turns out ironic upon their return. An under-appreciated work that uses humour to show the absurdity and futility of war and effectively deconstructs the war film genre.