Black Americans have always grappled with serving their country — even when that country didn’t respect them back. That was even more complex for the brave men who took part in the Vietnam War while rising groups fighting for equity, like the Black Panthers, denounced the war’s very existence.
Director J.M. Harper captures those emotions in his documentary, Soul Patrol, which won the Directing Award for U.S. Documentary at this year’s Sundance Film Festival. The film chronicles the Vietnam War’s first Black special operations team: Company F, 51st Infantry Airborne (LRP / LRRP). Reuniting with the men who fought in the ops, Harper brings them together to tell their untold story and confront the past, in hopes of healing old wounds.
The film highlights veteran Ed Emanuel, one of the film’s executive producers, along with his fellow serviceman, Rice, who both served in the unit. “It was really about how we … done what we thought was important for America, but sometimes we are not recognized for it,” Rice shared in an interview with CBS News.
Harper agrees with that sentiment. “Black military history is being actively erased… Black soldiers’ stories belong in the archive of American warfare, American courage, American sacrifice,” the director stated through an interview with the Sundance Institute. “Soul Patrol exists to hold the line against forgetting.”
Soul Patrol is currently playing in select theaters and opens nationwide on November 13.
Here are five other films you can watch this November 11 to celebrate Veterans Day and to honor the Black men and women who proudly fought for the nation.
The Six Triple Eight (2024)
The bravery of Black women in uniform gets its long-overdue spotlight in this 2024 World War II drama. Kerry Washington delivers a standout performance as Major Charity Adams, leading the Women’s Army Corps unit tasked with sorting a staggering backlog of front-line mail. It’s an inspiring, emotional look at a group of women who refused to sit on the sidelines, proving that some of the military’s most essential battles were fought behind the scenes. Watch it on Netflix.
Devotion (2022)
This dramatization revisits the true story of Jesse Brown, the U.S. Navy’s first Black aviator, and his friendship with fellow fighter pilot and colleague Tom Hudner, formed during the Korean War. Brown, played by Jonathan Majors, fought severe systemic racism to earn his wings as a naval aviator. Tom Hudner (Glen Powell) joins his squadron as a loyal wingman. It’s a testament to the bonds of brotherhood in service, which know no color. Watch it on Prime Video.
Da 5 Bloods (2020)
Da Five Bloods is a fictional drama that reunites Black veterans as they look back on their time fighting in the Vietnam War. But its parallels to Soul Patrol abound: both films explore the brotherhood forged on the battlefield and how loss shapes their future. Delroy Lindo, Isiah Whitlock Jr., Jonathan Majors, Clarke Peters and Norm Lewis give memorable performances, along with their co-star, the late Chadwick Boseman, in one of his final roles. Watch it on Netflix.
Glory (1989)
An enduring masterpiece of military cinema, Glory brings to life the fierce bravery of the 54th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment, the Union Army’s first all-Black fighting unit during the Civil War. Anchored by powerhouse performances from Morgan Freeman, Matthew Broderick and Denzel Washington, whose towering turn earned him his first Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor, this deeply moving film remains an essential tribute to Black valor. Watch it on Netflix.
A Soldier’s Story (1984)
Denzel Washington has pretty much set the standard for powerful performances in military movies. The actor won an Oscar for his starring role in Glory. Here, he shows us how he was on his way to gold, giving a leading-man-worthy performance as an officer investigating the murder of a Black sergeant in a platoon of Louisiana soldiers during World War II. Watch it on Pluto TV.