
I felt inspired to make this list in light of my country’s current political predicament. It’s like the patients running the asylum and there's not much we can do to change things at the moment. So what better way for a Nerd to fight back, then to use our vast knowledge of fiction to carry out our hopes and dreams for the future. In my first article to tackle the subject of fascism in the United States, I utilize fictional characters taking out the trash with extreme prejudice. Hooray for movies where the good guys win and the bad guys get their due justice!
These ten movies are my personal favorite nazi killing movies. For those times when you just need a little pick-me-up, turn to these feel-good stories of nazi scum getting exactly what they deserve. To the neo-nazi dipshits of today, may you have the day you so epically deserve as well.
10. The Rocketeer 8/10

Even Disney got in on the glorification of nazi killing with 1991’s The Rocketeer. Definitely the most light hearted on this list, it’s still a satisfying watch to see those nazi scum get their comeuppance. Exploding zeppelins, a flying badass, a beautiful dame and a representation of American patriotism when that actually meant something that shamed nazis (maga) and put them in their proper place, under a boot.
9. Defiance 8/10

The best part of Defiance is also the worst thing about it - it’s based on a true story. To say that it’s unfortunate that any of it had to happen is an understatement. But to say that true heroes stood up to those jack booted thugs in such historic fashion is nothing short of amazing. Daniel Craig, Liev Schreiber and Jamie Bell star as the Bielski Brothers who took it upon themselves to protect fleeing Jewish non-combatants in a Belorussian forest and eventually join Russian resistance fighters set to bring the fight to the nazis directly.
8. Raiders of the Lost Ark 10/10

Interfering and convoluting the nazis every step, archeologist, adventurer and all around badass, Indiana Jones is hired to find the Ark of the Covenant before those pesky white supremacist’s wet dreams can obtain its legendary powers for their own nefarious purposes. He’s suave, swift, capable and despises those mini-mustache worshipping jackasses. It’s Indiana Jones, how much do I really have to sell this one?
7. The Dirty Dozen 8/10

What a cast! What a premise. The OG Basterds. Inspiration for another on this list. It’s anti-authority, nazi disposing extravagance that is its own kind of fantasy. One rebellious Major, a group of military prisoners and a collective death wish. Their mission: parachute behind enemy lines and cause chaos for the enemy. Ironically, it’s quite glorious.
6. Overlord 8.5/10

Equal parts war movie and horror, Overlord is a concoction of nightmarish possibilities that entails mass casualties, resurrections and suicidal tendencies. A group of American soldiers land behind enemy lines in order to destroy a radio tower before D-Day is to take place. As they grow closer to the task at hand, they discover untold horrors around every corner and in the darkest depths of the nazi stronghold.
5. Sisu 9/10

One part John Wick, one part Inglourious Basterds, one part Terminator. Put together you get Aatami, a one-man wrecking crew just trying to mind his own damn business. It is of course the business of the SS to never mind their own and to torture, maim and murder pretty much anything not wearing a German uniform. Standing between him and his goal of sudden wealth in the form of dug up gold, is a unit of nazis just begging to die, brutally. When they refuse to let Aatami pass, he is more than willing to oblige them, brutally. This is the most straightforward tale of nazi killing on this list which only allows for the deaths to truly shine like the gold they keep trying to steal from the one man they should have allowed passage.

This particular journey into the subgenre of nazi comeuppance is possibly the most fun any characters are having as they dispose of the nazi scum beneath their boots. And the best part? They’re really good at it and they’re really creative with it. They laugh often, shoot constantly and dodge death defiantly. It is a murderer’s row of a cast featuring Henry Cavill, Alan Ritchson, Alex Pettyfer, Eiza González, Cary Elwes, Henry Golding, Til Schweiger and many others. Banded together they take the fight to the enemy and steal their shit in the process. Before the nazis die, they watch their plans die. Win win.
3. Fury 10/10

Most of my picks on this list all have a sense of playfulness to them. An implication that violence, when done to the right kind of subhuman excrement like nazis (or anyone who idolizes them) can be a group exercise in teamwork and seeing the beauty in brutality. These next two picks? Not so much. Fury is the one true war film on here that takes no joy in the carnage they are subjected to and must inflict on others, nazis or not. Brad Pitt leads a group of jaded tank operators in the final months of WWII. On their journey they witness the soullessness of war, the unforgiving nature of man’s true form and the depths of true brotherhood. Fury is spilling with graphic violence, merciless killing, unsanctimonious discord and perhaps worst of all, seemingly never ending collateral damage. It is a harrowing story that showcases the desire of killing but never glorifies it. “Ideals are peaceful. History is violent.” - Don “Wardaddy” Collier
2. Green Room 10/10

This is the most up to date story of nazi abhorrence and like Fury, it is unforgiving. It picks no favorites and attacks its main characters with a viciousness rarely seen in mainstream cinema. The Ain’t Rights are just a lowly punk band touring the northwest playing any venue, or Mexican restaurant, that will have them. On their way home from a lackluster tour they play one last venue, a neo-nazi bar in the middle of rural Oregon. And after witnessing a murder in the green room all hell breaks loose. The band just wants to leave and the nazis cannot allow that to happen. What transpires is a clusterfuck of mayhem, murder and sweet, sweet vengeance. That said, there will be casualties. And they will not go quietly or gently. Squeamish need not apply.
1. Inglourious Basterds 10/10

It feels like when this is on any list it tends to be quite high in the ranking. It can make the reveal slightly underwhelming. It may be predictable but it’s earned by providing the best of what this subgenre has to offer. A band of rapscallion Jewish soldiers are sent behind enemy lines for a secret mission to find and destroy nazis. And in the brilliant words of Lt. Aldo Raine, “You probably heard we ain't in the prisoner-takin' business; we in the killin' Nazi business. And cousin, business is a-boomin'.”
Inglourious Basterds is another shining example of remaining unsentimental about any characters of a story. By remaining removed from the emotions of storytelling, you can allow the characters to survive or perish naturally rather than trying to forcibly fight to make them reach the end of the story. Tarantino is a master of keeping his characters on equal measure, removing them from the board when the story demands it. Regardless of the actor in any particular role, he will kill them off if it fits the narrative. This allows the story to be genuinely exciting and unpredictable. Anyone can die here and many of them do. Many of them are nazis and that’s delightful. Only Christoph Waltz can win two Oscars by playing both the most heinous, racist, antisemitic nazi officer and the most well-meaning, non-racist former dental physician in back to back Tarantino masterpieces.
Tarantino takes the history of WWII and throws it through a window. Instead he gives us a fantastic fantasy of what we all wish it could have looked like. The nazi elite trapped, on fire, getting shot in the most glorious example of “shooting fish in a barrel” I’ve ever seen in cinema. And in the balcony, hitler himself getting countless machine gun rounds pumped into his pesky little face, his head exploding in amazing fashion. Theater explodes. Hans Landa gets something he can’t take off. Shit eating, nazi killing grins from our surviving heroes. Then this brilliant sign-off:
“You know somethin', Utivich? I think this just might be my masterpiece!” - Lt. Aldo Raine
(cut to black)
End Credits.
Perfect.
May we one day witness the end of fascism once and for all.
Dead Kennedys - Nazi Punks Fuck Off
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