US filmmaker Oliver Stone says America has 'hunger for war'

Oscar-winning US filmmaker Oliver Stone criticized what he described as America's continuing militarism, saying the country has a "hunger for war" and warning of the risk of an even larger conflict.

Speaking at Rome's Casa del Cinema during a screening of his 1989 film Born on the Fourth of July, Stone reflected on the Vietnam War and subsequent US conflicts, according to Italian daily La Repubblica on Tuesday.

"America has a hunger for war, it's sort of a need of this country. I think it's the saddest thing I've ever seen," Stone said. "A lot of it is just absurd, and our country has been deeply hurt by it."

Stone, a Vietnam War veteran known for films including Platoon, JFK and Born on the Fourth of July, said the lessons of previous conflicts had gone unheeded.

"We've gone back to bad habits. And the bad habits continue," he said.

Stone said the US had taken a "much more militaristic path" since his film was released in 1989, warning: "I hope that people remember, watch it, and remember. Or we'll find ourselves in an even bigger and worse war. And there will be even more pain."