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Movies like The Roses of the Desert (2006)

The best movies like The Roses of the Desert (2006) are What Did You Do in the War, Daddy? (1966), The Fascist (1961) and Oh! What a Lovely War (1969). If The Roses of the Desert hooked you with its war and comedy, these 20 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.

Quick picks

  1. What Did You Do in the War, Daddy? (1966)

    A by-the-book Captain is ordered to capture a strategic village in Italy. The Italian soldiers are willing to surrender, if they can have a festival first. The lieutenant convinces the Captain this is the only way. Because of aerial reconnaissance, they must look like they are fighting. To sort this out an intelligence officer is sent in. Meanwhile the festival gets complicated with the Mayors daughter.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & war

  2. The Fascist (1961)

    1944. Primo Arcovazzi is a fanatical and dim-witted Fascist Party militiaman who accepts to escort an opponent of the regime to Rome in the hope of be promoted — still oblivious as ever to the forthcoming fall of the regime.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & war

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  3. Oh! What a Lovely War (1969)

    The working-class Smiths change their initially sunny views on World War I after the five boys of the family witness the harsh reality of trench warfare.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & war

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  4. The Secret War of Harry Frigg (1968)

    When 5 allied generals are captured in Italy in WWII, it is a propaganda nightmare for the allies. The generals are all 1 star and refuse to take orders from each other in order to plan an escape. Harry Frigg is a private who has escaped from the guard house dozens of times. He is promoted to Major General and ordered to get the generals out once he is captured. Harry is willing to escape, but then he meets the countess...

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & war

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  5. Hot Shots! Part Deux (1993)

    Topper Harley is found to be working as an odd-job-man in a monastery. The CIA want him to lead a rescue mission into Iraq, to rescue the last rescue team, who went in to rescue the last rescue team—who went in to rescue hostages left behind after Desert Storm.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & war

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  6. Buck Privates (1941)

    Petty con artists Slicker Smith and Herbie Brown mistakenly join the Army evading the cops. The cop chasing them winds up as their drill instructor. A rich young man and his former working class chauffeur are not only in the same unit, they're vying for a pretty girl who seems attracted to both.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & war

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  7. Catch-22 (1970)

    A WWII military pilot makes a valiant effort to be certified insane in order to be excused from flying missions. But there's a catch.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both war & comedy

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  8. Carry On Sergeant (1958)

    Sergeant Grimshawe wants to retire in the flush of success by winning the Star Squad prize with his very last platoon of newly called-up National Servicemen. But a motley bunch they turn out to be, and it's up to Grimshawe to put the no-hopers through their paces.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & war

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  9. Hot Shots! (1991)

    The gang that created Airplane! and The Naked Gun sets its sights on Top Gun in this spoof. Topper Harley is a talented but unstable fighter pilot with an axe to grind: clearing the family name. His mission is to avenge his father and save a mission sabotaged by greedy weapons manufacturers. He also gets involved in a relationship with Ramada Thompson, a woman with an unusually talented stomach. Hot Shots! makes fun of a variety of other films, from Dances with Wolves to The Fabulous Baker Boys.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & war

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  10. Shoulder Arms (1918)

    An American doughboy, stationed in France during the Great War, goes on a daring mission behind enemy lines and becomes a hero.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & war

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  11. Confessions of a Lady Cop (1976)

    Gianna Amicucci works in the house of the head of her hometown police force and enters the academy with a kickback from him. She is a beautiful woman (she generously sheds clothes during the film) and has to overcome her male colleagues prejudices, but she gains their respect through a series of brilliant operations.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy

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  12. Wolf Hound (2022)

    Inspired by the real-life German special operations unit KG 200 that shot down, repaired, and flew Allied aircraft as Trojan horses, "Wolf Hound" takes place in 1944 German-occupied France and follows the daring exploits of Jewish-American fighter pilot Captain David Holden. Ambushed behind enemy lines, Holden must rescue a captured B-17 Flying Fortress crew, evade a ruthless enemy stalking him at every turn, and foil a plot that could completely alter the outcome of World War II.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both war

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  13. A Reason to Live, a Reason to Die (1972)

    A dishonored Union Army officer leads a group of convicts to retake Fort Holman from the Confederate Army.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both war

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  14. They Called Him Bulldozer (1978)

    The "Bulldozer", a former football star, is now working as a fisherman. As a group of street-people arranges a football match against the local Armybase, he is asked to be their trainer. His boat was damaged by a submarine and he currently has no work, so he agrees.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy

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  15. Sahara (1995)

    After the fall of Tobruk in June 1942, U.S. Army sergeant Joe Gunn leads his tank into the Sahara desert, in order to evade advancing Rommel's forces and reach Allied lines. Along the way he picks up few Allied soldiers, but soon they are running out of water. They find water at the ancient well, but the well is a goal of an entire German battalion. Despite the impossible odds, Sergeant Gunn decides to defend the well.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both war

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  16. A Walk in the Sun (1945)

    It's 1943 and the allied landings in and around the town of Salerno,Italy are underway.A platoon from the U.S 36th Infantry Division is tasked with advancing 6 miles inland to blow a bridge before clearing a nearby farmhouse, with the hope of blocking an expected counter attack on the Division's bridgehead.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both war

  17. Wrong Cops (2013)

    A group of bad cops look to dispose of a body that one of them accidentally shot.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy

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  18. Jarhead: Law of Return (2019)

    Major Ronan Jackson, an accomplished fighter pilot for the Israel Defense Forces and son of a U.S. Senator, is shot down while flying through Syrian airspace. After miraculously surviving the crash, Jackson is taken captive by a group of Hezbollah militiamen. A squad of elite soldiers, led by Gunnery Sergeant Dave Torres, risk their own lives in the hopes of saving an ally they've never met.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both war

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  19. Be Sick… It's Free (1968)

    Comedy about the flawed Italian healthcare system of the time and a doctor's expeirence with it.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy

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  20. Roaring Years (1962)

    In this satire inspired by Nikolai Gogol’s The Government Inspector (aka The Inspector General) and transported to fascist era Italy, the (supposed) incognito visit of a Roman fascist official to a tiny country town shakes deeply the ruling class and their lack of integrity.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy

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Like The Roses of the Desert and something else?

Blend two favourites and we’ll find the films in between.

Frequently asked questions

What are the best movies like The Roses of the Desert?

The closest matches to The Roses of the Desert are What Did You Do in the War, Daddy? (1966), The Fascist (1961) and Oh! What a Lovely War (1969). Below are 17 more, each with the reason it matches.

What should I watch after The Roses of the Desert?

Start with What Did You Do in the War, Daddy? (1966), the closest match to The Roses of the Desert.

What is the highest-rated movie like The Roses of the Desert?

Be Sick… It's Free (1968), rated 7.0/10 by 221 TMDB users.

What is the newest movie like The Roses of the Desert?

Wolf Hound (2022) is the most recent release on this list.

Are there Italian movies like The Roses of the Desert?

Yes: The Fascist (1961), Confessions of a Lady Cop (1976) and A Reason to Live, a Reason to Die (1972).

How are movies similar to The Roses of the Desert chosen?

First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside The Roses of the Desert, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.

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