The Thin Red Line is an Academy Award-nominated 1998 American film which tells a fictional story of United States forces during the Battle of Guadalcanal in World War II with the focus on the men in C Company, most notably Private Witt (James Caviezel) and his conflicted feelings about fighting in the war, Colonel Tall (Nick Nolte) and his desire to win the battle at any cost in order to get a promotion, and Private Bell (Ben Chaplin) and the dissolution of his marriage back home while he fights in the war.

The film marked director Terrence Malick's return to filmmaking after a twenty year absence. Malick adapted the screenplay from the novel of the same name by James Jones, which had previously been adapted in a 1964 film. The film features a large ensemble cast. The project took 20 years to make as Malick spent years researching and deciding whether or not to do it. Once it was announced that he would be returning to filmmaking, many big name movie stars expressed interest in appearing in the film, including Robert De Niro, Kevin Costner, Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt. Billy Bob Thornton, Martin Sheen, Gary Oldman, Jason Patric, Bill Pullman, Lukas Haas, Viggo Mortensen and Mickey Rourke acted in the movie, but their scenes were eventually removed. Reportedly, the first assembled cut took seven months to edit and ran three and a half hours, with Thornton contributing three hours of narrative voice-over material, none of which was ultimately used.

The Thin Red Line was not successful at the North American box office where it only grossed USD $36 million, well below its $52 million budget. Critical response was generally strong and the film was nominated for seven Academy Awards: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best in Cinematography, Best in Film Editing, Best Original Score and Best in Sound Mixing. It won the top prize at the 1999 Berlin International Film Festival. Martin Scorsese ranked it as his second favorite film of the 1990s on Roger Ebert's television show.

The Thin Red Line is a 1964 film based on James Jones's novel of the same name. The film follows the life of a number of US soldiers during the battle of Guadalcanal.

The black and white film was filmed in Spain. Bernard Gordon's screenplay of Jones's work concentrates on the relationship between the young rule breaking survival at any cost Private Doll (Keir Dullea) and the older veteran Sgt Welsh (Jack Warden). The film features many memorable scenes of combat between the American soldiers and the Japanese and great performances by the cast.

Another film adaptation of the novel was released in 1998.

In World War II, the outcome of the battle of Guadalcanal will strongly influence the Japanese's advance into the pacific. A group of young soldiers is brought in as a relief for the battle-weary Marine units. The exhausting fight for a key-positioned airfield that allows control over a 1000-mile radius puts the men of the Army Rifle company C-for-Charlie through hell. The horrors of war forms the soldiers into a tight-knit group, their emotions develop into bonds of love and even family. The reasons for this war get further away as the world for the men gets smaller and smaller until their fighting is for mere survival and the life of the other men with them. Written by Julian Reischl

In 1943, the first major U.S. offensive of World War II is drawing to a close on the South Pacific island of Guadalcanal. To put an end to this campaign, the United States Army arrives with a full division of troops and equipment, deployed to break the last resistence of the Japanese. The exploits of this Division are seen from a number of perspectives amongst the soldiers; to include a war weary Sergeant, a power hungry Colonel, a Private who has known only desertion and AWOL, and a Company Commander is is struggling with his abilities as a leader. Written by Anthony Hughes

Dark tale of one man's determination to survive his tour of duty. Separated from his new wife after only eight days of marriage, private Doll suddenly decides that he will no longer blindly follow the orders of his superiors, following his own mind instead. What follows are a series of poorly planned attacks, in which Doll saves the day, time after time; eventually leading to the taking of the Elephant in the battle of Guadalcanal during World War II. Sgt. Welsh, Doll's immediate line officer grows an affinity for Doll, helping him through his first Kill, but never quite allowing himself to admit his admiration for the young soldier. The final scene of the movie brings home the true horror of war and the meaninglessness of it all. Written by Tophee