> is it even possible to run windows with just a command line
Docker supports Windows containers [0], but this requires a Windows host so it probably doesn't help you too much. Windows PE [1] does support a GUI, but it doesn't include any of the traditional shell components. Nano Server [2] is the closest to what you're talking about, but it's been deprecated.
> start menu, no file manager or is the ui too integrated into the OS
Windows Phone [3], Windows IoT [4], and Xbox are all NT-based, and none of them include a traditional file manager or shell, but they all do have GUIs.
[0]: https://hub.docker.com/r/microsoft/windows
[1]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Windows_Preinstallation_Enviro...
[2]: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/previous-versions/windows-...
[3]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Windows_Phone
[4]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Windows_IoT
