I take it by this you mean you don't want something too artsy fartsy.
The Battle of Algiers is a hell of a movie. It tells the war of Algerian independence from both the French and Algerian perspective.
Au revoir, les enfants. Personally, I've seen enough holocaust movies to last me a life time. But if you haven't, get this one. It was blessed by the pope!
Stalingrad. Germany's answer to Saving Private Ryan
If you're wanting to get a movie with an otherworldly feel, you could just get a really old American movie. Early Charlie Chaplin movies take place in a world that, more all intents and purposes, does not exist anymore.