War Machine

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War Machine

TV-MA

2017

2h 2m

War

Comedy

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

48%

Tomatometer

95 Reviews

35%

Popcornmeter

5,000+ Ratings

A successful, charismatic four-star general, Glenn McMahon, leaps in like a rock star to command NATO forces in Afghanistan, only to be taken down by a journalist's no-holds-barred exposé.

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Critics Consensus

War Machine's uneven execution keeps its fact-based story from cleanly hitting its targets, but those flaws are frequently offset by sharp wit and solid acting.

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Brad Newsome

Sydney Morning Herald

It's hard to get past the feeling that there had to be a better movie there.

Mar 28, 2018

Full Review

Bilge Ebiri

Village Voice

Pitt's ridiculous, wildly over-the-top performance somehow keeps it all together.

Jul 1, 2017

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David Sims

The Atlantic

War Machine is a failure, but could perhaps have been a great film if it had tried a little harder to pick a tone.

Jun 9, 2017

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Brian Eggert

Deep Focus Review

Given the story, the potential for biting satire, the cast and filmmaker, War Machine is disappointing for its toothless and unfunny result.

Rated: 2/4

Apr 4, 2022

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Cory Woodroof

Curnblog

War is Hell, but War Machine is frustrating.

Feb 11, 2022

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Olly Richards

NME (New Musical Express)

America's disastrous peace mission in Afghanistan has been turned into a sharp, satirical comedy starring Brat Pitt.

Rated: 3/5

May 4, 2021

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Benjamin Z

Great commentary on the self aggrandizing nature of those with power to decide the fates of people they’ll never know

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

07/26/25

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Matthew K

This Movie has become more relevant in 2025 than it did when it first came out. Watching it can be frustrating at times as the film illustrates correctly that counter insurgency operations always fail yet the United States military complex is willing to try again anyway, only to fail again expecting a different result. This is a underrated film showing how personality complexes shape foreign policy in this case for the worse 5/5.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

07/21/25

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Viktor B

The movie mocks not only the military, but also politicians, journalists and the entire decision-making system. It is neither an action movie nor a drama in the classical sense. Rather, it is a bitter parable disguised as a farce. It may seem boring or dragged out to those who expected the usual "army" dynamics from the movie. But for those who appreciate clever satire, " War Machine" will give food for thought. I suggest you watch it

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

04/08/25

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Rachel E

First movie to make me tear up in many years. A poignant satirical drama that explores the most tragic American foreign policy decision of our generation.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/25/25

Full Review

Michael S

Not bad movie. It has a lot of truth to it in what they say etc, might be why the rating is bad because some people don't like it and think it's not funny! You can't invade a country and pretending that's how you help them etc. But as we all know war is just about money, they don't care about that people dies since they making money!

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

01/01/25

Full Review

Audience Member

I think the reason why this has bad reviews is because the situation seems so disappointing that it can't possibly be real. But as someone who has exposure in military and in a place with insurgency, I think this depicts it so realistically. Someone who is so accomplished and so ideal can be brought down by unbelievable reasons just by being the overall in charge and just because you refuse to bend to others, and life and the world go on. More so, the frustrations of fighting insurgents who are unregimented is so palpable in the movie. I really liked the movie.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

10/24/24

Full Review

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David Michôd

Director

Brad Pitt

Gen. Glen McMahon

Anthony Hayes

Pete Duckman

John Magaro

Cory Staggart

Anthony Michael Hall

Greg Pulver

Emory Cohen

Willy Dunne

War Machine: Clip - Rolling Stone

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War Machine: Movie Clip - You Got Your Troops

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War Machine: Teaser Trailer 1

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Synopsis

A successful, charismatic four-star general, Glenn McMahon, leaps in like a rock star to command NATO forces in Afghanistan, only to be taken down by a journalist's no-holds-barred exposé.

Director: David Michôd
Producer: Ian Bryce, Dede Gardner, Jeremy Kleiner, Brad Pitt
Screenwriter: David Michôd
Production Co: Plan B Entertainment, Netflix, Ratpac Entertainment
Rating: TV-MA
Genre: War, Comedy
Original Language: English
Release Date (Streaming): Jun 3, 2017
Runtime: 2h 2m

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